There are four games taking place on Tuesday at the World Cup, and two of them have European interest: first Netherlands take on hosts Qatar — who are already eliminated — and later Wales face England, and need to score a huge upset to make it through to the next round from their current position at the bottom of the table.
Tuesday marks the final day of play for both Groups A and B, and it is the first day of simultaneous kickoffs.
The practice of starting two games at the same time began in 1986, four years after a match dubbed the “Disgrace of Gijon.” The match was scandalous because West Germany and Austria both knew that a German win by one or two goals would advance both teams at the expense of Algeria.
Here’s our at-a-glance guide to all the day’s World Cup action:
Wales 0-3 England
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Marcus Rashford and Phil Foden both scored Tuesday to put England into the last 16 of the World Cup with a 3-0 victory over Wales.
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England coach Gareth Southgate opted to add both players in the starting lineup for the team’s final Group B match and they responded with all three goals — two from Rashford and the other from Foden.
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England will next face Senegal in the round of 16. Wales finished in last place in the group and has been eliminated.
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Southgate had faced calls to freshen up his team after the 0-0 draw with the United States. He brought in Rashford and Foden into a new look attack and it worked.
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England had the game wrapped up just after halftime with Rashford scoring from a free kick in the 50th and Foden adding another in the 51st. Rashford got his second after a weaving run in the box in the 68th.
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Wales captain Gareth Bale was forced off at halftime with an injury.
Iran 0-1 USA
- Christian Pulisic scored while crashing headfirst into the goalkeeper in the 38th minute and the United States advanced to the knockout round of the World Cup with a 1-0 win over Iran on Tuesday.
- Pulisic sprawled on the field and was lying in the goal for about three minutes as he received treatment from the US staff. He reentered the game but was replaced at the start of the second half.
- Back in the World Cup after missing the 2018 tournament, the US opened with draws against Wales and England and needed a victory to move on to the round of 16.
- The Americans finished second in Group B with five points, two behind England, and will play the Netherlands on Saturday with the chance to reach the quarterfinals for the first time since 2002.
- Iran finished third with three points. The team has failed to advance in all six of its World Cup appearances.
Netherlands 2-0 Qatar
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The Dutch advanced to the round of 16 by finishing first in Group A while the Qataris, who were already eliminated, became the first host to lose all three of its group matches at the World Cup.
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Cody Gakpo put the Netherlands ahead midway through the first half with his third goal in as many matches and Frenkie de Jong doubled the advantage five minutes into the second half.
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The Netherlands is a three-time runner-up at the World Cup, and also finished third in 2014, while Qatar was making its tournament debut.
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The Netherlands, which failed to qualify for the 2018 World Cup, finished with seven points at the top of the group.
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The attendance at Al Bayt Stadium, which also hosted Qatar’s loss to Ecuador in the tournament opener, was given as 66,784 — nearly at full capacity. There were small pockets of orange-clad Netherlands supporters, and Qatar fans behind one of the goals chanted in unison and jumped up and down.
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At one point during the second half, Qatar fans held aloft a large Palestinian flag that said “Free Palestine” on it.
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Gakpo became the fourth Dutch player to score in three consecutive World Cup games after Johan Neeskens (1974), Dennis Bergkamp (1994) and Wesley Sneijder (2010). He also became only the second player to open the scoring for his team three times in the same group stage after Alessandro Altobelli for Italy in 1986.
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While the Netherlands dominated the possession and created many more chances, Qatar did push forward on occasion and there was a nervous moment for the Dutch when goalkeeper Andries Noppert had trouble collecting a long-range shot from Ismael Mohamed after Gakpo’s goal.
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The Netherlands is now on an 18-game unbeaten run since coach Louis van Gaal returned to lead the team for the third time.
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In the round of 16 on Saturday, the Netherlands will face the USA, the second-place team from Group B.
Ecuador 1-2 Senegal
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Kalidou Koulibaly led his team into the last 16 of the World Cup on Tuesday by volleying home the winning goal in a 2-1 victory over Ecuador, four years after the African champions were eliminated from the group stage because of the amount of yellow cards they received.
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The Senegal captain’s right-footed shot flashed past Ecuador goalkeeper Hernan Galindez in the 70th minute. Koulibaly sprinted toward the corner flag and slid on his knees to celebrate.
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In another must-win match in Qatar, Senegal took the lead after a first-half penalty from Ismaila Sarr. Moises Caicedo then scored for Ecuador to make it 1-1 in the 67th.
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Ecuador would have advanced from Group A with a draw and Senegal would have been eliminated.
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Senegal last advanced from the group stage at the 2002 World Cup, when the team reached the quarterfinals in its tournament debut and its only other appearance at the event.
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Senegal now has a chance to match, or even better, its scintillating run to the quarterfinals in 2002, when current coach Aliou Cisse was the captain and the team matched Africa’s best performance at a World Cup.
