Belgium had defender Nathan Ngoy sent off as Iran held firm in a 0-0 World Cup draw in Los Angeles. Ngoy was dismissed after 66 minutes when he carelessly lost control of the ball and stopped Mehdi Taremi bearing down on the Red Devils’ goal. The stalemate means both sides have drawn two games and will have everything to play for in the final round of Group G matches.
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Spain got their World Cup campaign back on track with a 4-0 victory over Saudi Arabia in Atlanta. The European champions arrived in the United States as pre-tournament favourites, but those predictions had come under feverish scrutiny after being held 0-0 by the minnows of Cape Verde. First-night concerns were washed away though as Spain struck three times in the first 24 minutes to take top spot in Group H.
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Japan delivered a commanding 4-0 win over Tunisia in the World Cup’s 1,000th match to move to the brink of the knockout stages, while the North Africans were eliminated after a second successive defeat in Group F. Daichi Kamada opened the scoring after four minutes, bundling home Keito Nakamura’s low cross from close range, before Ayase Ueda doubled Japan’s lead in the 30th minute with a fierce low drive into the far corner.
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A heroic performance from goalkeeper Eloy Room created history for Curacao as they earned a first World Cup point by holding Ecuador to a 0-0 draw in Kansas City. Room made 15 saves – the most by any goalkeeper in 90 minutes of a World Cup match since records began in 1966 – as he acted as a one-man barrier, with Dick Advocaat’s brave side bouncing back from their 7-1 thrashing by Germany in their opening game.
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Deniz Undav rescued Germany as his second-half double helped them come from behind to defeat Ivory Coast and book their place in the knockout stages of the World Cup. The four-time winners were frustrated after going behind to a 30th-minute goal from Ivory Coast captain Franck Kessie but Julian Nagelsmann turned to his bench in search of a response – and Undav delivered emphatically.
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