Day 9 of the World Cup in Qatar has witnessed among the most dramatic matches thus far, with Cameroon making a surprising comeback in a battle with Serbia the place six targets have been scored and nonetheless neither facet emerged victorious, the groups having to accept a 3-3 draw.
A heartbroken South Korean group left the pitch on Tuesday — with some gamers in tears — after their 3-2 defeat to Ghana in a recreation the place the Koreans threw all the things on the Ghanaian’s objective within the second half however couldn’t break by means of their defences.
The frustration felt by the group on the pitch spilled onto the sidelines, the place the South Korean supervisor obtained a pink card after a final-whistle tirade in opposition to the referee.
Brazil beat Switzerland 1-0 in a match win that ensures the Brazilians a spot within the knockout levels of the soccer World Cup in Qatar. The win at Stadium 974 means Brazil, already five-time world champions, have now certified comfortably for the Spherical of 16 and with a recreation in opposition to Cameroon nonetheless to play of their group stage of the match.
Portugal’s 2-0 victory over Uruguay additionally places them by means of to the final 16 of the World Cup with a gaggle recreation to spare.
Here’s a fast information recapping all it’s essential to know from day 9 — Monday, November 28 — of the Qatar World Cup 2022.
In a match described as essentially the most thrilling recreation of the World Cup in Qatar thus far, six targets have been scored when Cameroon and Serbia confronted off on Monday. That pleasure surged when Cameroon staged a powerful comeback to complete with a 3-3 draw in opposition to Serbia in a recreation that noticed Cameroon change their goalkeeper Andre Onana on the final minute.
Cameroon’s Coach Rigobert Tune mentioned he dropped his beginning goalkeeper for “disciplinary causes”, however didn’t give additional particulars and changed Onana with Devis Epassy, who was making simply his sixth worldwide look.
The inauspicious begin didn’t detract from what can be an exhilarating recreation and a shock six-goal draw.
Cameroon took the lead within the first half by means of central defender Jean-Charles Castelletto’s Twenty ninth-minute tap-in however then conceded two targets to the Serbians in fast succession.
Serbia’s Strahinja Pavlovic’s was the primary, heading in a free kick to degree the rating earlier than Sergej Milinkovic-Savic struck from 20 metres (66 ft) simply two minutes later. Serbian striker Aleksandar Mitrovic made it 3-1 at the beginning of the second half after Serbia opened Cameroon’s defence with a collection of fast passes.
Cameroon was down 3-1, however second-half substitute Vincent Aboubakar turned the dramatic recreation with a objective and an help. He lobbed Serbia goalkeeper Vanja Milinkovic-Savic within the sixty fourth minute to attain his thirty fourth objective for the Indomitable Lions, and he then arrange striker Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting two minutes later for the 3-3 equaliser.
“The lion roared as we speak,” Aboubakar mentioned after the match. “I dedicate this outcome to the squad, and to the individuals of Cameroon.”
However the outcome fits neither facet. Each side misplaced their opening video games, with Serbia overwhelmed 2-0 by Brazil and Cameroon shedding 1-0 to Switzerland.
Cameroon and Serbia every have one level after two Group G matches, two factors behind Switzerland after the Swiss misplaced 1-0 to Brazil in a while Monday. That win by Brazil — the document five-time World Cup champions — despatched them into the Spherical of 16 and nonetheless with a match to spare.
Switzerland now wants a win of their final match in opposition to Serbia to be assured a spot within the subsequent stage. A draw could also be sufficient, however that can rely on the result of the match between Brazil and Cameroon on Friday. Serbia can even probably want a win in the event that they hope to advance.
“We weren’t sensible sufficient to complete the match to our personal benefit,” Serbia coach Dragan Stojkovic mentioned later.
5-time World Cup champions Brazil overcame the absence of their injured star participant Neymar to beat Switzerland 1-0 with a late objective on Monday and, in doing so, made it to the match’s Spherical of 16 with a match to spare in Group G.
Casemiro bought the one objective within the 83rd minute of a recreation wherein Brazil had difficulties creating scoring probabilities with out its principal striker Neymar. Casemiro, a defensive midfielder, scored with a shot into the far nook of the Swiss facet’s objective, utilizing the skin of his proper foot for a shot that deflected barely off defender Manuel Akanji.
It was a good match early on within the recreation, with each groups making an attempt to regulate the ball however not creating many important probabilities. With out Neymar, Brazil struggled to get close to Switzerland’s objective till Casemiro took his shot. The assists got here from Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo, the Actual Madrid gamers who till just lately had Casemiro as their teammate. Casemiro now performs for Manchester United.
Vinicius Junior had thought he had given Brazil the lead with a shot from contained in the penalty space after a cross by Casemiro within the sixty fourth, however a video overview decided there was offside within the build-up. Few had seen it till the VAR name was introduced at Stadium 974.
“After all we miss a participant like Neymar,” Tite mentioned after the match.
“The group loses loads with out him. However we additionally produce other gamers who can get the job executed, as we noticed it as we speak,” he mentioned.
Monday’s win gave Brazil six factors from two matches, leaving Switzerland with three. Serbia and Cameroon, which drew 3-3 earlier Monday, have one level every.
Switzerland coach Murat Yakin mentioned his group have executed a “good job for fairly a while”.
“I don’t assume it’s a disappointment. We have now loads of good takeaways right here. The following recreation is one thing we now have management over,” he mentioned.
