FIFA World Cup: Germany beat Sweden 2-1 to stay alive
Sochi, June 24 : Tony Kroos produced a last gasp winner as Germany revived their campaign with a 2-1 win over Sweden in a Group F match of the FIFA World Cup here.
Ola Toivonen gave Sweden the lead with a superb finish in the 32nd minute during the match on Saturday.
Germany displayed large doses of their famed fighting spirit as they staged a strong comeback in the second half. Marco Reus (48th minute) got the equaliser early in the second half.
Germany left everything to the last minute, scoring in the 95th minute, avoiding what could have been an embarrassing elimination from the World Cup in the group stage.
The Germans felt disaster coming when Ola Toinoven scored the first goal in the 32nd minute, giving Sweden a 1-0 lead by half time, Efe news reports.
To Germany's relief, Marco Reus scored three minutes into the second half off a cross from the left by Timo Werner, giving his teammates the jolt of energy and confidence they needed.
Germany soon took control of the match, achieving nearly 80 per cent possession of the ball and finding several clear chances to score, although the Swedish defence held the line.
Even though Jerome Boateng received a red card in the 83rd minute, the Germans continued to play as one would expect from the former World Cup champions.
In the 89th minute, Germany's Mario Gomez was close to scoring with a superb header that was deflected by keeper Robin Olsen.
It wasn't until the 95th minute that Germany sealed their 2-1 victory with a free kick by Toni Kroos from the left of the box, beautifully curling the ball into the far corner of the net.
The rest of the game saw the Germans dominate as they created and wasted a hatful of chances.
The Swedish defence also did well, holding the defending champions at bay with some last ditch defending.
Kroos finally found the winner five minutes into second half added time when he curled in a free-kick at the far post.
Sweden and Germany are now tied in Group F with three points each, while Mexico is in first place with six points and South Korea is last with zero point.
Germany have three points from two matches and will face South Korea in their final group engagement. Sweden, who had beaten the Koreans in their first match, remained on three points as well.
They will take on Mexico in their third and final group match.
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BJP worker’s 16-year-old son allegedly casts eight votes in Uttar Pradesh’s Farrukhabad; Video viral
Lucknow (Farrukhabad): A viral video has surfaced showing a 16-year-old son of a BJP worker allegedly casting eight votes to the saffron party during the ongoing general elections in Uttar Pradesh. The video has sparked controversy, and the opposition has urged for prompt action from the Election Commission of India, reports scroll.in.
The video shared by the Samajwadi Party President Akhilesh Yadav on micro-blogging site ‘X’, showed the youngster recording himself while casting multiple times in a series of instances. The incident reportedly took place in Khiri Pamaran village, which falls under the Aliganj Assembly constituency within the Farrukhabad parliamentary seat. Mukesh Rajput, the sitting MP, is the BJP candidate in this constituency. Polling in Farrukhabad occurred on May 13 during the fourth phase of the general election.
In the viral video, the youngster is seen casting eight votes in total, all for the BJP, one by one with different clippings.
The youngster in the video has been identified as Rajan Singh Thakur, confirmed his father, Anil Singh Thakur to the Scroll.in. Anil Singh Thakur is the gram pradhan (village head) of Khiri Pamaran and a member of the BJP.
Anil defending his son told the Scroll that the ‘Video misrepresented his son,’ and claimed that the voting was done when the machine was being tested in some instances and other clipping of him voting on behalf of mentally and physically disabled voters was merged and made into a video.
Despite the Anil's caims, the video has drawn significant criticism. Subhash Chandra Prajapati, the additional district magistrate of Farrukhabad, confirmed to the Scroll that the administration will file a case soon. He mentioned that the returning officer is investigating the matter following a directive from the chief electoral officer in Lucknow.
The opposition has been vocal in its criticism, with Akhilesh Yadav demanding action from the Election Commission. In his social media post, Yadav accused the BJP of undermining the electoral process and described the party's booth committee as a "loot committee." The Congress party also called on the Election Commission to take action, in a ‘X’ post the party wrote, “Dear Election Commission…are you watching..a boy is voting 8-8 times ... .at least wake up now.”
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, took to ‘X’ to express, “Fearing and seeing their defeat, the BJP is attempting to undermine democracy by pressuring government machinery to deny the mandate. The Congress expects all officers performing election duties to remember their constitutional responsibilities despite any pressure from those in power. Otherwise, once the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) bloc government is formed, actions will be taken to ensure that anyone will think ten times before violating their 'Oath to the Constitution'."
Following the video's circulation, Naval Kishor Shakya, the Samajwadi Party candidate in Farrukhabad, filed a complaint with the district election officer. Shakya's complaint alleges that Rajan Singh Thakur cast votes after snatching voter information slips from other voters and that he was assisted by Dinesh Thakur, the local police station's station house officer. Shakya has called for re-polling at the affected polling center.
In a related incident earlier in May, Gujarat Police arrested two BJP workers for allegedly casting bogus votes and live-streaming the act on social media in the Dahod constituency. The Election Commission conducted re-polling at the affected booth following the incident.
The opposition INDIA bloc, including the Congress and the Samajwadi Party, has repeatedly accused the Election Commission of failing to take prompt action against election model code of conduct violations.
अपनी हार सामने देख कर भाजपा जनादेश को झुठलाने के लिए सरकारी तंत्र पर दबाव बना कर लोकतंत्र को लूटना चाहती है।
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) May 19, 2024
कांग्रेस चुनावी ड्यूटी कर रहे सभी अधिकारियों से यह अपेक्षा करती है कि वो सत्ता के दबाव के सामने अपनी संवैधानिक ज़िम्मेदारी न भूलें।
वरना INDIA की सरकार बनते ही ऐसी… https://t.co/fk4wXL8QZy
