Spain dodge penalty madness to edge out Paraguay

We all love drama, but sometimes things get a little bit silly. Spain's 1-0 quarter-final win over Paraguay was far from breathtaking, save for one moment of incisiveness from Andres Iniesta and five minutes of ludicrously entertaining penalty insanity.

Paraguay were awarded a penalty just before the hour mark, but Oscar Cardozo's spot kick was saved by Iker Casillas. Something to remember given the events of the following few minutes: several Spain players had encroached into the penalty area as Cardozo struck his shot.

A matter of seconds after Cardozo's miss, Spain had a penalty of their own. Xabi Alonso stepped up and coolly found the net, only for a retake to be demanded on the basis that encroachment by a Spanish player had taken place. When Alonso's retake was saved, referee Carlos Batres failed to see a blatant foul by the goalkeeper on Cesc Fabregas as he prepared to shoot during the ensuing melee.

With less than ten minutes to go, Spain got their winner. Iniesta pressed towards goal before knocking a clever pass out to Pedro, whose shot hit the upright and bounced out in the direction of David Villa. The new Barcelona signing composed himself and bent in a shot that eventually found the net after striking both posts.

Spain will play Germany in a mouth-watering semi-final.