Monday World Cup recap: Bruno’s brace lifts Portugal over Uruguay; Casemiro’s strike seals Brazil win
The group stage of the World Cup winds down this week, and teams are beginning to book their tickets to the knockout round — or home.
Qatar and Canada were officially eliminated over the weekend. Brazil and Portugal secured victories and knockout round spots Monday.
Also Monday, Serbia scored twice in the first half to take the lead, but Cameroon found the back of the net twice after halftime to share a point in a 3-3 draw. The result means neither team will be eliminated today.
On paper, Ghana’s 3-2 win over South Korea is the second biggest upset of the tournament, but the young Ghanaian team is too talented to call the effort stunning.
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FINAL: Portugal takes down Uruguay, advances to Round of 16
LUSAIL, Qatar (AP) — Cristiano Ronaldo wheeled away in celebration, acting as though he had scored yet another goal at the World Cup.
Not this time.
Instead, it was Bruno Fernandes eventually credited with the goal that set up Portugal’s 2-0 win over Uruguay on Monday, advancing the team into the last 16.
Fernandes curled in a cross from the left that barely went over the head of the leaping Ronaldo and bounced into the far corner of the net in the 54th minute to give Portugal a 1-0 lead.
The goal wound up being awarded to Fernandes, who added a second from the penalty spot in stoppage time after a handball by Jose Maria Gimenez.
Portugal, which opened with a 3-2 win over Ghana, became the third team to reach the last 16 after France and Brazil. Uruguay has one point from two matches and needs to beat Ghana on Friday to stand a chance of advancing. — Associated Press
Protestor with rainbow flag runs onto field at World Cup
LUSAIL, Qatar — A protestor ran onto the field Monday carrying a rainbow flag and wearing a blue Superman T-shirt that said “SAVE UKRAINE” on the front and “RESPECT FOR IRANIAN WOMAN” on the back during a World Cup match between Portugal and Uruguay.
Security officials chased the protestor down and the flag was dropped on the field before the person was escorted off the field. The referee then picked up the flag and left it on the sideline, where it stayed for a few moments before a worker came and collected it.
The spectator was ushered away through a tunnel. It wasn’t immediately clear if the protestor faced any charges or had been detained by police. — Associated Press
Penalty for Portugal, Bruno brace
After a VAR check, Gimenez is called for a handball inside the box. By the rule of the game, that’s a penalty.
Portugal’s Bruno Fernandes steps up and converts.
Uruguay off the post!
Here comes Luis Suarez
After some confusion, Uruguay veteran Luis Suarez comes on for Edinson Cavani. Suarez added an instant spark. He makes his 136th appearance for the country — he’s scored 68 across those appearances.
In the 78th minute, from a Uruguay set piece, Suarez hits a ball off the side netting — nearly an equalizer.
GOAL! Portugal takes 1-0 lead on Uruguay
Bruno Fernandes launched a shot with eyes to give Portugal a 1-0 lead in the 55th minute. It looked for a moment as though Cristiano Ronaldo — who was the only Portugal man in the box — got a piece of it with a header attempt before it found the back of the net, but it was determined to be last touched by Fernandes.
Do you think it should be Ronaldo’s goal?
HALFTIME: Portugal, Uruguay scoreless
Uruguay has yet to concede a goal this tournament, but also has yet to score. Bentancur came the closest with his slicing run, but Costa said “no.” Will Uruguay call on Luis Suarez off the bench in the second half to spoil Portugal’s early path to the Round of 16?
Halftime stats:
- Possession: Portugal 70%, Uruguay 30%
- Attempts: Portugal 8 (0 on target), Uruguay 4 (1 on trarget)
HUGE save by Portugal to keep it scoreless
Rodrigo Bentancur nearly shredded the entire Portugal defense but an aggressive save by goalkeeper Diogo Costa kept the game scoreless. Bentancur beat four Portugal defenders and had only the keeper to beat. A well-positioned save in the 32nd minute kept the scoresheet clean.
Different generations
Not a score update, but Portugal center back Pepe, 39, is 16 years older than the player he’s marking — 23-year-old Darwin Nunez of Uruguay.
Ronaldo free kick off the wall
We’ve seen this before. The focus on Cristiano Ronaldo’s face as he lined up to take a set piece just outside the 18-yard box. This one gets headed out of danger by the Uruguay wall. The ensuing corner doesn’t produce much for Portugal.
