Cape Verde draws Saudi Arabia to advance to knockout stage against Argentina

Cape Verde reach last 32 after draw with Saudi Arabia ‘We showed the world you should not fear difficulties’ The Cape Verde head coach, Bubista, said his team have “shown that nothing is impossible” after his side secured a historic meeting with Argentina in the last 32. Cape Verde became the smallest country by population to reach the World Cup’s knockout stages, and the first debutants since 2010 to do so, after drawing 0-0 with Saudi Arabia in Houston. The result meant they finished second in Group H, a stunning achievement given they were deemed outsiders in a group also including Spain and Uruguay. Continue reading...

How has a group of islands with just 525,000 inhabitants made it to the knockout rounds of the World Cup?

How has a group of islands with just 525,000 inhabitants made it to the knockout rounds of the World Cup?

World Cup debutants Cape Verde will face reigning champions Argentina in the knockout rounds after drawing 0-0 with Saudi Arabia on Friday to extend their fairytale journey.Spain, held 0-0 by Cape Verde in the first round of games, finished with seven points, with the debutants on three and Uruguay and Saudi Arabia both on the way home on two.

For a few days at least, the Blue Sharks can scent Argentinian blood. What a scene they presented at the end after drawing for a third time and improbably, magnificently, qualifying from Group H as runners-up. Their players and head coach, Bubista, huddled round a mobile phone to watch the closing stages of Uruguay’s defeat to Spain. They erupted en masse upon learning the outcome and can look ahead to a last-32 meeting with Lionel Messi and company in Miami. Messi’s meeting with this World Cup’s new cult hero, the goalkeeper Vozinha, could be one for the ages. It would have been a travesty if Saudi Arabia, who made minimal impact despite requiring a win to progress, had snuck home here. What an insipid display this was from Giorgios Donis’s side, the gargantuan investment in their local league clearly yet to reap benefits at international level. The only surprise was that they were not picked off by one of Cape Verde’s numerous second-half counters. Anyone watching this tournament is pumped with advertisements for Fifa’s worldwide partner Aramco, the majority Saudi state-owned oil company, but their national team appear to need powering by alternative energy. Continue reading...