Portugal became the latest team to book its place into the FIFA World Cup Round of 16 on Monday following a 2-0 shutout win over Uruguay.
Bruno Fernandes scored twice for Portugal while Diogo Costa made three saves to preserve the clean sheet. Uruguay sits bottom of Group H following the loss with only one point earned through two matches.
Costa made the first key save of the match in the 32nd minute, spreading himself wide to deny Rodrigo Betancur from celebrating the opening goal. Portugal began to pile on the pressure in the second half with Fernandes benefitting from a clever cross in the 54th minute.
Fernandes tried to find Cristiano Ronaldo in the box, but his high cross fooled Uruguay keeper Sergio Rochet and nestled into the back of the net.
Maxi Gomez struck the post in the 75th minute for Uruguay as the Conmebol side continued to fight for an equalizing goal. However, it was Portugal who celebrated a second goal in the match with VAR ruling in its favor.
Jose Gimenez was called for handball in the box and Fernandes stepped up to score his second goal of the tournament. Portugal hung to finish top of the group and secure its place in the knockout stage.
Here is a closer look at Monday’s World Cup action:
Brazil 1, Switzerland 0
(Casemiro 84′)
Brazil joined Portugal in the Round of 16 following a gritty 1-0 victory over Switzerland.
Casemiro played the hero for Tite’s men, scoring his first goal of the tournament with only six minutes left to play. Alisson didn’t need to make a single save for Brazil, posting his second clean sheet of the tournament.
Brazil fought tirelessly to find a winning goal and received one through an unfamiliar source in the dying moments of the match. Rodrygo’s flicked pass allowed Casemiro the opportunity to spray a half-volley into the far corner of Yann Sommer’s net.
Vinicius Junior and Raphinha were both denied in the opening half by the Borussia Moenchengladbach keeper, keeping the teams goal-less heading into halftime.
Brazil thought it had taken the lead in the 66th minute, but Richarlison was called for offsides despite not touching the ball in the build-up play of Vinicius’s finish.
However, Casemiro’s fifth international goal proved to be the difference as Brazil made it two victories out of two in Qatar. Switzerland will face Serbia on Friday while Brazil takes on Cameroon.
South Korea 2, Ghana 3
(Gue-Sung Cho 58′, 61′) – (Mohammed Salisu 24′, Mohammed Kudus 34′, 68′)
Ghana’s two-goal lead was wiped away by South Korea in Group H action on Monday, the but the African side used a 68th minute winner from Mohammed Kudus to capture a 3-2 victory.
Kudus scored twice for the young Ghanaian side while Mohammed Salisu also celebrated his first goal of the tournament.
Ghana raced out to a 2-0 lead before halftime with Salisu breaking the deadlock in the 24th minute before Kudus extended its lead in the 34th. Salisu benefitted from a failed clearance by South Korea in its own box while Kudus headed home Jordan Ayew’s dangerous cross.
South Korea battled back in the second half with Gue-Sung Cho scored twice in a three-minute period for the Asian side. Cho’s first goal came off a great cross from Kang-In Lee before the 24-year-old followed suit with a second headed finish in quick succession.
Inaki Williams’ mistimed shot allowed Kudus to score the eventual winning goal in the match, capping off a thrilling affair in Al Rayyan.
Lawrence Ati-Zigi made four saves for Ghana to help preserve the victory, setting up a Friday showdown with Uruguay for a spot in the Round of 16. South Korea takes on Portugal at the same time.
Cameroon 3, Serbia 3
(Jean-Charles Castelletto 29′, Vincent Aboubakar 63′, Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting 66′) – (Strahinja Pavlovic 45+1′, Sergej Milinkovic-Savic 45+3′, Aleksandar Mitrović 55′)
Both Cameroon and Serbia kept their Round of 16 hopes alive on Monday after playing out a thrilling 3-3 draw in Group G action.
Cameroon struck first through Jean-Charles Castelletto’s opening goal, but Serbia quickly took control of the match before halftime. Strahinja Pavlovic tied things up for Serbia in first-half stoppage time before Lazio’s Sergej Milinkovic-Savic propelled the European side in front by a 2-1 scoreline.
Fulham striker Aleksandar Mitrović extended Serbia’s lead to 3-1 in the 53rd minute, finishing off a brilliant passing play from the Serbs. Andrija Zivkovic’s assist was the final pass in a superb passage of play.
Vincent Aboubakar cut Cameroon’s deficit to 3-2 after Castelletto’s pass in the box before Aboubakar’s pass two minutes later helped Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting cap off a historic comeback.
Both teams are tied on one point apiece heading into Friday’s final slate of group stage matches.