Belgium secured their place in the FIFA World Cup knockout stage with an emphatic 4-1 victory over New Zealand, while Cape Verde made history by becoming the smallest nation ever to reach the tournament’s last 32.
Needing victory to keep their campaign alive, Belgium produced their best performance of the tournament in Vancouver, with Leandro Trossard scoring twice to inspire a commanding display after two underwhelming outings in the group stage.
The Arsenal forward opened the scoring in the 28th minute after Kevin De Bruyne’s corner caused confusion inside the New Zealand penalty area, allowing Trossard to convert from close range following a deflection off defender Tim Payne.
Belgium continued to dominate after the break and doubled their advantage five minutes into the second half. Trossard reacted quickest after his initial effort was blocked, firing the rebound into the roof of the net to complete his brace.
Captain Kevin De Bruyne then capped another influential display with a superb 20-yard strike before substitute Romelu Lukaku restored Belgium’s three-goal cushion less than a minute after Elijah Just had briefly pulled one back for New Zealand.
The victory saw Belgium finish as Group G winners, while Egypt claimed second place despite being held to a dramatic 1-1 draw by Iran in Seattle.
Meanwhile, Iran came agonisingly close to securing a famous victory after Shoja Khalilzadeh thought he had scored from a late goalmouth scramble, only for the effort to be ruled out following a lengthy VAR review for offside. Moments later, Saeid Ezatolahi struck the crossbar deep into stoppage time, leaving the Iranians to settle for a third consecutive draw.
Although Iran’s hopes of reaching the knockout stage remain alive through the best third-placed qualification route, their fate now depends on results elsewhere. Egypt, meanwhile, progressed comfortably after earlier results had already guaranteed their place in the last 32.
Elsewhere, Cape Verde celebrated one of the most remarkable achievements of the tournament after qualifying for the knockout rounds for the first time in their history. The island nation secured second place in Group H following a goalless draw with Saudi Arabia and Spain’s victory over Uruguay.
Scenes of jubilation erupted as players gathered around a mobile phone on the pitch to watch the closing moments of Spain’s match before celebrating wildly when qualification was confirmed. The achievement means Cape Verde, the smallest nation ever to reach the World Cup knockout phase, will now face defending champions Argentina in the round of 32.
Their progression came after an impressive unbeaten group-stage campaign that included draws against Spain, Uruguay and Saudi Arabia, with veteran goalkeeper Vozinha once again playing a key role.
For Uruguay, however, the tournament ended in disappointment. A 1-0 defeat to Spain condemned the two-time world champions to a second successive group-stage exit and effectively brought an unhappy end to Marcelo Bielsa’s tenure as head coach.
The veteran Argentine accepted full responsibility for the team’s failure, admitting he had left “nothing behind” after three years in charge and acknowledging that poor results had overshadowed any progress made during his spell with the national team.
Meanwhile, Senegal reignited their hopes of reaching the knockout stage with a commanding 5-0 victory over Iraq in Toronto.
The Lions of Teranga produced an outstanding display after opening the scoring inside four minutes through Abdoulaye Seck, whose header took a decisive deflection before beating goalkeeper Ahmed Basil.
The emphatic victory lifted Senegal to third place in Group I and into the top eight among the tournament’s best third-placed teams, although Aliou Cisse’s side must still rely on favourable results elsewhere to secure qualification.
