Belgium stars in the miracle of the night and England survives thanks to Kane
We already know three new teams qualified for the round of 16: England, Belgium and the United States advance, while DR Congo, Senegal and Bosnia are eliminated.
BarcelonaWednesday's round of 32 of the World Cup saw three new qualifiers for the round of 16. England came from behind against the Democratic Republic of Congo (2-1), Belgium staged an epic comeback against Senegal (3-2 after extra time), and the United States defeated Bosnia and Herzegovina (2-0) despite playing half an hour with one player less.
England 2-1 Democratic Republic of Congo
The Democratic Republic of Congo was on the verge of delivering one of the tournament's biggest surprises. Cipenga put the Africans ahead in the 7th minute, and England had to work hard for much of the match against an inspired Mpasi. Just as Thomas Tuchel's men seemed headed for elimination, Harry Kane appeared with a brace in the 75th and 85th minutes, both goals coming from assists by new Barça player Anthony Gordon. The English will face Mexico in the round of 16.
Belgium 3-2 Senegal
Belgium staged a comeback that seemed impossible. Senegal was on the verge of qualification after clearly dominating the match and taking a 0-2 lead thanks to goals from Habib Diarra and Ismaïla Sarr. But a providential save by Thibaut Courtois against Sadio Mané in the 84th minute changed the script. Romelu Lukaku reduced the deficit in the 86th and Youri Tielemans equalized in the 89th. In extra time, when penalties seemed inevitable, VAR signaled a penalty on Tielemans himself, who scored the definitive 3-2 in the 125th minute. The Belgians will play the round of 16 against the United States.
United States 2-0 Bosnia and Herzegovina
The United States also remain alive after overcoming Bosnia and Herzegovina 2-0. Folarin Balogun put the North Americans ahead before halftime, but went from hero to villain when he received a direct red card in the 60th minute for a harsh tackle reviewed by VAR. Despite being numerically inferior, Mauricio Pochettino's team resisted the Bosnian arrivals with ten players and Malik Tillman sealed the duel with a great free-kick.
Spain enters the stage
This Thursday will be Spain's turn. Luis de la Fuente's team enters the scene in the round of 32 against Austria (9 p.m.) with the objective of avoiding the surprises that have already eliminated teams like Germany and the Netherlands from the World Cup. The winner will face in the round of 16 the winner of the Portugal-Croatia match, which takes place early Thursday morning to Friday (1 a.m.).