Don’t miss a moment of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar
Want to watch the U.S. men’s national team return, see what’s likely Lionel Messi’s last go with Argentina and Cristiano Ronaldo with Portugal or witness France’s title-defense run? Add matches to your calendar and keep up to date with the latest tournament news.
Portugal, Uruguay starting lineups
Two teams that know each other well are both vying for the top spot in Group H. Portugal made three changes to its starting XI that almost dropped points to Ghana, but ultimately won 3-2. Uruguay, meanwhile, is coming off a scoreless draw against South Korea.
FULLTIME: Not the prettiest, but three points for Brazil
Though it was never fully threatened — Switzerland failed to put a single shot on target Monday — Brazil guaranteed its passage out of Group G with a 1-0 victory against Switzerland.
The Seleção controlled the pace throughout the match but failed to finish attacks cleanly and with precision. Brazil produced nine shots, five on goal, compared to Switzerland’s four attempts. Brazil also took the edge in possession: 47% to 40% with 13% contested.
However, a flash of brilliance produced the match’s lone goal, a one-touch from Rodrygo and a rocket from Casemiro off a volley past Swiss keeper Yann Sommer.
Brazil sits atop the group with six points, followed by Switzerland’s three; Serbia and Cameroon round out the bottom with one point apiece.
Switzerland will conclude its group play Friday against Serbia, needing at least a draw — and a Cameroon loss or draw against Brazil — to move on to the knockout stage.
the United States is almost a bystander in the political overtones surrounding Tuesday’s game, the protests that have inflamed Iran engulfing the team at the World Cup.
“It’s going to be a lot less about US-Iran tensions and more about Iran-Iran tensions,” said Kristin Diwan, a senior scholar at the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington, D.C.
— Nancy Armour
issued a stern warning to Argentina soccer legend Lionel Messi, who he accused of dishonoring Mexico at the 2022 World Cup.
Álvarez, considered by many to be the world’s top pound-for-pound fighter, responded to a circulating video that appears to show Messi kicking a Mexico shirt that was on the floor of the Argentina men’s team locker room.
“Vieron a Messi limpiando el piso con nuestra playera y bandera ????” Álvarez wrote in a tweet, which translates in English to: “Did you see Messi cleaning the floor with our shirt and flag????”
Álvarez followed up with another tweet containing a warning for the 35-year-old soccer superstar, writing, “Que le pida a Dios que no me lo encuentre!!,” which translates to: “He should pray to God that I don’t find him!!”
— Richard Morin
Slow start to Brazil-Switzerland, first shot comes in 27th minute
It has been a slow buildup, with both sides battling for possession in the midfield. Neither side had even attempted a single shot almost a half hour into the first half, but Brazil’s first attempt nearly resulted in a goal.
Raphinha swung in a left-footed cross from the right flank and found Vinícius Jr. streaking alone into the box. Vinícius didn’t strike the ball cleanly with his right foot, allowing Swiss keeper Yann Sommer to swat it away.
That attack opened up Brazil’s offense, leading to a succession of three shots in the span of four minutes, with two of those coming on goal. Switzerland is still awaiting its first attempt.
Mohammed Kudus said he’s as good as Neymar. That’s not looking totally nuts.
Mohammed Kudus came to this World Cup full of confidence. Two games in, it’s easy to see why.
Kudus has been one of the breakout stars in the early going, tallying an assist for Ghana in an opening loss to Portugal before scoring a pair of goals in a wild 3-2 win over South Korea on Monday.
The 22-year-old playmaker netted a first-half header to give his side a 2-0 lead. But South Korea struck back in the second half, with Cho Gue-sung scoring two quick goals to equalize.
Here’s what you need to know
Scooby Axson explains World Cup tiebreakers down to the final draw.
South Korea, Ghana starting lineups
Ghana needs to avoid losing in order to stay in contention for the Round of 16,
Final: Cameroon, Serbia share point, 3-3
After scoring the opening goal, Cameroon conceded two scores to Serbia in stoppage time of the first half. Serbia scored again out of halftime, but the Indomitable Lions were … well … indomitable.
