MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — Everything Vosinha originally wanted. world cup It was for His mother came to watch him play.
He got it, and more than that.
Cape Verde never won this year’s World Cup, but somehow that didn’t seem to matter. The African national team’s debut on this stage was an unforgettable one. That’s thanks in large part to the 40-year-old goalkeeper who almost created a soccer story that will go down as one of the biggest upsets in sports history.
Cape Verde’s magical run came to an end on Friday in the Round of 32, with the Blue Sharks losing to Lionel Messi and defending World Cup champions Argentina, as most expected. Final score: Champions 3, Cinderella 2in overtime, as perhaps few expected.
And so the trip ended. there was Scoreless draw against Spain Vosinya led the way to open the tournament, which led to a captivating story about the global collaborative effort it took to get his mother to America to watch the group stage games. Two more dramatic draws were enough for Cape Verde to advance through the group stage and into the knockout stages.
But it took Messi’s goal and assist from a corner kick to save the mighty Argentina, which clinched victory midway through the second half of extra time, two and a half hours in real time after the David vs. Goliath showdown began. The Goliaths were pushed to the absolute brink, and Vosinha stood in his way time and time again against the world’s top-ranked teams and the best players in the world.
Bosinha alone had no fewer than four elite saves against Messi in the final 60 minutes of the match.
— In the 63rd minute, Messi took a powerful right-footed shot that almost went past the keeper and was stopped just in time, but the keeper stepped off his line, lowered his angle and absorbed the shot with his body.
— Messi’s free kick in the 73rd minute seemed destined for the right side of the net. Vosinha reached out with his gloved hand and deflected the shot, keeping the score at 1-1 at the time.
— Messi went low with a free kick in stoppage time. Vosinya managed to see the ball through his body wall and took to his knees to make the save.
— Late in the first 15 minutes of extra time, Messi collected a deflected ball at the top of the penalty area and fired a shot. Vosinya dove with a left and punched him to the side as well.
Cape Verde, the smallest country to participate in the World Cup, with a population about 1% of Argentina, will receive $11 million from FIFA for making it this far in the tournament.
Of course, the Blue Sharks got more than just money. They have made their name known on soccer’s biggest stage.
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