Spain beat Uruguay 1-0 as Muslera error sends Uruguay out of World Cup Group H

Uruguay crash out of World Cup as Spain avoid Argentina clash

Uruguay bowed out of the World Cup as goalkeeper Fernando Muslera's howler gifted Spain a 1-0 win in Guadalajara to secure top spot in Group H. Alex Baena's weak shot slipped through Muslera's grasp for the only goal as Spain avoided a last-32 showdown against Argentina.And in Guadalajara, Spain had barely threatened the Uruguay goal before the 40-year-old allowed Baena's shot to dribble over the line from Marcos Llorente's cross on 42 minutes.

21 hours ago

FIFA WC26: Alex Baena's Strike Sends Spain Into Knockouts As Uruguay Crash Out

Guadalajara: Alex Baena's first-half strike proved decisive as Spain defeated Uruguay 1-0 on Friday to top Group H and book their place in the FIFA World Cup knockout stage, while Marcelo Bielsa's side bowed out of the tournament. Spain topped the group with seven points from their two wins and a draw, with tournament newboys Cape Verde taking the second knockout spot on three draws. Uruguay departed with just two points, the same as last-placed Saudi Arabia.Baena opened the scoring in the 42nd minute by finding some space on the edge of the box and blasting a shot through experienced Uruguay goalkeeper Fernando Muslera.It was a bit of an odd goal, with both Manuel Ugarte and Lamine Yamal having treatment on the field as play continued, but Baena did not hesitate.Uruguay had started bright with Varela tasked with tightmarking a dangerous Yamal, and Spain's early play centred on two well-placed set pieces from Baena; the first he put on for Pau Cubarsi who headed over in the 16th and then two minutes later another left-wing delivery saw Cubarsi miss over again. The South American's best chance before the interval was in the 27th minute when Federico Valverde pounced on a Rodri mistake and slipped the ball through to Darwin Nunez, but the striker went for an over ambitious backheel instead of shooting.FIFA Rejects France's Request To Honour Didier Deschamps' Late Mother With Black Armbands Muslera went off for some time at half-time following his error, but Uruguay struggled to carve out many chances in the second half, despite seeing more possession. In second half substitute Federico Vinas fired a chance high over the bar from a Maxi Araujo cross, while Spain looked lively on the counter.Dani Olmo skewed wide from a well-worked Yamal pass after 63 minutes before Ferran Torres crashed the bar from an early Ruiz break soon afterwards.Uruguay made some good attacks in the late hours, but goalkeeper Unai Simon made vital blocks from Mathias Olivera and Nicolas de la Cruz. Uruguay's disappointment spilled over into stoppage time, when Agustin Canobbio was shown red for a challenge on Cubarsi, to bring a difficult tournament to a painful close.(Except for the headline, this article has not been edited by FPJ's editorial team and is auto-generated from an agency feed.)

21 hours ago

Uruguay crash out of World Cup as Spain avoid Argentina clash

GUADALAHARA, Mexico (AFP) — Uruguay bowed out of the World Cup as goalkeeper Fernando Muslera's howler gifted Spain a 1-0 win in Guadalajara to secure top spot in Group H. Alex Baena's weak shot slipped through Muslera's grasp for the only goal as Spain avoided a last 32 showdown against Argentina. The European champions will instead face Austria or Algeria next in Los Angeles on Thursday. Uruguay's defeat allowed debutants Cape Verde to secure second place and a meeting with Lionel Messi and the defending champions thanks to a 0-0 draw against Saudi Arabia. Two-time winners Uruguay become the highest ranked side to crash out in the group stages as the defeat rounded off a miserable tournament for Marcelo Bielsa and his squad. After draws against Cape Verde and Saudi Arabia, reports of a revolt in the Uruguay camp emerged with leading players, including Real Madrid's Federico Valverde, clashing with Bielsa over his tactics. Spain's King Felipe was among those in attendance but the only clash between two former winners of the World Cup in the group stages was a huge disappointment. Lamine Yamal's to the starting line-up had sparked the Spanish attack into life in a 4-0 thrashing of Saudi Arabia after La Roja began in underwhelming fashion with a goalless draw against Cape Verde. But another laboured attacking performance leaves Luis de la Fuente with plenty to ponder before the knockout stages begin on Sunday. A hero of Uruguay's run to the semi-finals in 2010, Muslera was at fault for both Cape Verde's goals in a 2-2 draw. And in Guadalajara, Spain had barely threatened the Uruguay goal before the 40-year-old allowed Baena's shot to dribble over the line from Marcos Llorente's cross on 42 minutes. To rub salt into Urguayan wounds, Manchester United midfielder Manuel Ugarte was injured in the build-up to the goal and stretchered off with what appeared a serious knee injury. Bielsa replaced Muslera at half-time by Sergio Rochet and the Uruguay boss made an even bolder call when Valverde was taken off on the hour mark. De la Fuente also turned to his bench and the introduction of Dani Olmo and Fabian Ruiz finally injected some life into the Spanish performance. Olmo should have done better when he spooned a shot over from a rare flash of Yamal's brilliance to tee up his Barcelona team-mate. Yamal was replaced 15 minutes from time as his minutes continue to be managed after a hamstring injury ended his club season prematurely. His replacement Ferran Torres should have doubled the lead five minutes from time but hit the bar with just the goalkeeper to beat. Uruguay's miserable tournament was summed up when Agustín Canobbio was shown a straight red card in stoppage time for a wild lunge on Pau Cubarsi. Hyped as one of the pre-tournament favourites, Spain are now 34 competitive games unbeaten and are yet to concede a goal at the World Cup. But in stark contrast to some of the scintillating attacking play on show from the likes of France, Argentina and the Netherlands, La Roja are yet to convince in their quest for a second World Cup triumph.

22 hours ago

Uruguay slump to shock early World Cup exit after Baena strike sends Spain through

Uruguay are out of the World Cup again and it’s nobody’s fault but theirs. “3 million dreams,” the banner said high in the stand in Guadalajara; instead it was a recurring nightmare. Divided and dysfunctional, led by a man who barely even says buenos dias to his players, and unable to get beyond a draw against Saudi Arabia or Cape Verde, they needed something big against Spain but they could only manage two shots on target all night, neither of which came before the 80th minute or carried even the slightest threat.Spain meanwhile had just one, and that didn’t carry much of a threat either. But a dreadful mistake from Fernando Muslera allowed Alex Baena’s shot slip into the net just before a half-time break from which he did not come back. Uruguay fought but didn’t play much football and so they fell. For the second World Cup in a row they failed to get through the group and if four years ago that could be explained by the teams in their group – South Korea, Ghana and Portugal – and they had only been eliminated on goals scored, this time the list of opponents only made it worse, demanding a far deeper analysis. Continue reading...

22 hours ago