Daniel Munoz continued his hobby of finding the back of the net for the second consecutive match of the FIFA World Cup, and led Colombia to the last 32 of the North American World Cup.
The Colombian national team achieved a difficult victory over the Democratic Republic of Congo with a clean goal, at dawn, Wednesday, June 24, in the second round of Group 11 of the group stage of the World Cup.
Munoz played the star role in the match, after scoring the only goal for the Colombian team in the 76th minute, to put an end to the misfortune that belonged to his team, after his players raced to waste the easy opportunities that were available to them.
Munoz also scored during Colombia's 3-1 win over Uzbekistan in the opening round of the group, and Colombia's tally rose to 6 points at the top of the standings, two points ahead of its nearest pursuers Portugal, while the Democratic Republic of Congo were frozen at one point in third place.
Colombia will meet Portugal in the final round of the group, which also sees the Democratic Republic of Congo face Uzbekistan, who are at the bottom of the standings with no points.
The Democratic Republic of Congo and Uzbekistan still have a chance to qualify for the knockout stages of the tournament, by being among the top 8 third-placed teams in the 12 groups in the first round.
Ronaldo breaks record
Ronaldo breaks record, leads Portugal to victory over UzbekistanRonaldo breaks record, leads Portugal to victory over Uzbekistan
Cristiano Ronaldo became the first player to score in six World Cup tournaments, after scoring twice in Portugal's 5-0 win over Uzbekistan in Group 11 in Houston on Tuesday.
After the game, the 41-year-old shouted in front of the television cameras "I'm back, I'm back", in a moment of emotional outburst after critics questioned his place in the squad after a 10-game scoring drought in major tournaments.
But once he had the opportunity and space inside the box, Ronaldo was killer in punishing the seemingly inferior Uzbekistan team, taking his World Cup total to 10 goals, surpassing Eusebio as Portugal's all-time top scorer in world tournaments.
Ronaldo said that while he was happy to break records, the most important thing for him was the improvement of the team's performance and the confidence shown by the players after the frustrating first game.
Portugal, who have collected four points from two matches, face Colombia in their last match in the same group, while Uzbekistan, who are teetering on the brink of a pointless exit, play the Democratic Republic of Congo in their last match.
Early pressure
Portugal stepped up their performance from the start whistle, as the players looked to make up for a disappointing 1-1 draw in the opening game against the Democratic Republic of Congo, quickly pushing the ball forward to create a slew of chances.
Portugal shot 17 times, including eight on target, as the players continued to press attacking throughout the game in search of Ronaldo's third goal, who squandered some good chances to complete his hat-trick.
Coach Roberto Martinez said the team, which has an attacking wealth beyond Ronaldo, showed improvement in decision-making and shooting against Uzbekistan.
"That was the reaction we showed in the dressing room," Martinez said. "There are times when you need a game like the first one we played here in order to develop in the tournament.
Ronaldo's first goal came in the sixth minute with a superb shot from six yards out at the near post, where he took advantage of a low cross from Joao Cancelo, before putting Bruno Fernandes' perfect pass into the far corner.
The striker, visibly relieved, raced towards the touchline where his teammates gathered around him, while coach Martinez sat smiling as Portugal's players celebrated.
Nuno Mendes scored a superb free-kick goal between the two goals, as Abdulwahid Nematov tricked Uzbekistan's goalkeeper and the entire stadium with a set-piece while Ronaldo played the role of distraction.
Uzbekistan thought they had reduced the deficit after the first warm-up break, but Azizjohn Janiyev's superb goal was ruled out due to a foul on Cancelo after a VAR review.
In the second half, goalkeeper Nematov mishandled the ball and put it in his team's net, before Rafael Leo added the fifth goal in the final minutes in front of a huge crowd of 68,777 fans.
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