Switzerland, which had no makes an attempt on objective throughout the match, now wants a win of their final recreation in opposition to Serbia to be assured a spot within the Spherical of 16. A draw could also be sufficient relying on the match between Brazil and Cameroon on Friday.
Two targets from Portugal’s Bruno Fernandes despatched his group by means of to the final 16 of the World Cup on Monday after a 2-0 win over a lacklustre Uruguay.
Fernandes scored with a cross supposed for Cristiano Ronaldo that sailed fortuitously into the online within the 54th minute. He then transformed a penalty in stoppage time to place his facet into the group of 16 knockout stage with a match remaining.
Portugal had the lion’s share of the possession and dominated for many of the match, however struggled to create clear-cut probabilities till the second half in a recreation the place Uruguay regarded sluggish and off kind.
Ronaldo set the tone for the match with some early showboating when he used a shoulder to redirect an extended throw into the trail of William Carvalho, whose highly effective volley sailed over the bar.
Portugal regarded threatening however struggled to create goal-scoring probabilities within the first half.
And it was Uruguay who had the perfect shot within the thirty second minute of the primary half when Rodrigo Bentancur picked up the ball and ran half the size of the sphere, skipping round three defenders earlier than firing off a low shot that was blocked by the advancing Portugal keeper Diogo Costa.
Bentancur was on the centre of the motion once more a couple of minutes later when his outstretched leg met a cross from the left from Mathias Olivera, trickling by means of to Darwin Nunez, who didn’t convert from shut vary.
Portugal lastly broke the impasse when Fernandes’s cross floated previous Uruguayan goalkeeper Sergio Rochet, who was rooted to the spot as Cristiano Ronaldo rose to move the ball and initially celebrated the objective as his.
A grinning Ronaldo threw his arms within the air, suggesting he bought the ultimate contact, and was embracing Fernandes as a number of close-up replays have been being proven on the large screens in Lusail Stadium.
Alas for Ronaldo, the objective wound up being awarded to Fernandes, who added a second from the penalty spot in stoppage time after a handball by Uruguay’s Jose Maria Gimenez.
Uruguay had a short rally to attempt to get again into the match after a raft of substitutions, with Facundo Pellistri making an on the spot influence, Luis Suarez coming shut, and Maxi Gomez hitting the publish.
However the match belonged to Portugal and Fernandes, who coolly transformed a penalty in stoppage time after a handball within the field that required a VAR overview.
Hungry for extra, Fernandes virtually scored a hat-trick deep into stoppage time, along with his effort saved on the close to publish by Rochet and a strike within the dying moments that cannoned off the publish.
Portugal are actually the third group to achieve the final 16 after France and Brazil.
Uruguay has one level from two matches and must beat Ghana on Friday to face an opportunity of advancing. Even a draw in opposition to South Korea of their remaining Group H match on Friday will safe first place for Portugal. For Uruguay, it is going to be a must-win recreation in opposition to Ghana.
“We’ll have to gamble extra. We should be a daring group,” the Uruguay coach, Diego Alonso, mentioned after the match on Monday.
Ghana survived a livid late siege of their objective to revive their World Cup probabilities in a dramatic match on Monday in opposition to South Korea, the place the African facet secured a 3-2 victory that was greeted with as a lot aid as celebration.
Ghana’s Mohammed Salisu scored the opener in a roller-coaster match on the Schooling Metropolis Stadium, and teammate Mohammed Kudus headed residence one other as Ghana took a 2-0 halftime lead, just for South Korea to come back combating again with two targets in three minutes from Cho Gue-sung.
Cho’s targets have been each highly effective headers because the Ghanaian defence was overrun, first within the 58th minute and, with the Korean supporters behind the Ghana objective already in delirium, a second following simply three minutes later.
South Korea then made modifications at halftime that put them proper again within the match, even when talisman Son Heung-min, once more taking part in with a black face masks to guard his facial fractures, proved surprisingly ineffectual.
Starting the second half, the South Koreans fought again in spectacular type, however one second-half error in the end proved expensive when Ghana snatched again the lead as Kudus delivered the profitable objective.
A objective forward, Ghana then sat again and have been besieged for about half an hour, with Lawrence Ati-Zigi making a number of good saves and his defenders placing their our bodies on the road as they blocked efforts from all angles from the South Koreans.
Ten minutes of stoppage time added to the sport solely served to intensify the drama, culminating in a distinction of feelings on the remaining whistle as an exhausted Ghana celebrated and the Koreans have been left in tears.
Son Heung-min was visibly upset on the remaining whistle and with South Korea’s World Cup hopes hanging by a thread.
South Korea’s supervisor Paulo Bento was red-carded as his frustrations boiled over on the remaining whistle in a verbal tirade at English referee Anthony Taylor.
Bento was livid South Korea have been denied a nook when Taylor ended the sport after the allotted 10 minutes of stoppage time.
“The result’s completely unfair, even a draw can be unfair. We deserved a win,” South Korea’s assistant coach, Sergio Costa, mentioned after the match.
The African facet have earned their first factors of the match and may nonetheless presumably attain the second spherical of the match.
Ghana coach Otto Addo mentioned after the match that the Black Stars would seal their entry into the group of 16 by beating Uruguay once they meet on Friday of their remaining group H match.
On and off the pitch
The Portugal vs Uruguay match was briefly interrupted on Monday by a protester carrying a rainbow flag and carrying a blue Superman T-shirt that mentioned “SAVE UKRAINE” on the entrance and “RESPECT FOR IRANIAN WOMAN” on the again.
Safety officers chased the protester down and the flag was dropped on the sphere.
