Match-day 2 kicked in Saint Petersburg with Russia taking on Egypt expected to provided a sterner test for the host than Saudi Arabia. Egypt narrowly lost their opening game and were in need of a result to stay alive in the competition. Russia turned the game on its head, blew Egypt away with three second half goals before Mo Salah got a consolatory one for the North Africans. The outcome of the game in Saint Petersburg ensured passage to the next round for the host and ultimately ended Egypt’s World Cup dreams. A Luis Suarez strike at the Rostov Arena was enough for Uruguay to make it two wins on the spin and condemn Saudi Arabia to an early exit. The performance from the Asians was much improved but it counted for nothing in the end. Russia and Uruguay will meet each other in the last round of group matches to determine the group winner.
Just like in their opening game against Spain, Cristiano Ronaldo scored inside five minutes at the Luzhniki stadium in Moscow against Morocco. Many feared it may turn into a goal fest for the Portugal but the Moroccans battled hard and perhaps deserved a point from the game. It ended 1-0 to Portugal; a result which saw another African team bite the dust. Iran and Spain met in the Kazan Arena in a tightly contested game; La Furia Roja got a fortuitous goal in the 54th minute off Diego Costa to seal a three points to move top of the table. Group B will go down to the final day with Spain, Portugal and Iran all fighting for a place in the Round of 16.
The game in Samara between Denmark and Australia recorded an early goal, Christian Eriksen shot the Danes into the lead before another penalty from Mile Jedinak restored parity. The match ended in a draw which was a fair reflection of the game. France and Peru met at Ekaterinburg for their second group game in Group C; Peru required a result to stay alive in the competition and a victory would secure qualification for the French. Kylian Mbappe became the 18th teenager to score at the FIFA World Cup and the youngest goal scorer for his country at the tournament. His 34th minute strike was the only goal of the game. France require just a point in their final game to win Group C.
Argentina took on Croatia in Nizhny Novgorod. La Albiceleste failed to win their opening game and required a victory against the Europeans to get their World Cup campaign on track. Coach Jorge Sampaoli made changes for the game which backfired as Croatia tore the South Americans to shreds. Goalkeeper Willy Caballero error was responsible for the first goal and thereafter, things fell apart for Argentina which saw Croatia secured another comfortable victory. Nigeria and Iceland battled at the Volgograd Arena, both sides required a victory in the game and Nigeria in particular could not afford another defeat. Both teams made system and personnel changes from their first games but it was Nigeria who dominated the game overall and secured a much needed victory against another European country. Nigeria’s win has opened up Group D and we are down to the wire for the final group phase matches for the second spot behind Croatia.
Brazil broke down a resilient Costa Rica thanks to late goals from Philippe Coutinho and Neymar at Saint Petersburg. The Samba boys were heading fora second successive draw before the Coutinho’s opener. It was a match filled with several incidents including a stuck off penalty via VAR. At the Kaliningrad stadium, Switzerland secured their first victory at the tournament. Their 2-1 vicotry is the first game at this 2018 FIFA World Cup to see a side win from a losing position. Switzerland face Costa Rica in the final game while Serbia will require a victory against Brazil to go through.
Mexico booked their place in the last 16 for the seventh time in a row thanks to their 2-1 victory over Korea Republic. El Tri dominated the game from the blast of the whistle and it was no surprise they went into the break with a lead; Carlos Vela converted a spot kick in the 26th minute. Javier Hernandez scored his 50th goal for Mexico to double Mexico’s lead before Son Heung-min got Korea Republic’s first goal at this World Cup. Mexico won back-to-back matches for the first time since the 2002 FIFA World Cup. The Fisht Olympic stadium provided an intriguing match between defending champions Germany and Sweden. Germany were staring at elimination with moments left on the clock before Toni Kroos struck a beauty of a goal from the side of the penalty area. Kroos was guilty of giving the ball away in a move that resulted in Sweden’s goal but he made up for it. It appears Joachim Loew doesn’t know his best XI yet after two games but the performance in Sochi showed the mental strength of the World Champions. Group F is interestingly set up for a final match day battle as all four teams still have a mathematical chance of going through.
Belgium have now won their last six group stage matches at the FIFA World Cup. Many expected the Carthage Eagles of Tunisia to provide a difficult test for Belgium at Spartak stadium but the Europeans were two goals up inside the first 20 minutes. We saw a seven-goals match in Group G with Romelu Lukaku and Eden Hazard scoring a brace each. The defeat all but ended Tunisia’s World Cup hopes; the North Africans are now winless in 13 World Cup matches (9L 4D). Whatever Belgium offered against Tunisia, England took it a step further with their 6-1 demolition of Panama. Felipe Baloy 78th minute goal will go down in Panama football history as the moment they registered their presence on the global stage. England have won their opening two group matches for the first time since the 2006 FIFA World Cup. The top spot is up for grabs between England and Belgium on Thursday in Kaliningrad.
In Group H, Senegal took the lead twice in Ekaterinburg but Japan restored parity on both occasion. These two countries surprisingly won their respective opening matches so a victory here could have sealed qualification to the next phase for the winner. Both teams could still go through on the final day but will have to earn a point at least in the last group match. Poland fell flat in Kazan against Colombia in a game where survival was dependent on the result. Yerry Mina, Radamel Falcao and Juan Cuadrado were on the score sheet for Colombia against a poor Polish team who became the first European team to bow out of the tournament. Colombia take on Senegal in their final group match where the winner will book a place in the Round of 16.
Match-day 3 begins today with matches in Groups A and B. Predict and win big in today’s fixture by visiting Babaijebu.ng