World Cup Round-Up (Day 8) – Morocco Stun Belgium Before Spain and Germany Draw

28/11/22 902

Sunday’s World Cup action dished up four intriguing ties. The first game of the day saw Costa Rica snatch a late victory over Japan before Morocco claimed a shock 2-0 win against Belgium.

Canada became the second team to suffer elimination from the tournament following their 4-1 defeat to Croatia. In final clash of the day, Spain and Germany played out a 1-1 draw to leave Group E wide open.

Let’s look back at all the major incidents from Day 8 in Qatar.

Fuller’s Late Strike Sees Costa Rica Edge Japan

Fresh from their remarkable comeback win over Germany, Japan would have been confident of dispatching Costa Rica. After all, the Costa Ricans suffered a 7-0 thrashing against Spain in their opening match.

However, Keysher Fuller’s 81st-minute goal stunned Japan. The Asian side chalked up 13 shots throughout the contest but failed to score. Meanwhile, Costa Rica converted their only attempt on target.

Magnificent Morocco Beat Below-Par Belgium

Morocco leapfrogged Belgium in Group F following an eye-catching performance at Al-Thumama Stadium. Romain Saiss and Zakaria Aboukhlal both score late in the second half to hand the Africans a memorable 2-0 victory.

Belgium dominated large portions of the clash, enjoying 67% possession. Still, Robert Martinez’s men failed to make the most of their dominance – meaning they need a positive result against Croatia in order to progress from Group F.

Croatia Score Four to Eliminate Canada

When Alphonso Davies gave Canada the lead inside two minutes against Croatia, another upset appeared to be on the cards. But the early strike proved to be the peak of the Canadians’ World Cup campaign.

Croatia flexed their muscles and went to score four goals, with Andrej Kramaric bagging a brace. Marko Livaja also found the back of the net before Lovro Majer sealed the deal in second-half stoppage time.

Fullkrug Saves Germany as Spain Fail to Hold On

Spain and Germany produced one of the most entertaining clashes of the 2022 World Cup at Al-Bayt Stadium on Sunday night. Despite La Roja’s dominance, the Germans managed to snatch a draw to keep their campaign alive.

Alvaro Morata put Spain ahead on 62 minutes, but Niclas Fullkrug equalised on 83 minutes. First-place Spain lead fourth-place Germany by three points in Group E, meaning all four sides in the group can still reach the last 16.