Red Devils eventually outfox Les Fennecs
There were no surprises when Belgium took control of the game right from the first whistle, but they had difficulty turning their possession into meaningful goalscoring chances.
Algeria defended excellently, though didn't offer much going forward.
However, all it took was one swift counter for them to take advantage of Belgium's weakness at the back, with makeshift left-back Jan Vertonghen bundling Sofiane Feghouli over in the box midway through the first half.
Feghouli stepped up to convert the ensuing spot-kick, and Les Fennecs incredibly found themselves ahead.
Wilmots eventually turned from flair to brute force in a bid to try and get back into the game, and it paid off with 20 minutes remaining.
A deep cross from Kevin de Bruyne landed perfectly on the sizable hair of substitute Marouane Fellaini, who leaped to head beyond M'Bolhi and level the scores.
Suddenly the momentum of the game had completely shifted, and Belgium looked a lot more threatening going forward.
With 10 minutes remaining, they had the lead. A quick Belgium counter-attack culminated in Hazard finding Mertens in space, before the Napoli attacker lashed the ball into the roof of the net.
Deflated, Algeria had no response to going behind, and only a sharp save from M'Bolhi prevented Fellaini scoring a third late on.
Guillermo Ochoa helps El Tri draw, 0-0 with Brazil
In perhaps the most entertaining match of the World Cup to date, we ended in a scoreless tie thanks to an amazing effort from Mexico keeper Guillermo Ochoa.
Midway through the first half, Neymar had a great opportunity to put the host nation up over El Tri, but Mexico keeper Guillermo “Memo” Ochoa came up with a world class save to keep the scoreboard at zero.
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| ALL SIX SAVES HERE: http://thebiglead.com/2014/06/17/guillermo-ochoa-all-six-saves-for-mexico-vs-brazil-in-2014-world-cup/ |
Brazil had another great chance in the closing minutes, but Ochoa came up big yet again.
Brazil continued to put together somme threatening attacks as the half continued, but the defense for El Tri was coming up big in crunch time.
Brazil had a late opportunity after a free runner broke loose on a set piece, but Ochoa came up with his biggest save of the game to keep the scoreless tie intact.
It was just the latest of an incredible series of saves for the Mexican keeper.
El tri was also able to put together some quality chances, but their shots continued to go just wide of the goal.
Russia Goalkeeper Igor Akinfeev Makes Shocking Error vs S. Korea
Neither team scored in the first half, but both created chances. Son Heung-Min shot over the bar for Korea in the 11th minute, and 20 minutes later, Russia's Sergey Ignashevich hit a thundering free-kick on target from long distance that was saved.
Three minutes later Koo Ja-Cheol saw his deflected shot bounce inches wide of Russia's goal. Son then skied a shot well over the bar five minutes later as the match remained scoreless heading into half-time.
Russia's first sign of goalkeeping trouble surfaced five minutes later as Akinfeev spilled Ki Sung-Yueng's long-distance shot before smothering the rebound.
The Russian goalkeeper had another scare in the 57th minute, failing to hold a dipping free-kick taken by Kim Young-Gwon. Once again, though, Akinfeev scampered to collect the rebound before Korea could pounce. Korean goalkeeper Jung Sung-Ryong then had a nervous moment in the 62nd minute, pushing away Kombarov shot from long distance.
After so many close calls, an error was almost bound to happen. And Akinfeev was the culprit, allowing Lee's tame, long-distance drive past him in the 68th minute despite getting both hands to the ball.
The heartbreak was obvious on Akinfeev's face, but his suffering was short-lived. Six minutes later, Russia were level.
Moments after entering as a substitute, Kerzhakov fired in at the second attempt after in the 84th minute.
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