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FIFA World Cup Day 16 Highlights (27 June): The 16th day of the FIFA World Cup was incredibly thrilling. While France and Senegal registered big wins with a flurry of goals, powerhouse teams like Spain and Belgium asserted their dominance and secured their spots in the knockout stage (Round of 32). Meanwhile, the match between Cape Verde and Saudi Arabia ended in a draw. Let’s take a look at the results and exciting moments from last night's matches.
Match 1: France vs Norway (Group I)
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Result: France won 4-1
This match was billed as a showdown between Norway's star striker Erling Haaland and France's captain Kylian Mbappé, but Ousmane Dembélé stole the show. Thanks to a brilliant hat-trick by Dembélé, France defeated Norway in a one-sided contest.
- Key Moment: Displaying explosive form in the first half, Ousmane Dembélé completed his hat-trick by scoring in the 7th, 20th, and 32nd minutes.
- Norway's Effort: Theo Aasgaard scored the lone goal for Norway in the 21st minute.
- Finishing Touch: Désiré Doué scored France's fourth goal in the dying moments of the match (90+4').
- Standings: With this emphatic victory, France has advanced to the next round, finishing at the top of their group.
Match 2: Senegal vs Iraq (Group I)
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Result: Senegal won 5-0
To stay in the race for the knockout stage, Senegal faced the challenge of not just winning, but securing a victory by a large margin.
The team adopted a highly aggressive stance right from the start, pushing Iraq firmly onto the back foot.- Early Lead: Habib Diarra scored in the fourth minute, putting Senegal 1-0 ahead. Iraq's troubles deepened when Rebin Sulaka received a red card in the 13th minute.
- Second-Half Thrills: Senegal unleashed a flurry of goals in the second half. Ismaila Sarr (56th minute), Pape Gueye (59th and 71st minutes), and Iliman Ndiaye (82nd minute) scored to seal Iraq's defeat.
- The Equation: With this historic 5-0 victory, Senegal improved their goal difference and kept their knockout hopes alive.
Match 3: Belgium vs New Zealand (Group G)
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Result: Belgium won 5-1
In this Group G encounter, Belgium comprehensively defeated New Zealand and easily qualified for the knockout stage.
- First Half: Leandro Trossard scored in the 28th minute, giving Belgium an early 1-0 lead.
- Second-Half Attack: Belgium became even more formidable in the second half. Trossard scored his second goal in the 50th minute, while star player Kevin De Bruyne made the score 3-0 in the 66th minute.
- Final Moments: New Zealand's Elijah Just narrowed the deficit with a goal in the 84th minute, but shortly after, Romelu Lukaku (86th minute) and Alexis Saelemaekers (90+4' in injury time) scored to secure a commanding 5-1 victory for Belgium.
Also Read: Top 5 FIFA World Cup Goal Scorers: Messi Tops the Historic List
Match 4: Spain vs Uruguay (Group H)
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Result: Spain won 1-0
Spain defeated Uruguay in a hard-fought Group H match, knocking them out of the World Cup. With this loss, Uruguay's journey ended at the group stage.
- Decisive Goal: Spain's Alex Baena scored a brilliant goal in the 42nd minute of the first half, which ultimately proved to be the winner.
- Match Dynamics: Spain's defense gave Uruguay no chance to stage a comeback. Spain topped Group H with 7 points and advanced to the knockout stage, while Uruguay failed to win a single match out of three.
Match 5: Egypt vs Iran (Group G)
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Result: Match ended in a 1-1 draw
The match between Egypt and Iran was thrilling and fiercely contested, ultimately ending in a 1-1 draw.
- Goal Timeline: Egypt's Mahmoud Saber put his team ahead in the 5th minute, but Iran's Ramin Rezaeian equalized in the 14th minute.
- VAR Drama: Iran scored a goal in the dying minutes of the second half, but it was ruled out for a foul following a VAR (Video Assistant Referee) review.
- Standings: Egypt finished second in the group and advanced to the Round of 32. Iran finished third but remains in the race for the knockout stage, as they rank sixth among the top eight third-placed teams.
Match 6: Cape Verde vs Saudi Arabia (Group H)
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Result: Match ended in a 0-0 draw
This Group H match ended goalless. Cape Verde had several golden opportunities to score against Saudi Arabia but failed to capitalize due to poor finishing.
- Standings: Despite the draw, Cape Verde managed to finish second in the group with 3 points and qualified for the knockout stage.
Also Read: 5 Times Ind & Pak Cricketers Played in the Same Team
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