Budweiser Man of the Match: JOAO RICARDO (ANG)

16 June 2006

Angola goalkeeper Joao Ricardo made several stunning saves and dominated his penalty area as he led Angola to a 0-0 draw with Mexico on Friday night. The performance was enough to make him the first keeper to be named Budweiser Man of the Match at the 2006 FIFA World Cup Germany™.

Among all of Joao Ricardo's superb saves, perhaps the biggest came in the 88th minute. With Angola reduced to ten men, Mexico captain Rafael Marquez fired a rocket that seemed destined for the upper left-hand corner of the net, but the Angolan keeper sprung to tip the ball wide.

"Joao Ricardo was simply outstanding," said FIFA Technical Study Group member Teofilo Cubillas. "He made some excellent saves and if he hadn’t been there, Angola surely would have lost this match. He only made one error in the entire match, but it wasn’t costly. Overall, he was just great."