It’s day 16 at the World Cup, and after Ecuador pulled off one of the shocks of the tournament so far to sneak into the knockout stages, you can follow all the news across the day right here, with ESPN.
Sweden and Paraguay also claimed two of the spots for the best third-placed teams on Thursday night as they each picked up a crucial point, leaving Scotland‘s hopes of joining them looking like even more of an outside chance.
Here’s how the news unfolded on June 26.
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It was Ecuador who dominated the headlines on Thursday night, as goals from Nilson Angulo and Gonzalo Plata saw them overturn Leroy Sané‘s second-minute strike to make the knockout stages against all odds.
Paraguay and Australia played out a controversial 0-0 draw which saw the Socceroos book their place in the round of 32 and the South American side very likely join them there.
For Sweden, Anthony Elanga‘s curling strike, which claimed a 1-1 draw against Japan, was enough to guarantee progression — even if Elanga did not know it himself, slumping to the turf with disappointment at the final whistle only to later be told Sweden were going through.
Elsewhere, a 98th-minute winner from Kaan Ayhan gave Türkiye their first win of the tournament with a 3-2 victory over a United States side that had already secured progression as group winners.
There were also victories for the Netherlands over Tunisia and the Ivory Coast over Curaçao.
Friday night’s games see Norway take on France, Uruguay face Spain, and the likes of Senegal and Belgium also in action.
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