Nicolas Pépé scored twice as the Ivory Coast reached the World Cup knockout stages for the first time, eliminating debutants Curaçao 2-0. It’s also the first time that the Ivory Coast have won multiple games in a single World Cup tournament.
Les Éléphants head into the knockout stages after hardly breaking a sweat against the 82nd-ranked team in the world, with Pépé putting the Ivory Coast ahead after just seven minutes. The former Arsenal record signing then completed his brace in the 64th minute, putting the match to bed.
While many were hoping that Curaçao could pull off a legendary performance and earn a trip to the knockout stages, they will go home with their heads held high after taking an unlikely point in their first-ever World Cup campaign.
The sky is the limit
Pépé and the Ivory Coast will have a difficult matchup in the Round of 32, regardless of whether they get paired with Norway or 2018 World Cup champions France. Even if they are able to pull off a shocker, they still have to deal with the winner of Brazil and Japan in the Round of 16.
Confidence remains high in the Ivory Coast camp, after dominating for all but 30 minutes against Germany and earning a pair of clean sheet wins in the group.
“We are delighted and proud to be the first Ivory Coast team to reach the knockout rounds,” Pépé said in his postmatch interview. “Everyone has worked hard for this, and we have got our reward.
“We are setting no limits. We have huge potential. Now we are into the knockout rounds so we will see what happens.
“It’s joy and pride. It’s a team effort from the staff, from everyone. I think we’re being rewarded for our hard work.”
While Ivory Coast manager Emerse Faé had plenty of positives to say in his own post-match press conference, those comments were superseded by accusing Germany and Bayern Munich legend Bastian Schweinsteiger of racism against his team on German television.
Speaking before the match, Schweinsteiger said Faé’s side were “a bit African football” and “not so conditioned by tactics”.
“I think it’s sad,” Faé told reporters. “Schweinsteiger was a very good player; I have always loved him as a midfielder and the way he understood football. When I heard his comments, I was disappointed in the man.
“It is odd he would speak that way. We could call it racist, if we were calling a spade a spade.
“I don’t agree with him, but I have no other solution other than to work with things as they are. All I can show is that on the pitch African teams are not just physical, we are technical and tactical.
“I can only hope it is a clumsy statement, rather than something going on in his mind. If that’s what he thinks, he is free to do so.”
Saying goodbye to Curaçao
Tournament darlings Curaçao will be missed but not forgotten after Eloy Room’s magical 15-save clean sheet in their stunning 0-0 draw against Ecuador, which captivated the hearts of the world.
The 37-year-old Room, who plays in the United States second division at Miami FC, personally benefited, going from under 100,000 Instagram followers to well over 1.1 million in the matter of just a few hours following his legendary performance.
Curaçao are the smallest nation to ever qualify for a World Cup, with a population of just 155,900, winning their CONCACAF World Cup qualifying group against the likes of Trinidad and Tobago, as well as Jamaica.
“We wanted to show the world what we can do. We brought a lot of joy to the tournament, spirit, fight and we can be proud of all that. Today we also showed we can play on the highest stage. Of course this is going to bring a lot of exposure to Curaçao.
“The whole world knows who we are, and there is a lot of good talent coming up through the youth teams so that is the future of Curaçao.”
Manager Dick Advocaat told reporters he was proud of his team for accomplishing much more than he could have ever envisioned. Despite becoming the World Cup’s oldest-ever manager at age 78, the journeyman manager is confident he still has plenty of work to do.
“They’ve been playing with full enthusiasm with a lot of guts. This is something we have to benefit from.
“I did not come here thinking it was my last tournament. I tried to achieve the best results with the limited resources I had. “When I was appointed, the goal was to qualify for the Gold Cup. We did that, and then it was World Cup qualification, and we did that, so I’m proud of the players.”
Final Group E table
| Pos | Team | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Germany | 2 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 4 | +6 | 6 |
| 2 | Ivory Coast | 2 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 2 | +2 | 6 |
| 3 | Ecuador | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 |
| 4 | Curaçao | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 9 | −8 | 1 |
Who will the Ivory Coast play in the Round of 32?
Germany had already clinched the top spot in Group E after the second round of games, so they were unaffected by Ecuador’s 2-1 shock victory.
Ivory Coast finished second in Group E, which means they will play the second-place finisher in Group I, which will be the loser of tomorrow’s match between France and Norway. Should the match end in a draw, France will win the group, pairing Ivory Coast and Norway in what would be an epic Round-of-32 showdown.
“If we aim to go all the way, it doesn’t matter who we play,” Pépé said.
