As the Round of 32 at the FIFA World Cup 26™ heads towards a conclusion, the tournament heavy-hitters continue to make their mark, as Portugal and Spain set up a Round of 16 clash and Switzerland eased past Algeria.
Whilst Spain were at their classy best in dispatching Austria, Portugal edged a back-and-forth classic with Croatia and Switzerland had too much for Algeria, as they continue their World Cup adventure.
Round of 32
Spain 3 Austria 0
Real Sociedad’s Mikel Oyarzabal continues to be the key man for Spain, scoring twice in their knockout round victory over Austria, taking the forward’s tournament goal tally to four.
Luis de la Fuente’s side are one of the favourites to lift the trophy later this month and gave credence to that claim, with a dominant performance in Los Angeles.
New Real Madrid full-back Marc Cucurella had two assists on the day – his first coming with a low cross that found Oyarzabal unmarked 12 yards from goal, easily sweeping past Austria goalkeeper Alexander Schlager to open the scoring.
Austria managed to hold out until after the hour mark, but were undone again down the left-hand side. Álex Baena with a cross from inside the area that was headed in by the on-rushing Pedro Porro.
Oyarzabal added his second and Spain’s third just before full-time, calmly converting from an excellent curling cross from Cucurella to rubber-stamp the victory and set up a mouthwatering Round of 16 clash with neighbours Portugal next week in Dallas
Portugal 2 Croatia 1
Arguably the pick of the Round of 32 fixtures thus far, Portugal and Croatia offered up a classic knockout tie in Toronto, with the drama delivering to the very final seconds.
It was Roberto Martinez’s side that dominated most of the first half, but were unable to find a breakthrough. Manchester United’s Bruno Fernandes came closest, a double effort that was repelled by goalkeeper, then defender, as Croatia held on to the break.
To their credit, Croatia looked dangerous on the counter-attack and they found a way to breach Portugal’s defence early in the second period. Josip Stanisic with space on the right-hand flank, crossing for his fellow full-back Ivan Perisic – the veteran bringing the ball down and firing past Diogo Costa to give his side the lead.
Rafael Leão almost responded immediately, but his stunning effort from outside the box thudded back of the crossbar, as Croatia survived.
As the clock ticked towards the final twenty minutes however, Portugal would be given the perfect chance to equalise. Villarreal’s Renato Veiga was hauled down in the box by Nikola Vlasic following a corner and, after a VAR intervention, referee Espen Eskås pointed to the spot.
Cristiano Ronaldo took on the responsibility, and the veteran forward showed nerves of steel to calmly place the ball beyond Dominik Livakovic.
With the tie looking to be heading to extra-time, substitute Gonçalo Ramos would have the final say. The newly-minted AC Milan forward rising highest to glance in a fantastic cross from Leão and beat Livakovic with minutes remaining.
Portugal were largely untroubled during stoppage-time, until – with seconds remaining – Josko Gvardiol scrambled the ball home to seemingly make it 2-2 and ensure an additional 30 minutes. VAR intervened once again however and after lengthy deliberation, determined that Mario Pasalic had been in an offside position, ruling the goal out and breaking Croatian hearts.
The 2016 European champions now have a date with Spain in the Round of 16 next week.
Switzerland 2 Algeria 0
Switzerland advanced to the Round of 16, winning their first knockout round match at a FIFA World Cup since 1938.
It was a comfortable evening’s work for Murat Yakin’s side, who will now face either Colombia or Ghana next week in Vancouver.
Algeria rarely threatened and were struggling from the onset, conceding the opening goal after just 10 minutes, when Breel Embolo scored from close range to give Switzerland the perfect start. The forward tucking the ball away after good work down the left-hand side by Johan Manzambi.
Just 46 seconds of the second half were on the clock when the Swiss doubled their lead. Algeria failed to clear the ball from inside their own area, with it eventually falling to Nottingham Forest’s Dan Ndoye, who stroked his effort into the far corner, beyond the outstretched reach of goalkeeper Luza Zidane.
Algeria struggled to find a way back in, met with an impressive and disciplined Swiss rearguard, led by Manuel Akanji.
Switzerland could and very much should have added a third, when Fabian Rieder somehow contrived to squander a chance from a few yards out. The substitute miscuing his effort when presented with a wide open goal, allowing Zidane to recover and keep Algeria’s slim hopes alive.
With progression secure, Switzerland now prepare for their Round of 16 tie and the chance to advance to a World Cup quarter-final for the first time since they hosted the tournament back in 1954.
RESULTS
Spain 3 (Mikel OYARZABAL 36′, 89′, Pedro PORRO 66′) Austria 0
Portugal 2 (Cristiano RONALDO (P) 68′, Gonçalo RAMOS 90+4′) Croatia 1 (Ivan PERISIC 53′)
Switzerland 2 (Breel EMBOLO 10′, Dan NDOYE 46′) Algeria 0
WHAT’S NEXT
Round of 32
Australia v Egypt | 6am NZT (Dallas)
Argentina v Cabo Verde | 10am NZT (Miami)
Colombia v Ghana | 1:30pm NZT (Kansas)
Photo Credit: FIFA via Getty Images