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TORONTO, Canada: Ghana scored a dramatic 1-0 victory over Panama in their opening World Cup Group L clash in Toronto on Wednesday. Caleb Yirenkyi bundled in the winning goal in the fifth minute of stoppage time to settle an attritional battle between the two sides.
ARLINGTON, United States: Harry Kane scored twice in the first half as England eventually saw off Croatia 4-2 to launch their World Cup title assault in Texas on Wednesday. Jude Bellingham, immediately after half-time, and substitute Marcus Rashford with five minutes to go ensured a winning start for Thomas Tuchel’s side after Croatia had fought back to level at 2-2. The prolific Kane twice put England ahead in the first half — one a retaken penalty — only for Martin Baturina and Petar Musa to hit back for 2018 runners-up Croatia. With both sides shaky at the back, the second half threatened another goal glut, Bellingham needing just two minutes to put England ahead again in front of a crowd of 70,000. England had numerous chances to extend their lead immediately after, but did not take them until Rashford popped up. The meeting was a repeat of the 2018 semifinal, which Croatia won 2-1 after extra-time, although England have since had the edge against one of the older squads at the tournament in North America. Thomas Tuchel’s side, bidding to deliver England a first major trophy since 1966, made a nervy start in front of a packed house at the impressive air-conditioned home of the Dallas Cowboys. Then the drama came. Croatia’s talismanic captain Luka Modric dangled out a leg and caught Noni Madueke in the box. Kane saw his unconvincing penalty saved by Dominik Livakovic, only for French referee Clement Turpin to order a retake after video replays deemed the stopper had come off his line. Turpin once sent off Tuchel in the Champions League and the referee taking charge of the game had been highlighted by English media this week.
KANSAS CITY: Lionel Messi savored a “beautiful moment” after becoming the World Cup’s joint all-time leading goalscorer on Tuesday but said, “ultimately, it is just a statistic, nothing more.”
TEXAS: Yoane Wissa scored a goal in first-half stoppage time and the Democratic Republic of Congo pulled off a surprising 1-1 draw against Portugal in the opening World Cup game for each side to begin Group K play at Houston on Wednesday. Portugal dominated possession but had just one shot on goal as DR Congo goaltender Lionel Mpasi finished without a save. It allowed DR Congo to earn a point in the country’s second-ever World Cup appearance and first since 1974 when it was known as Zaire. DR Congo’s draw was one of the more stunning results of early World Cup action, alongside the 0-0 draw Cape Verde orchestrated in their World Cup debut against a tournament favorite in Spain on Monday. Joao Neves scored an early goal for Portugal, which owned possession for 60 percent of the match and completed 791 passes to 263 for DR Congo and yet were unable to secure the victory. Due to the draw, Portugal fell two spots to seventh in the FIFA/Coca Cola World Rankings. DR Congo rose three spots to No.
WASHINGTON: An emotional Lionel Messi was wiping his tears with his shirt after scoring Argentina’s first goal against Algeria in the World Cup, a strike that marked the beginning of a memorable performance where he netted thrice to secure a 3-0 win. But while his first World Cup hat-trick had many Argentine fans in tears of joy, Messi said he was crying for a personal reason unrelated to the sport.
MEXICO CITY: Born in 1986, the last time Mexico hosted a World Cup, Eduardo Marin likes to joke that he’s measured his life not in years, but in soccer tournaments. In 1994, as a young kid, he watched with his family as Mexico crashed out on penalties to Bulgaria. In 2006, by then at college, Marin recalls the heartbreak of Argentina’s Maxi Rodriguez smashing home a volley from outside the box in extra time, knocking out one of the best Mexico teams in recent memory. And in 2018, in his early 30s, Marin and eight friends painted a bus in Mexico’s green, white and red and drove from Germany to Russia in support of ‘El Tri.’ The bus appeared on TV channels across the globe and secured the friend group, for a moment, viral fame. Now, the World Cup has come to Mexico, but Marin is staying home. He’s not attending a single game, and the bus is gathering dust.
ATLANTA, USA: Curaçao fans went wild. The Germans were in shock. Livano Comenencia had scored a goal for the smallest nation by population to ever qualify for the World Cup against four-time champion Germany. At 1-1 in Houston a famous upset looked possible. Then came the hydration break. Curaçao lost the initiative, conceding two goals before halftime in what eventually became a 7-1 defeat to the Germans. “I actually felt sorry for them,” former England striker Alan Shearer told The Rest is Football podcast.
LOS ANGELES: England begin their bid to end a 60-year wait for a trophy when they take on Croatia in their World Cup opener on Wednesday while Cristiano Ronaldo is set to play in a record-equalling sixth tournament. Portuguese great Ronaldo, 41, has a tough act to follow after his old nemesis Lionel Messi scored a spectacular hat-trick for Argentina on Tuesday to equal the all-time World Cup goalscoring record, making a mockery of his 38 years. Between them, Ronaldo and Messi have won the Ballon d'Or award for the world's best player 13 times. Ronaldo is expected to start against the Democratic Republic of Congo in Houston, captaining a richly talented Portugal squad that are trying to win football's biggest prize for the first time. One of that squad is pivotal midfielder Bernardo Silva, who signed for Real Madrid on a two-year deal on Wednesday, a month after his contract with Manchester City expired. England skipper Harry Kane, meanwhile, urged his England teammates to "go for it" and be "free in the mind" when they take on the beaten 2018 finalists Croatia in the vast AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. Kane's team are among the favourites for the World Cup after a string of near-misses at recent tournaments but history weighs heavy on a side who last won football's biggest prize on home soil in 1966. "For sure it's one of the best opportunities we will have as a team to win it," Kane said on Tuesday. "I think everyone is eager to just start well tomorrow and prove that we have the capabilities of going far in this tournament. "Ultimately, for me, the message is just to be free in the mind." In other games on Wednesday, Ghana face Panama in Toronto in England's Group L before first-time qualifiers Uzbekistan tackle