OdishaLIVE Bureau
Last day of FIFA World Cup 2018 league matches saw great contest and surprising winners
- Saudi Arabia beat Egypt 2-1 in the opening match of the day
- Uruguay beat the hosts Russia emphatically by 3-0
- Portugal drew 1-1 with Iranwhile Spain drew 2-2 with Morocco
After witnessing a dramatic day of football on Sunday, this day was not short of any theatrics, as well. This day marked the final round of the group stage matches and teams will know their fate by the end of this round.
Saudi Arabia vs Egypt
In the first match of the day, Saudi Arabia played Mohamed Salah’s Egypt in the Volgograd Arena in Volgograd. Both teams were already knocked out of the tournament after not registering even a single point on the table. This match was more of fighting for the pride and not finishing last in the group. The match started off in a slow pace with both the sides not being able to register even a shot for 15 minutes. But, in the 22nd minute it was Egypt’s star man Mohammed Salah who gave his country the lead by chipping the ball over the goalkeeper.
Early Jitters
Saudi Arabia stayed in the game, despite the early setback and were rewarded a penalty after the referee spotted a handball. This was a historic moment for Egypt’s goalkeeper Essam Elhadary already as he became the oldest player to play at the World Cup aged 45 and he justified his selection when he produced a brilliant save to stop Fahad Al Mulwallad penalty kick in the 41st minute. Saudi Arabia had luck on their side as they were awarded another penalty in the injury time of the 1st half after Egyptian Defender Ali Gabr shoved Al Mulwallad in the penalty area.
Saudi get Lucky
The referee used the help of the VAR (Video Assistant Referee) to confirm his decision and rewarded Saudi Arabia the penalty. This time, they made use of the opportunity and scored thanks to Salman Al Faraj’s calm penalty kick. Saudi Arabia were on top for most of the 2nd half and their efforts were rewarded when Salem Al Dawsari low driven shot went into the Egypt goal. Egypt finished last in their group without even registering a single point in the table.
Uruguay vs Russia
In the second match of the day, Uruguay played the hosts Russia in the Samara Arena in Samara. Both had similar kind of starts to the tournament after winning both of their matches. Russia especially, shocked the football world after their impressive performance in both of their matches.
But, they were bought back to earth when Uruguay thrashed them 3-0. Uruguay’s star striker Luis Suarez gave them the lead by scoring a beautiful drilled shot into the right bottom corner of the Russian goal who takes his goal tally to 2 for the tournament. Uruguay doubled their lead when Laxalt’s shot from outside the box was deflected by Denis Cheryshev of Russia.
Russia sees Red
Things went from bad to worse for Russia when Igor Smolnikov was shown a red card in the 36th minute after picking up two yellow cards, the first one being in the 28th minute. In the second half the hosts showed more discipline and were solid at the back. Artem Dzyuba even had a chance to get his country a consolation but he wasted it. Uruguay ended things in style when Edinson Cavani registered his first goal of the tournament in the 93rd minute. Uruguay now sit at the top of the table while Russia finish second.
Numbers Game
The last two matches of the day took place simultaneously at the same time when Portugal played Iran in the Mordovia Arena in Saransk and Spain played Morocco in the Kaliningrad Stadium all belonging to the same group.The match between Portugal and Iran had more importance as both teams went head to head to fight for the knockout places. If Portugal won then they would have qualified. But, if they lost to Iran then the underdogs from Asia would have qualified. A draw would mean that the result of the Spain and Morocco match was the crucial factor in deciding who would qualify for the knockout stages
Portugal draw Iran
It was a match of great intensity with both sides creating chances and wasting them. But Ricardo Quaresma scored a beauty of a goal from the outside of his foot from outside the box in the 45th minute to give is country the lead. In the second half, Cristiano Ronaldo was fouled in the 50th minute by Iran’s SaeidEzatolahi and with the help of the VAR the referee awarded the penalty to Portugal.
Ronaldo’s lost chance
Currently, the world’s best player had his chance to take his goal tally equal with top scorer Harry Kane at 5 goals but he failed to score from the penalty spot as the Moroccan goalkeeper saved his shot. Iran on the other hand stayed in the game until the last minute and their efforts were awarded when Cedric Soares of Portugal used his hand to stop an Iran cross. The referee used the help of the VAR and awarded Iran the penalty. Karim Ansarifardmade no mistake as he calmly converted the penalty from the spot. The match finished level on 1-1.
Spain draw Morocco
Spain drew 2-2 with a resilient and talented Moroccan side who have suffered with hard luck throughout this tournament and were already knocked out of the tournament. Khalid Boutaib scored in 14th minute after a lapse in concentration by the Spanish defence to give his country the lead and for the most parts of the half Morocco looked in control. But, Spain showed their quality in attack when Isco scored a beautiful team goal in the 19th minute and equalised for his country.
Moroccan fightback
Morocco looked like the team likely to score the next goal and they did. Youssef En-Nesyri scored a header from the corner in the 81st minute to give his country the lead again. But, Morocco did not have luck in their favour which has been the case for them throughout the tournament as Iago Aspas came off the bench and levelled things up for Spain with a clever flick in the 91st minute. The referee made use of the VAR to make sure it was a legal goal and it was. A point for both, Portugal and Spain meant that both of them qualified for the knockout stages and Iran despite a fighting performance couldn’t.
(Story: Raunaq Dash, Edit: Sriram Singh Rattan)
