 "FIFA World Cup Day 9: Brazil, Portugal into knockouts; fan invades pitch with rainbow flag")
Doha: On the ninth day of the FIFA World Cup, five-time champions Brazil and Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal joined France in the knockout rounds with a game to spare on a dramatic day in Qatar. FIFA World Cup:
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Records In the day’s other matches, Ghana edged South Korea in a five-goal thriller. The goalfest had already begun when Cameroon bridged a two goal deficit to hold Serbia to a 3-3 draw. Fernandes double sends Portugal through [caption id=“attachment_11713931” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Bruno Fernandes scored a brace in Portugal’s win over Uruguay in the FIFA World Cup. AP[/caption] Bruno Fernandes scored twice in the second half to
beat Uruguay and progressed to the last-16 alongside Brazil and France. Fernandes opened the scoring with a cross-cum-shot early in the second half. He added a second late on converting a penalty after VAR had ruled for handball inside the area. For the first goal, Ronaldo wheeled away in celebration but FIFA decided he had not touched the ball, denying him a ninth World Cup goal, which would have put him level with Portuguese great Eusebio.
The second arrived in the third minute of stoppage time when Jose Gimenez was adjudged to have handballed while sliding for a tackle. The VAR decision has been criticised as Gimenez was attempting to use his arm to break his fall and not deliberately trying to impede play. Neymar-less Brazil win with late winner
Brazil’s Casemiro scored in the 83rd minute of Group G match against Switzerland to give his side a 1-0 win at Stadium 974. Without Neymar, Brazil laboured and the ball moved around slowly with a draw looking inevitable until Casemiro popped up with a belter of a right footed shot, albeit with a slight but significant deflection, into the corner of the goal. Must Read | In Neymar's absence, no one takes up the mantle for Brazil The strike came on the hells of a Vinicius Jr. strike which was disallowed for offside. “The first aim was to qualify. That was really important in a group as difficult as ours,” the 30-year-old Casemiro told Brazilian broadcaster SporTV. Goals galore in early games Ghana edged South Korea, 3-2 , in a five-goal thriller at the Education City Stadium. Man-of-the-match Mohammed Kudus, 22, one of the hottest properties in world football, caught the eye with two goals including the winner.
Referee Anthony Taylor blew the whistle for full time even as South Korea earned a corner. The decision surprised the Asian side who protested including the manager Paulo Bento who was eventually sent off. MUST READ | FIFA World Cup scenarios: How teams can reach the last-16? In Group G, Cameroon dug deep to fight back from 3-1 down against Serbia . Rigobert Song’s team looked dead and buried after goals from Strahinja Pavlovic, Sergej Milinkovic-Savic and Aleksandar Mitrovic gave Serbia a two-goal cushion. But substitute Vincent Aboubakar and Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting snatched a draw with two quick-fire strikes just after the hour mark.
Cameroon must beat Brazil in their final game to have any chance of progressing. Pitch invader runs with rainbow flag [caption id=“attachment_11713951” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] A pitch invader runs across the field with a rainbow flag during the World Cup group H match between Portugal and Uruguay at the FIFA World Cup. AP[/caption] Portugal’s match against Uruguay was briefly interrupted by a pitch invader who carried a rainbow flag and wore messages of support for war-torn Ukraine and Iranian women. Gay rights and the use of the rainbow flag have been a simmering issue at the Qatar World Cup, where homosexuality is illegal. A man carrying a rainbow flag and wearing a T-shirt with the words “Respect for Iranian Woman” on the back and “Save Ukraine” on the front was tackled and escorted off the field by security. The protest was addressed by White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, speaking on the eve of USA vs Iran in Qatar.
“We are concerned over the potential treatment of LGBTQ+ spectators and athletes,” she said. “We urge the state of Qatar and all Qataris to fully realise the emir’s message and that is to truly recognise, to welcome everyone to the Cup, the World Cup.” Iran’s team has been in the spotlight because of anti-government protests at home. In their opening game against England, the team opted against singing the national anthem . They then changed course for the second fixture against Wales . The country has been shaken by more than two months of nationwide demonstrations since the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in morality police custody on 16 September. Read all the Latest News , Trending News , Cricket News , Bollywood News , India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
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