Uruguay was beaten to a last-16 place by a determined South Korea after Hwang Hee-chan gave them an injury-time victory over Portugal
By Kehinde Okeowo
Uruguay beat Ghana 2-0 but went out of the World Cup as they finished third behind South Korea in Group H, despite Luiz Suarez’s heroics in a match played at Al Janoub Stadium.
The Black Stars going into the match knew they must at least get a draw to stand a chance of qualifying for the rounds of 16, but the South Americans understood anything short of victory will not be enough.
Ghana got an early penalty when the referee awarded a spot kick after reviewing the opposition goalkeeper’s foul on Mohammed Kudus on the pitchside monitor.
Andre Ayew stepped up to take the resultant penalty kick but it was saved by Sergio Rochet, who was in goal for Uruguay.
ALSO READ:
Ex-EPL referee, Walton, justifies Japan’s controversial goal
Gary Neville queries Japan’s controversial goal after Germany’s exit
Having escaped the scare, the South Americans then shot into the lead in the 23rd minute when Giorgian De Arrascaeta headed the ball into the net from close range after an initial effort by Luis Suarez was saved by the keeper.
De Arrascaeta once again found the back of the net 9 minutes later and double Uruguay’s advantage after profiting from a pass from Luis Suarez.
With the loss, Ghana became the second African side to be booted out of the World Cup having finished bottom of their group.
Meanwhile, Hwang Hee-chan gave South Korea a sensational injury-time victory over Portugal that meant they beat Uruguay to a last-16 place on goals scored.
The striker ran onto Son Heung-min’s pass in the 91st minute to round off a rapid break that started a wild jubilation from their fans in the stands.
