HOUSTON, June 20 (Xinhua) — Germany reached the World Cup knockout stage after substitute Deniz Undav scored twice in a 2-1 comeback victory over Cote d’Ivoire on Saturday, whereas Japan’s 4-0 rout of Tunisia later marked the a thousandth match in World Cup historical past.
In Group E, Germany secured its second straight win and superior to the spherical of 32 with one match to spare, reaching the knockout stage for the primary time since profitable the 2014 World Cup. The Germans had didn’t advance from the group stage in each 2018 and 2022.
Franck Kessie gave Cote d’Ivoire a 1-0 lead within the thirtieth minute, earlier than Undav, approaching as a second-half substitute, equalized within the 68th minute and fired residence the winner in stoppage time for his third aim of the match.
Elsewhere within the group, Curacao earned its first-ever World Cup level with a 0-0 draw towards Ecuador. Goalkeeper Eloy Room starred with a sequence of saves and stored Curacao’s hopes of advancing alive.
The match additionally featured a milestone for Chinese match officers, with referee Ma Ning, assistant referee Zhou Fei and video assistant referee Fu Ming officiating collectively on the World Cup.
In Group F, the Netherlands routed Sweden 5-1 to maneuver high of the standings and lengthen its unbeaten World Cup group-stage streak to 18 matches.
Japan additionally collected its first victory of the match with a commanding 4-0 win over Tunisia. The sport was the a thousandth in FIFA World Cup historical past, a landmark second for a contest that has spanned almost a century since its inaugural version in Uruguay in 1930.
Tunisia turned the primary staff in Group F to be eradicated after struggling two defeats. The knockout-round berths stay large open among the many Netherlands, Japan and Sweden. Japan will face Sweden in its last group match, whereas Tunisia will tackle the Netherlands.