FIFA World Cup 2018 day five: Sweden, Belgium, England win three points
Tuesday, June 19, 2018
Yesterday, day five of the 2018 FIFA football World Cup, Sweden defeated South Korea 1–0; Belgium defeated debutants Panama 3–0; and Tunisia lost 1–2 to England, with a late goal from English captain Harry Kane.
Group F — Sweden 1–0 Korea Republic[edit]
In the first game of the day, Sweden faced South Korea at the Nizhny Novgorod Stadium. Sweden had higher ball possession in the game. Korea's Kim Shin-Wook was shown a yellow card early in the game. In the 20th minute Marcus Berg missed a chance to put Sweden in the lead. Korea substituted Park Joo-Ho in the 28th minute of the game due to injury and was replaced by Kim Min-Woo. Despite their attempts, neither side could open the scoring in the first half as it ended 0–0.
In the second half, Hwang Hee-Chan was booked for a bad foul. In the 62nd minute Kim Min-Woo conceded a penalty which the match referee Joel Aguilar awarded Sweden after confirming with the video assistant referee. Swedish captain Andreas Granqvist scored from the penalty spot, putting Sweden 1–0 up. In the injury time, Hwang Hee-Chan's header went wide to the left, missing a chance to equalise for Korea. The match ended with Sweden winning three points.
Swedish captain Andreas Granqvist won the Budweiser Man of the Match award. This was Sweden's first victory in the opening match of the World Cup since 1958.
Group G — Belgium 3–0 Panama[edit]
In the first game of Group G, Belgium faced Panama at the Fisht Stadium in Sochi. Belgium had greater ball possession in the match. Belgium started the game with attacking style with Romelu Lukaku, Yannick Carrasco, and Dries Mertens making early attempts to put Belgium into the lead against debutans Panama. Dries Mertens's attempt in the 18th minute failed. The first half ended with 0–0 on the scoreboard.
Just two minutes in the second half, Dries Mertens scored a goal from a volley, putting the Belgians in the lead. Panama's attempt in the 54th minute, by Michael Murillo, was saved by Thibaut Courtois. In the 69th minute, Romelu Lukaku doubled the lead for Belgium, scoring a header from Kevin De Bruyne's assist. Six minutes later, Lukaku scored a third goal for Belgium, this time from Eden Hazard's assist. In the 90th minute, Belgium made a change, as Nacer Chadli replaced Axel Witsel. The second half ended with the Belgians winning three points.
Five Panamanian players were booked in the match. Lukaku won the Budweiser Man of the Match award. After the match, Hernan Dario Gomez, Panama coach, said, "I think we have learned a lot from today's game. It was a very emotional day. This is the fifth time I've been at a World Cup but it felt like the first. The team was still very emotional at the start of the match but as time went by, they were able to focus better."
Group G — Tunisia 1–2 England[edit]
In the last match of the day, Tunisia faced England at the Volgograd Arena. England had better ball possession in the game. England started the match with attacking style, with attempts from Jesse Lingard, Harry Maguire, Harry Kane, and John Stones early in the game. Then England opened the scoring, when Harry Kane scored a close-ranged shot. Four minutes later, Tunisia's goalkeeper Mouez Hassen was substituted off due to injury and replaced by Farouk Ben Mustapha. Tunisia won a penalty kick in the 33rd minute. English defender Kyle Walker was booked for his bad foul, and Ferjani Sassi scored from the penalty spot, equalising for the African side. The first half ended 1–1 on the scoreboard.
In the second half, both sides had attempts for goals, but none crossing the goal line. In the injury time, English captain Harry Kane scored a second goal as England won a corner kick. The match came to end with England winning 2–1 and collecting three points.
Harry Kane won the Budweiser Man of the Match award. He said, "In the first half it felt good out there. We could've scored two or three goals in the first half and put the game to bed early." After the match, Tunisia's coach Nabil Maaloul said, "We were playing against a highly-skilled and highly co-ordinated team in terms of their forward players. If we were to get a draw it would have been an excellent result for us. But hopefully this will lead to higher levels of concentration in the coming games."
Group F standings as of June 17
Group G standings as of June 18
Sources[edit]
- FIFA. "Sweden v Korea Republic - 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia - Match 12" — YouTube, June 18, 2018
- Alexandra Jonson and Hounche Chung. "2018 FIFA World Cup Russia - Matches - Sweden - Korea Republic" — FIFA, June 18, 2018
- Neil Johnston. "World Cup 2018: Sweden start with a 1-0 win over South Korea" — BBC Sport, June 18, 2018
- FIFA. "Belgium v Panama - 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia - Match 13" — YouTube, June 18, 2018
- Simon Massart and Samuel McCollin. "2018 FIFA World Cup Russia - Belgium - Panama - Korea Republic" — FIFA, June 18, 2018
- Michael Emons. "World Cup 2018: Belgium beat debutants Panama 3-0 in Sochi" — BBC Sport, June 18, 2018
- FIFA. "Tunisia v England - 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia - Match 14" — YouTube, June 18, 2018
- Tarek Kadri and Laure James. "2018 FIFA World Cup Russia - Tunisia - England" — FIFA, June 18, 2018
- Phil McNulty. "Tunisia 1-2 England: Harry Kane's late goal secures World Cup win" — BBC Sport, June 18, 2018