The chaos that dominated the first three days of the World Cup group stage finals didn’t skip Group G on Friday as much as it stirred around the outer ring of the two games, plunging into causing mayhem in the line. falls and the water recedes before leaving as quickly as it came.
When Brazil’s reserve team faced Cameroon, Serbia and Switzerland competed for the last spot of the group. That match included a flurry of goals – five in 30 minutes – and then a barren stretch of taunts of both teams, one over the other.
When the match ended, Switzerland won 3-2 and qualified for the knockout stage, where they will face Group H winners Portugal on Tuesday. The Swiss overcame a shortfall in the first half thanks to Breel Embolo’s equalizer just before half-time and then a 48-minute decisive strike from Remo Freuler.
As Serbia regretted a missed opportunity — its next Round of 16 appearance as an independent nation would be its first — Switzerland celebrated its third consecutive knockout round. They have become a regular presence there, though not as much as Brazil, which tends to deliver mail there every four years.
Its match with Cameroon borders anticlimax. Having qualified, Brazil will be at the top of Group G except for a strange series of events, which is not entirely out of the realm of possibility. So its manager, Tite, gave nine starters – from Richarlison to Thiago Silva, Casemiro to Vinicius Junior – and played just 2 regular games, Fred and Eder Militao. It’s not a punitive measure; Tite realizes that, with a quick turnaround ahead of Brazil’s next game, he wants a full complement, or close to it, ready for Monday’s game against South Korea.
Brazil earned most of the chances and dominated the ball, but they also lacked a certain amount of accuracy in the attacking third. It tried to score, and it failed, rejected by the dazzling Cameroonian goalkeeper Devis Epassy, who was everywhere he needed to be and nowhere.
To qualify, the Indomitable Lions needed more help than could reasonably be expected, and yet that help almost came: Vincent Aboubakar scored the winning goal in injury time. at the end of the second half, giving Cameroon a 1-0 lead for the team. only and last time. But it needed another goal, which Aboubakar clearly failed to realize. He tore his shirt in celebration, received an automatic yellow card – his second – and was sent off.
To break Brazil’s 17-match unbeaten streak in the group stage of the World Cup, the Indomitable Lions became the first team to score a shot on target against this team in this World Cup and also the first team to score table. They also, and submitted this to a pub quiz, became the first African team to beat Brazil at the World Cup.
