Wednesday saw the first eliminations from the World Cup 2018 as Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Morocco were all officially taken out of the equation. The 1-0 victory for Uruguay over Saudi Arabia, meant that Egypt were officially eliminated after falling again yesterday to Russia. The loss also sealed the fate for the Saudis as Uruguay and the hosts both have a maximum 6 points after their first 2 group games, guaranteeing their progression to the knockout stages. Morocco had a tall task in the first match of the day, somehow needing to curtail Ronaldo and Portugal, and while the Moroccans played well for most of the match, they came up just short. The 1-0 defeat means the African nation is the odd one out of Group B as Portugal, Spain, and Iran all stay alive in their respective quests for the knockout stage.
Portugal got out to another superb start in their group match with Morocco. It didn't take long for Cristiano Ronaldo to add to his heroics at Russia 2018 as he struck again in just the 4' of the match. He was able to wrestle away from his marker and dive low to head one home past Morocco's Mohamedi. It was another quality finish for the Portuguese leader, making it 4 goals already in the competition. He nearly got a double-dip just minutes later in the 8' as his attempt from the right side of the box rolled just wide of the far post. It was another quality attempt from the Captain. A terrific save by Mohamedi in the 39' preserved the 0-1 deficit before the intermission.
Morocco got going in the second half as a header in the 57' seemed destined for goal, but an absolutely sublime save from Petricio sent it away. It was a remarkable effort as he was able to just get a mitt on it with his right arm outstretched. The header was a terrific one and the Moroccans began to seize a bit of momentum. Their efforts continued to yield possibilities from the box, but none found goal.
Ronaldo found himself with a chance to ice it in the 85' when he lined up a free kick from the left top-side just outside the box, but the effort deflected off the wall. Morocco gave a great effort in the end, but came up short in the 1-0 defeat. The Moroccans actually out-shot Portugal 15-10 in the match and owned a 55%-45% advantage in possession as well. In the end, they couldn't get the much-needed equalizer to stay alive in the tournament, but it was a terrific effort. Ronaldo is responsible for all 4 goals for Portugal in their 2 matches, and they will have to have a better effort, especially in the second half moving forward as they were a bit fortunate to get the 3 points. A win is a win and they will take it - and remain atop the group with a final group-stage match with Iran still to come.
Speaking of the Iranians - they were gritty and determined in their effort today as well, but ultimately met the same fate as the Moroccans as they fell 1-0 at the hands of Spain. From the opening whistle it was clear that Iran was content to sit back with numbers and defend and make Spain work for everything. They obliged and controlled the ball for most of the match, finishing with a unsurprisingly wide-gap in possession 78%-22%. Yet, the dominant ball-control yielded no goals in the first 45'.
The second half was a different story however, as Diego Costa once again found himself with an opportunity from inside the box. After a beautiful feed from the ageless Iniesta, Costa gathered it and had it kicked off of him by an Iranian defender before he could shoot himself. The ball took an impossible angle for the goalkeeper and Spain got their breakthrough. It marked the 3rd goal of the tournament for Costa, and put Spain in control 1-0 at the 54' mark.
Iran did not shy away however, and following a free kick in the 60', Saeid Ezatolahi received a header from the middle of the box on the left side and put it past de Gea for what appeared to be the much-needed equalizer. It was a superb effort, but was dis-allowed by the ref as the linesman had signaled for offside right before Ezatolahi fired past. He was not offside on the initial free-kick, but from when Sardar's header hit him, he was definitely offside. It was a heart-breaker for the Iranians, but in the end, the correct call.
Iran fought valiantly, but ultimately could not find the much-needed equalizer. They were not eliminated, but the task will be tough as they will most-likely need a victory over Portugal in their final group stage match to advance. A draw and a Spain loss to Morocco could possibly be enough as well, but not the likely outcome to depend on.
Not surprisingly, Uruguay are through, and the hosts, who had mounting question marks heading into the competition appear to have provided several answers already, and have deservedly punched their ticket to the knockout round. While group B has followed to script thus-far with Portugal and Spain in prime position to advance, both Iran and Morocco have been sturdy tests. Nothing has come easy in this group, and I don't expect anything else to when they conclude the group matches on June 25. Ronaldo has undoubtedly put his brilliance on full-display thus far, and is the player of the tournament in the early going. There's a long way to go however, and really no team, aside from maybe the hosts, (one must take into account Saudi Arabia and Egypt as the competition) have looked completely dominant thus far.