Here is a roundup of Day Four at the 2014 FIFA World Cup
SWITZERLAND 2 ECUADOR 1
In the most dramatic ending of the World Cup to date, Switzerland forward Haris Seferovic scored in stoppage time to give the Swiss a 2-1 victory over Ecuador in the two teams' Group E opener in Brasilla. The match appeared destined to end in a draw after Ecuador’s Enner Valencia and Switzerland’s Admir Mehmedi traded goals, but in the 93rd minute, Seferovic’s converted a low cross from Ricardo Martinez to snatch the win from La Tri. Not only was Seferovic’s goal in the third minute of stoppage dramatic, but it was also historic as the latest goal ever scored in the World Cup group stage.
FRANCE 3 HONDURAS 0
France began the 2014 FIFA World Cup with a bang as they demolished a 10-man Honduras 3-0 at Estadio Beira-Rio in Porto Alegre. Karim Benezma scored two goals in the victory while also launching a shot in the 48th minute that deflected off Honduran goalkeeper Noel Valladares for an own goal. Adding injury to insult, the Hondurans will likely need to try to advance from Group E without San Jose Earthquakes center back Victor Bernardez, who was forced to leave at halftime with an injury that was described as “serious” by the Honduran staff after the match.
ARGENTINA 2 BOSNIA-HERZEGOVINA 1
Argentina issued a warning to the other favorites at the 2014 FIFA World Cup on Sunday with a 2-1 victory over Bosnia-Herzegovina at the Maracana in Rio de Janiero. The Argentines took the lead after just three minutes when a Lionel Messi free kick that was flicked back by Marcos Rojo deflected off Bosnian defender Sead Kolasinac for an own goal. Messi doubled Argentina’s lead in 65th minute as he sliced through the Bosnian defense before unleashing a rocket that hit off the inside of the most and into the net. Vedad Ibisevic cut the Argentina lead in half with a goal in the 87th minute with his nation’s first-ever World Cup goal, but the Europeans could not find the equalizer.
The World Cup returns on Monday with three matches. The day begins with Germany taking on Portugal at 9:00 a.m. PT in their Group G opener before Iran faces Nigeria at 12:00 p.m. PT. The action concludes with the United States facing Ghana in Natal at 3:00 p.m. PT.
The Galaxy will be hosting a viewing party for that epic U.S. match against Ghana at the Hermosa Beach Pier. Details can be found at LAGalaxy.com/worldcup/viewingparties.
Adam Serrano is the LA Galaxy Insider. Read his blog at LAGalaxy.com/Insider and contact him at LAGalaxyInsider@Gmail.com
