Spain axe Torres for World Cup semi-final

Fav Tag: DURBAN: Spain coach Vicente Del Bosque on Wednesday dropped Liverpool striker Fernando Torres for the World Cup semi-final against Germany at the Durban Stadium.

Torres, who has been in poor form during the World Cup after recovering from a knee injury and has yet to find the back of the net, was axed in favour of Barcelona forward Pedro.

Germany coach Joachim Loew also made one change.

With Bayern Munich's Thomas Mueller suspended, Hamburg's Piotr Trochowski has been drafted in as replacement.

The winners will face Holland in Sunday's final in Johannesburg after the Dutch beat Uruguay 3-2 in the other semi-final in Cape Town on Tuesday.

Teams
Germany: Mauel Neuer; Philipp Lahm (captain), Per Mertesacker, Arne Friedrich,
Jerome Boateng; Sami Khedira, Bastian Schweinsteiger; Piotr Trochowski, Mesut Ozil, Lukas Podolski; Miroslav Klose
Coach: Joachim Loew (GER)

Spain: Iker Casillas (capt); Sergio Ramos, Carles Puyol, Gerard Pique, Joan Capdevila; Sergio Busquets, Xabi Alonso; Andres Iniesta, Xavi, Pedro; David Villa
Coach: Vicente Del Bosque (ESP)

Referee: Viktor Kassai (HUN)