Aboubakar turned the tide with his chipped goal in the 63rd minute, followed by an assist on the equalizer three minutes later. The result means neither team can be eliminated from the tournament today.
GOAL(S)! Cameroon scores twice
Cameroon wasn’t done yet. The first goal, Vincent Aboubakar timed his run perfectly to get on the end of a long ball from Jean-Charles Castelletto. Aboubakar made Nikola Milenkovic slip and bounced the shot over goalkeeper Vanja Milinkovic-Savic and into the roof of goal. No immediate celebration due to an offside check, but the goal is giveb.
Minutes later Cameroon continued its push. This time Aboubakar saw the final pass and assisted Eric Choupo-Moting to tie the score.
Goal! Serbia in control
A complete team effort, timed to near-perfection. With Cameroon goalkeeper Epassy pulled out of his area, Serbia pass around him. Mitrovic glides a ball into the back of the net, assisted by Zivkovic.
Don’t miss a moment of the 2022 World Cup
Want to watch the U.S. men’s national team return, see what’s likely Lionel Messi’s last go with Argentina and Cristiano Ronaldo with Portugal or witness France’s title-defense run? Add matches to your calendar and keep up to date with the latest tournament news.
GOAL! Serbia scores twice in stoppage time
Pushing for the first goal, Strahinja Pavlovic gets one back for Serbia with a leaping, driving header from a free kick taken by Tadic.
Cameroon just needed to get to halftime after controlling the games for much of the half. But a failed clearance by Zambo allows Sergej Milinkovic-Savic to take the ball. After a quick one-two pass with Andrija Zivkovic, Milinkovic-Savic makes it two.
GOAL! Cameroon score on set piece
It’s Cameroon who strikes first after Serbia is caught ball-watching on a corner kick. Jean-Charles Castelletto made the late run in behind to tap in his first international goal and put his team ahead.
Chance: Serbia nearly goes ahead
After an early moment of injury concern, Aleksandar Mitrovic returned to the pitch and has continued his impact on attack. Assisted by Dusan Tadic, Mitrovic makes a little move, causing a Cameroon defender to slip, but his following shot bangs off the left post.
Cameroon, Serbia starting lineups
One noticeable change for Cameroon’s squad is the exclusion of goalkeeper André Onana. According to reporter Fabrizio Romano, Onana was left out because he “insisted for different style of goalkeeping, more ‘traditional'”
Cristiano Rolando became the first man to score in five World Cup tournaments. He is the country’s all-time goal-scorer with 118 goals.
Uruguay, meanwhile, will look for its first victory of the tournament after a stalemate against South Korea.
Time: Monday, Nov. 28 at 2 p.m. ET
Stadium: Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium
How to watch: FS1 and Telemundo or stream on fuboTV and Peacock (Spanish)
Richarlison as they look to extend their unbeaten streak in the group stage to 17, something no other team has done.
Time: Monday, Nov. 28 at 11 a.m. ET
Stadium: Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium
How to watch: FS1 and Telemundo or stream on fuboTV and Peacock (Spanish)
South Korea vs. Ghana — 8 a.m.
South Korea performed better than expectations, holding Luis Suarez and Uruguay to a scoreless draw. Meanwhile, Ghana also over-performed in an exciting battle against Cristiano Ronaldo and Portugal. Ultimately, Portugal took all three points, but it wasn’t without some nervy moments.
This is the first World Cup meeting between South Korea and Ghana, though the teams have met six previous times in friendlies, splitting the wins.
Time: Monday, Nov. 28 at 8 a.m. ET
Stadium: Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium
How to watch: FS1 and Telemundo or stream on fuboTV and Peacock (Spanish)
Cameroon vs. Serbia — 5 a.m.
Serbia is bottom of Group G after an opening match loss to Brazil, the pre-tournament favorites. Cameroon also lost its opening game to Switzerland. And both teams will be looking to avoid defeat which would likely mean an early exit from the 2022 tournament.
Serbia have not won against an African nation in its previous two meetings — in 2006 against Ivory Coast and 2010 against Ghana. Meanwhile, Cameroon seeks to avoid equaling the longest losing run by a World Cup team.
Time: Monday, Nov. 28 at 5 a.m. ET
Stadium: Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium
How to watch: FS1 and Telemundo or stream on fuboTV and Peacock (Spanish)