European champions Spain and Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal aim to book a place in the last 16 of the World Cup on Thursday as Algeria look to redeem their pride in African football.
Spain will face Austria in Los Angeles, where a win will see them go on to meet Portugal in the next round.
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Portugal take on Croatia in Toronto in what could be the last World Cup game for Ronaldo or his former Real Madrid teammate and veteran Croatian midfielder Luka Modric.
Algeria’s recent game aims to revive Africa’s fortunes after a poor start to the qualifiers for the African continent.
Ivory Coast, Senegal and the Democratic Republic of Congo all qualified for the first leg of the last 32 after exiting the group stage.
Algeria, who advanced to the Last 32 with a 3-3 draw with Austria on Saturday, will face Switzerland in Vancouver.
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After arriving at the World Cup as one of the leading players, Spain has started the competition from scratch.
It tied 0-0 with Cape Verde followed by 4-0 Saudi Arabia before winning against Uruguay.
But Spain coach Luis de la Fuente is adamant that his team is looking up and is exactly where they want to be as they reach the business end of the tournament.
“This squad is used to breaking records and overcoming bad spells; we are determined to move forward,” said De la Fuente on Wednesday.
“From the time we got here until the Uruguay game, we’ve seen the team start to regain the automatic movements and patterns they had in the past. Now we have to deliver; there’s no mistake.”
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– The penalty jinx –
Spain have been knocked out on penalties in the last 16 of the last two World Cups, in 2018 and 2022, and have prepared themselves for what will happen when they face Austria.
“Taking a penalty is not a small thing,” said De la Fuente. “Not everyone is destined to take one. There is a psychological aspect – a human aspect, and every footballer is different.”
Victory over Austria will make Spain advance to the last 16 where Portugal won against Croatia.
The match in Toronto will mark the first time that two foreign players over the age of 40 — Ronaldo and Modric — will take to the same field in a World Cup match.
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Portugal midfielder Vitinha described Modric as “a good reference for all footballers.”
“It’s a pleasure to play with him and I hope that tomorrow he will be sadder than me,” said Vitinha.
“We have to field a team tomorrow, and hopefully it will be Luka Modric’s team.”
The latest game will see Algeria try to avoid becoming the latest African team to qualify for the knockout stages following the eliminations of Ivory Coast, Democratic Republic of Congo and Senegal. Only Morocco has passed.
Algeria have not won a knockout match in their last four appearances in the tournament.
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Thursday’s action comes after an extra day on Wednesday when England progressed to the last 16 thanks to two goals from captain Harry Kane against DR Congo in Atlanta.
Kane’s double made it 2-1 and came from behind. England now face a tough trip to face Mexico at the Estadio Azteca on Sunday.
Meanwhile, Belgium beat Senegal 3-2 despite trailing 2-0 with four minutes of normal time left.
Senegalese midfielder, Furious, Pape Gueye, later said he will “take a break” from playing for his country while the management is in charge.
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Gueye started the game but coach Pape Thiaw replaced him with Lamine Camara after an hour.
“I will come back and say a few words about the elimination… but I am announcing today that as long as this coaching staff is there, I will take a break from the national team,” Gueye, who scored two goals in their qualifier against Iraq, said on social media.
Senegal got off to a rocky start to the year when they won the Africa Cup of Nations final in January, a victory that was later overturned on appeal in March by opponents and tournament hosts Morocco.
The United States booked their place in the last 16, where they will face Belgium, after losing to Bosnia-Herzegovina 2-0 in Santa Clara, California.
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The US win was bittersweet even though star striker Folarin Balogun — who scored America’s first goal — received a red card in the second half that will keep him out of the game against Belgium.
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