It was proving to be a tough match for Portugal, before their captain Cristiano Ronaldo came to their rescue against United States, while Belgium earned a hard-fought 1-0 win against Russia to enter the last-16 from group H.
In the third match, Algeria beat South Korea 4-2 and kept their hopes alive.
Portugal will now have to defeat Ghana by a big margin in their last group league game hoping that the match between United States and Germany doesn’t end in a draw, in order to qualify for the Round of 16. While Germany and the US are on four points, Portugal and Ghana have a point each.
Despite getting an early lead in the fifth minute, the Portugal fans faced several anxious moments before Ronaldo’s left-footed pass was converted into a goal by substitute striker Silvestre Varela, with just 30 seconds remaining.
Meanwhile, in the first match of the day, young substitute Divock Origi made full use of a beautiful pass from Chelsea star Eden Hazard in the 88th minute, as Belgium defeated Russia 1-0 making it to the last 16 of the World Cup for the first time since Italia’90.
While Belgium had to struggle for their win, Algeria defeated South Korea convincingly. Algeria took a huge lead of 3-0 in the first half and even though the Koreans fought back by scoring two goals in the second half, Algeria won their best match in World Cup history 4-2.
After their comprehensive victory, Algeria are ranked second in Group H behind Belgium, with Russia and the Koreans trailing on one point apiece.
