PSW's Daily World Cup Update: Thursday, June 24, 2010 [VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS]

See below for Day 14 results and recaps (including video highlights), a preview of Day 15, news from around the tournament, group standings, and a TV schedule for the upcoming week.

Also, be sure to check out PSW guest blogger Ben Mahler\'s South African Scenes posts - thoughts and first-hand observations on the World Cup, the atmosphere, and South African culture.
Post 1: AYOBA! - vuvuzelas are everywhere and it\'s hard not to get caught up in the “Ayoba!” – a phrase translating into joy and happiness
Post 2: USA...A-O-K? - other nations\' reactions to the disallowed U.S. goal vs Slovenia

[+ Day 1]  [+ Day 2]  [+ Day 3] [+ Day 4] [+ Day 5] [+ Day 6] [+ Day 7] [+ Day 8]
[+ Day 9] [+ Day 10] [+ Day 11] [+ Day 12] [+ Day 13]
Day 14 Results and Recaps:
Paraguay  0:0  New Zealand - New Zealand\'s defense has proven to be tough to score on, though to be fair, Paraguay didn\'t really need to score today. The best chance of the game came from Paraguay substitute Edgar Benitez in the 76th minute, only to be stopped by a great save from New Zealand GK Mark Paston. With the 0-0 draw, Paraguay still won Group F and cruised into the Round of 16. New Zealand went undefeated in this World Cup, though the draws only gave them three total points and left them in third place. [+ VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS]

Slovakia  3:2  Italy - The defending champions are going home early, and Slovakia, who sat in last place in the group leading up to this game, advances through with Paraguay. Who would have thought that the two teams who met in the finals four years ago would be leaving in the group stage? Not only that, but Italy and France both finished last in their groups. Italy gave up an early goal in the 25th minute when Slovakia\'s Robert Vittek took advantage of a bad pass from Daniele De Rossi in the midfield. Vittek notched his second goal in the 73rd on a close range shot off a corner kick to double the lead. The Azzurri fought back and made it interesting in the final minutes. Antonio Di Natale scored in the 81st, but Slovakia\'s Kamil Kopunek answered back with his own. Fabio Quagliarella scored in injury time for Italy, though the Azzurri ran out of time to complete the comeback.

Cameroon  1:2  Netherlands - Both teams knew their fate going into this match, but it didn\'t prevent either of them from fighting - Cameroon for pride, the Netherlands for three more points. The Netherlands went ahead in the 36th minute when Robin Van Persie scored after some nifty passing and then "five-holing" the Cameroon goalkeeper Hamidou Souleymanou. Samuel Eto\'o had Cameroon\'s only goal, after a hand ball in the box gave him a penalty kick. Returning from a hamstring injury, superstar Arjen Robben came on in the 73rd minute and showed what an immediate impact he can have on a game. After beating multiple defenders, Robben curled a gorgeous shot past Souleymanou, which hit the post. The rebound went to substitute Klaas Jan Huntelaar, who showed great composure and put it in for the game-winner.


Denmark  1:3  Japan - The Asian teams are showing strong, and Japan advanced to the Round of 16 after a convincing win against Denmark. Both of Japan\'s first half goals came from direct shots on free kicks less than 15 minutes apart. Keisuke Honda scored the first one in the 17th minute, which went over the wall and into the far corner past goalkeeper Thomas Sorensen\'s reach. Yusuhito Endo\'s kick was a curling beauty that went around the wall and left the GK with no chance. The Danes got their only goal in the 81st minute when Jon Dahl Tomasson slotted in the rebound from his own penalty kick. Shinji Okazaki secured the win and Japan\'s advancement in the 87th minute. [+ VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS]

Looking Ahead to Day 15:
The top two teams in Group G, Portugal and Brazil, will face off at 10am. Brazil has coasted through so far, but they will see a tougher match against Portugal, who scored seven goals in their last match against North Korea. Though there\'s little chance of either advancing, North Korea and Ivory Coast play in the other Group G game. First place Chile battles against Spain, who came back after their shocking loss in the first game to get three points against Honduras. Will they be able to take the top spot in Group H? Honduras is out of the running, but Switzerland still has a chance to advance.

