England's Paul Gascoigne was one of the stars - tears and all

England lost on penalties in the semi-finals to West Germany who went on to win probably the worst final in history for their third title.

They beat Argentina 1-0 courtesy of a dubious Andreas Brehme penalty.

The South Americans were a shadow of the side that had lifted the trophy four years before.

They were lucky even to make it past the first stage after losing to nine-man Cameroon in the opening game.

The Indomitable Lions were every neutral's favourites before finally losing to a mightily relieved England in the last eight.

Luciano Pavarotti, who sang the tournament anthem Nessun Dorma, became a global celebrity, but, with the exception of Roger Milla and his Cameroon team-mates, there were too few stars on the pitch.

The Republic of Ireland were making their first appearance in the final stages of a World Cup.

They drew 1-1 with England in their group match, a result which helped both teams go through.

In the last 16, Ireland beat Romania on penalties, while England overcame Belgium courtesy of a dramatic David Platt volley in the last minute of extra-time.

That brought them up against Cameroon in the last eight and the Africans gave England an almighty shock.

With 38-year-old Milla once again excelling as a second-half substitute, Cameroon took a 2-1 lead before two Gary Lineker penalties helped England through, again after extra-time.

A solitary goal from the prolific Toto Schilaci saw Italy beat Ireland to move into the last four, where they played Argentina in Naples, while England faced their old rivals.

England's semi-final in Turin produced one of the most vivid images of the tournament as Paul Gascoigne burst into tears after a booking which meant he would miss the final if his side went through.

They did not.

Both matches went to penalties, with Germany and Argentina winning to set up a re-match of the 1986 final.

England lost the third-place play-off 2-1 to the hosts, but Germany gained revenge for their defeat by Argentina four years before.

Brehme coolly converted the decisive penalty in the 85th minute as Argentina became the first side not to score in the final and to have not one, but two players sent off.

Group A

Italy 1-0 Austria Czechoslovakia 5-1 USA Italy 1-0 USA

Czechoslovakia 1-0 Austria Austria 2-1 USA Italy 2-0 Czechoslovakia

	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
Italy	3	3	0	0	4	0	6
Czechoslovakia	3	2	0	1	6	3	4
Austria	3	1	0	2	2	3	2
United States	3	0	0	3	2	8	0

Group B

Cameroon 1-0 Argentina Romania 2-0 USSR Argentina 2-0 USSR

Cameroon 2-1 Romania USSR 4-0 Cameroon Argentina 1-1 Romania

	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
Cameroon	3	2	0	1	3	5	4
Romania	3	1	1	1	4	3	3
Argentina	3	1	1	1	3	2	3
USSR	3	1	0	2	4	4	2

Group C

Brazil 2-1 Sweden Costa Rica 1-0 Scotland Scotland 2-1 Sweden

Brazil 1-0 Costa Rica Costa Rica 2-1 Sweden Brazil 1-0 Scotland

	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
Brazil	3	3	0	0	4	1	6
Costa Rica	3	2	0	1	3	2	4
Scotland	3	1	0	2	2	3	2
Sweden	3	0	0	3	3	6	0

Group D

Colombia 2-0 UAE West Germany 4-1 Yugoslavia Yugoslavia 1-0 Colombia

West Germany 5-1 UAE Yugoslavia 4-1 UAE West Germany 1-1 Colombia

	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
West Germany	3	2	1	0	10	3	5
Yugoslavia	3	2	0	1	6	5	4
Colombia	3	1	1	1	3	2	3
United Arab Emirates	3	0	0	3	2	11	0

Group E

Belgium 2-0 South Korea Uruguay 0-0 Spain Spain 3-1 South Korea

Belgium 3-1 Uruguay Uruguay 1-0 South Korea Spain 2-1 Belgium

	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
Spain	3	2	1	0	5	2	5
Belgium	3	2	0	1	6	3	4
Uruguay	3	1	1	1	2	3	3
South Korea	3	0	0	3	1	6	0

Group F

England 1-1 Rep of Ireland Holland 1-1 Egypt England 0-0 Holland

Rep of Ireland 0-0 Egypt England 1-0 Egypt Rep of Ireland 1-1 Holland

	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
England	3	1	2	0	2	1	4
Republic of Ireland	3	0	3	0	2	2	3
Holland	3	0	3	0	2	2	3
Egypt	3	0	2	1	1	2	2