Women Pool B - Germany v Argentina: 0-3 (0-2)

Carlos Retegui had a good day at the office as his women's team joined the Argentina men's team at the top of their respective pools after beating Germany 3-0. Las Leonas still give the impression of a team that hasn't yet hit top gear, as they put in a workmanlike performance to overcome a German side that was hardworking, but lacked the flair necessary to pressure the Argentine defence. The one concern for the Argentine coach will be the early departure from the field of play by his star player Luciana Aymar, with an unspecified leg injury.

Las Leonas, wearing a bright pink second strip, opened their account through a penalty corner by Silvina D'Elia (4'), but then saw two 'goals' disallowed for infringements before they doubled their score on 32 minutes through Noel Barrionuevo. The drag-flcik specialist fired the ball in at low level past the outstretched foot of 'keeper Barbara Vogel.

For the German team, Lisa Altenberg came closest to breaking through the pick defence, but her shot was well-saved by Belen Succi in the Argentine goal. A solo run by Maike Stockel was cut down before it entered the circle by Macarena Rodriguez Perez. One notable feature of the Argentina performance was the solidity of the team when defending. While Las Leonas have always been frighteningly good on the attack, the team now has a strength and cohesiveness, with all players working hard to get behind the ball.

The sucker punch, which effectively put an end to the German challenge came from the stick of Carla Rebecchi (45'). The midfielder had been busy all match, creating attacks from the heart of midfield, so it was fitting that she was able to seal the performance with a turn and strike that flew past Vogel into the goal.

Putting a gloss on an under-par performance, Jamilon Mulders, coach to Germany, said: "I am pleased with the performance. We defended quite well sometimes and we handled the strong Argentine defence well. We are one of the teams that does not have a central programme, so I am happy with our performance. We have no reason to change anything in our match against the USA."

Speaking after the game, one of the Argentine goal scorers, Carla Rebecchi, said: "We played well and, importantly, we were effective at the penalty corners. For us it was great. We were able to play our game."

And a very satisfied Carlos Retegui added: "We are happy at the three points of the game. We attacked well and we are progressing step-by-step. We will keep doing the same against Korea and England.

The one concern for the Argentine coach will be the departure of Luciana Aymar from the pitch 20 minutes from time. There was very little information except that the star player has an injury to her leg muscle but the coaching team do not know how bad it is yet.

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