ARGENTINA 3 FRANCE 4 (Kazan)
France has eliminated Argentina from the 2018 World Cup and progressed to the quarter-finals
after a stunning 4-3 victory.
France took control early, frustrating their Latin American opponents into committing dangerous fouls. In the 11th minute, Kylian Mbappe took possession of a loose ball and raced towards the box, where he was dragged down by Marcos Rojo and awarded a penalty. Antoine Griezmann stepped up and drove the ball into the lower left corner for an early 1-0 lead. Then, minutes before the halftime whistle, Argentina retaliated as Angel Di Maria fired a spectacular left-footed shot into the top corner for the equalizer. Argentina returned to the pitch for the second 45 minutes and overpowered France instantly. Lionel Messi easily found his way to the box, where he swiveled past defenders to assist Mercado as he inadvertently tapped the ball into the net for the lead. France did not say behind for long as a stunning shot by Benjamin Pavard from 20 yards away, curved into the top left corner of the goal for the equalizer in the 57th minute.
Moments later, Mbappe raced to drive a low shot underneath Armani to restored France’s lead. Oliver Giroud took advantage of Argentina’s weakened state as he made space to find Mbappe, who then fired the ball into the bottom-right corner for the 4-2 lead. Argentina attempted to come back as Sergio Aguero drove the ball past Hugo Lloris and scored in stoppage-time, however, their efforts were not enough to overpower France and proceed to the next round.
URUGUAY 2 PORTUGAL 1 (Sochi)
Uruguay has qualified to the quarterfinals and eliminated Portugal from the World Cup after a heroic 2-1 triumph. Both nations began the match with immense energy and strong offensive efforts, creating a dynamic atmosphere. In the seventh minute, the Latin American side took control of the match as Luis Suarez raced to the box to find Edison Cavani, who smashed a header into the top right corner for the early lead. Portugal attempted to equalize before halftime but simply could not penetrate Uruguay’s defense. The second half saw a rejuvenated European side as they equalized the match minutes after the whistle when an unmarked Pepe found a cross and headed the ball into the net. Portugal’s celebrations were short-lived, however, as Cavani took possession of the ball within the box and whipped it into the right-hand side of the net to regain the lead for good.
