The round of 16 of the World Cup is underway after some exhilarating matches in the first knockout round.
The Round of 32 started with hosts Canada defeating South Africa and ended with Colombia defeating Ghana 1-0. There have been some exhilarating matches during that time, including three games that ended in penalty shootouts and an almost shocking victory for defending champion Argentina.
Our thoughts on the final 16 are as follows.
Argentina
Experts believed that Argentina would have a comfortable match against Cape Verde. It turns out that’s not the case.
Argentina narrowly defeated All Underdogs 3-2.
Cape Verde lost, but it was a big upset in a way, keeping Argentina in the game for about 120 minutes. Cape Verde is a small African country with a population of 500,000, while Argentina is a global soccer powerhouse with a population of 46 million.
Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni said, “I hope they understand that there are no easy opponents.”
Argentina’s next match is against Egypt. They are very likely to win again.
America
The United States defeated Bosnia and Herzegovina 2-0 on Wednesday to earn a ticket to the Round of 16.
America’s victory showed that the level of soccer in this country has grown. The U.S., who played more than 30 minutes with one man down, scored their second goal in the 82nd minute off a Malik Tillman free kick. Folarin Balogun, the team’s top scorer in the tournament, received a red card and was sent off. Balogun scored the opening goal just before the end of the first half.
The United States will face Belgium for a chance to advance to the quarterfinals. Balogun will not play due to a red card.
Other heavyweights
It’s difficult to predict who will make it to the last 16, given the surprising results from underrated nations since the tournament’s inception. But France and Brazil are in a good position.
France will play Paraguay on Saturday as heavy favorites. Paraguay stunned Germany with the biggest upset of the tournament so far. Brazil will play Norway on Sunday.
France, the 2022 World Cup runners-up, advanced with a 3-0 victory over Sweden thanks to two goals from Kylian Mbappé.
Japan took the lead in the 29th minute with midfielder Kaishu Sano’s 30-yard ground ball, hoping to cause an upset over five-time world champion Brazil. However, the Brazilians equalized in the 56th minute with a header from Casemiro. Gabriel Martinelli scored the winning goal in stoppage time.
It was a huge relief for Brazil. If Brazil defeats Norway, they will face the winner of England and Mexico.
Two of Europe’s strongest teams, Spain and Portugal, clashed on Monday in a matchup that could have gone either way.
England VS. Mexico
England came from behind to beat Congo 2-1. England captain Harry Kane scored both goals in the final quarter of the match, in the 75th and 86th minutes respectively.
England will face World Cup hosts Mexico in the round of 16. The match is expected to be a hard-fought affair, with the England team having to overcome difficult elevation changes and a raucous home crowd in Mexico City.
The Round of 32 of the FIFA World Cup will be the first tournament in history to be introduced this year, after the 32-team format that lasted from 1998 to 2022 was expanded to 48 teams.
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Alown Dean is a former news reporter for the Sierra Leone Broadcasting Corporation. He also covered sports for the Broadcasting Service in Freetown, Sierra Leone from 1990 to 1999 and was a soccer commentator on both radio and television. He currently works for the Associated Press in its New York headquarters.