News From Around The Cup:
* Landon Donovan’s dramatic goal on Wednesday didn’t just keep the United States in the World Cup. It also may have paved the way for a reconciliation with his estranged actress wife.

* President Barack Obama called the U.S. World Cup soccer team Thursday to congratulate it on an "extraordinary victory" this week and to wish the team luck in the next round of the tournament.

* Brazil is likely to make two changes for its final Group G match against Portugal on Friday, with Julio Baptista replacing the suspended Kaka and Dani Alves coming in for the injured Elano.

* South African Police Service spokeswoman Brigadier Sally de Beer says extra security measures will be in place for the World Cup match between England and Germany.

* France\'s World Cup squad arrived home to a cold welcome after a humiliating early exit condemned by domestic media as "A State Scandal."

* Jose-Marcia Garcia-Aranda, head of refereeing for FIFA, is "very, very satisfied with the performance of the referees." Um, that makes one of you, Jose-Marcia.

World Cup Group Standings (as of 6/24/10):
Group A
Uruguay (2-1-0; 7pts) - Advance to Second Round
Mexico (1-1-0; 4pts) - Advance to Second Round
South Africa (1-1-1; 4pts)
France (0-1-2; 1pt)

Group B
Argentina (3-0-0; 9pts) - Advance to Second Round
South Korea (1-1-1; 4pts) - Advance to Second Round
Greece (1-0-2; 3pts)
Nigeria (0-1-2; 1pt)

Group C
United States (1-2-0; 5pts) - Advance to Second Round
England (1-2-0; 5pts) - Advance to Second Round
Slovenia (1-1-1; 4pts)
Algeria (0-1-2; 1pt)

Group D
Germany (2-0-1; 6pts) - Advance to Second Round
Ghana (1-1-1; 4pts) - Advance to Second Round
Australia (1-1-1; 4pts)
Serbia (1-0-2; 3pts)

Group E
Netherlands (3-0-0; 9pts) - Advance to Second Round
Japan (2-0-1; 6pts) - Advance to Second Round
Denmark (1-0-2; 3pts)
Cameroon (0-0-3; 0pts)

Group F
Paraguay (1-2-0; 5pts) - Advance to Second Round
Slovakia (1-1-1; 4pts) - Advance to Second Round
New Zealand (0-3-0; 3pts)
Italy (0-2-1; 2pts)

Group G
Brazil (2-0-0; 6pts)
Portugal (1-1-0; 4pts)
Ivory Coast (0-1-1; 1pt)
North Korea (0-0-2; 0pts)

Group H
Chile (2-0-0; 6pts)
Spain (1-0-1; 3pts)
Switzerland (1-0-1; 3pts)
Honduras (0-0-2; 0pts)

TV Schedule for upcoming week (all times are EST):
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Paraguay v New Zealand - 10:00am - ESPN2 (Group F)
Slovakia v Italy - 10:00am - ESPN (Gropu F)
Cameroon v Netherlands - 2:30pm - ESPN2 (Group E)
Denmark v Japan - 2:30pm - ESPN (Group E)

Friday, June 25, 2010
Portugal v Brazil - 10:00am - ESPN (Group G)
North Korea v Ivory Coast - 10:00am - ESPN2 (Group G)
Chile v Spain - 2:30pm - ESPN (Group H)
Switzerland v Honduras - 2:30pm - ESPN2 (Group H)

Saturday, June 26, 2010
Uruguay v South Korea -10:00am  - ESPN
USA v Ghana - 2:30pm - ABC

Sunday, June 27, 2010
Germany v England - 10:00am - ESPN
Argentina v Mexico - 2:30pm - ABC

Monday, June 28, 2010
Netherlands v Slovakia - 10:00am - ESPN
1G v 2H - 2:30pm - ESPN