Colombia advanced with little difficulty, Argentina was pushed to the limit until extra time, and Egypt was forced to settle the match in a penalty shootout. On Friday, these three teams secured the final three spots to complete the round of 16 at the 2026 World Cup, which begins this Saturday and runs through Tuesday, July 7.
Ghana’s World Cup run came to an end with a 1-0 loss to Colombia, first-time participant Cape Verde pushed the defending champion to extra time, where it ultimately lost 3-2, and Australia forced a penalty shootout against Egypt, which it lost 2-4 after the match ended 1-1 in regulation and extra time.
The most intense phase of the World Cup begins
Canada, one of the three World Cup hosts, kicks off the round of 16 this Saturday against Morocco in Houston at 5:00 p.m. GMT.
The winner of this series will face the winner of the match between Paraguay and France, which will take place at 9:00 p.m. GMT this Saturday in Philadelphia (Filed under: World Cup—Latest Teams to Qualify for the Round of 16),
The group stands up for the stars
No. 7 Luis Díaz, whose form has been off, and No. 10 James Rodríguez, who has neither a magic wand nor a top hat to pull rabbits out of, have ceded the leading role for Colombia to a defense that has allowed only one goal in four games.
And an offensive line featuring players like Palmeiras winger Jhon Arias, the architect of yesterday’s narrow victory.
Portuguese Sporting striker Luis Javier Suárez, or the creative Juanfer Quintero, who brings a different dynamic when he comes off the bench.
Arias scored the first goal in the 14th minute, and the game could have ended right there.
Wave after wave, the Cafeteros exposed the weaknesses of a more physical opponent, who was struggling to make headway.
VAR disallowed a goal by Lucho, the Bayern player, but because he was too hasty, he missed at least two clear scoring chances.
Los Cafeteros thrilled the crowd with their breakaway attacks, which were executed at breakneck speed.
But when it wasn’t poor aim, Lawrence Ati Zigi stepped up to save the day.
Perhaps the team’s control of the game and its lead convinced head coach Néstor Lorenzo to have his players slow down their pace to avoid the physical wear and tear that other opponents might face.
Just like the matches played yesterday by Argentina and Morocco to qualify.
Switzerland, Colombia’s next challenge, on July 7 in Vancouver (Filed under: World Cup—latest teams to qualify for the Round of 16).
By a hair’s breadth
For Cape Verde, the World Cup went very well while it lasted.
And for Argentina, led by its star player, Lionel Messi, a lot of things will have to improve by Tuesday.
When they face Egypt in Atlanta for a spot in the quarterfinals.
The game in Miami started out just like the Albiceleste’s previous four:
Messi scored a goal, but unlike the other games, things weren’t easy yesterday for Lionel Scaloni’s team.
After the shock of the spectacular goal in the 29th minute, Vozinha stepped up his game and denied the number 10 two more clear scoring chances.
He now stands alone with 7 goals at the top of the scoring leaderboard and has raised his record as the all-time leading scorer in World Cup history to 20.
To everyone’s surprise, Deroy Duarte tied the game in the 59th minute, and with the score at 1-1, another unexpected turn of events occurred:
The African team forced the defending champion into overtime.
A through ball from Messi found Lisandro Martínez, who put his team ahead in the second minute.
But the Blue Sharks tied the game again with a spectacular goal by Sidny Lopes Cabral in the 103rd minute.
Total confusion.
The Cape Verdeans felt comfortable; they pushed forward, confident that fatigue was doing the rest to sap the Argentines’ strength.
But in the sixth minute of the second half of extra time (111′), the captain took a corner kick, and center back Cristian “Cuti” Romero rose higher than everyone else.
He headed the ball, and Diney Borges sent it into the back of the net.
This time, Vozinha wasn’t enough. Argentina managed to turn things around, and Cape Verde left the tournament having made its mark (Filed under: World Cup—latest teams to qualify for the Round of 16).
Egypt has never gone this far
On Friday, Hossam Hassan wrote a new chapter in the history of Egyptian soccer by leading his national team to the round of 16 at the World Cup.
It could have been less of a struggle, as midfielder Enam Ashhour put the Pharaohs ahead with a goal in the 13th minute.
But the joy of qualifying had to be put on hold because of an own goal by defender Mohamed Hany in the 55th minute.
The player who, without meaning to, set the record as the first player to score two own goals in the same World Cup.
With no further goals, regulation time and overtime came to an end.
In the 119th minute, as extra time was coming to an end and the penalty shootout was about to begin, Socceroos coach Tony Popovic sent Mathew Ryan onto the field at AT&T Stadium and substituted out starter Patrick Beach.
Egypt never went that far
NuevaOnda.com
At 34 years old, with appearances in the 2014, 2018, and 2022 World Cups, as well as an extensive professional career that has taken him to Valencia, Real Sociedad, Levante, Arsenal, and Roma, Ryan is a key player on his country’s national team.
And a specialist in the art of saving penalty kicks.
But the move backfired on Popovic, as Ryan was powerless to stop the Egyptians’ shots, and they won 2-4 in Dallas.
It later became clear that Mohamed Salah and his teammates had figured out how to outwit Ryan by consulting a computer right on the field (Filed under: World Cup—latest teams to qualify for the round of 16).
With information from EFE
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