December 2, 2022 World Cup news and highlights

The Round of 16 is now set for the 2022 Qatar World Cup after Brazil and Switzerland booked their tickets on Friday.

Here’s a recap of Friday’s matches:

Considered one of the favorites to win the tournament, Brazil and its opponent Cameroon were held goalless until the second minute of stoppage time. Cameroon’s Vincent Aboubakar scored the first and only goal of the game with a well-placed header.

Despite hanging on to defeat Brazil 1-0, Cameroon is going home due to finishing third in the group.?The defeat is Brazil’s first loss in the group stage since 1998 against Norway, snapping a 17-match unbeaten streak. Brazil will face South Korea in the next round on Monday.

Switzerland advanced after defeating Serbia 3-2 at Stadium 974. This is the third straight World Cup in which the Swiss men advanced to the Round of 16.

Tensions grew between both teams in the closing minutes after players were pushing and shoving each other. There were 11 total yellow cards given between both teams during the match.?

Switzerland will face superstar Cristiano Ronaldo and Portugal on Tuesday.??

Here are the teams who qualified for the Round of 16:

Switzerland's Remo Freuler, rig celebrates scoring their third goal with Ricardo Rodriguez REUTERS/Suhaib Salem

Switzerland needed all three of its goals to triumph over Serbia and advance to the knockout stage.

Serbia fought valiantly, scoring twice in the first half and keeping the time of possession and shot attempts roughly even throughout the contest. Ultimately, the team could not find a late equalizer and fell, 3-2.

The Swiss will be joined by Brazil from Group G in the Round of 16.

The loss eliminates Serbia from Qatar 2022.

Cameroon's Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting heads the ball.

Brazil and Cameroon stayed in a scoreless tie throughout the match — until Vincent Aboubakar delivered an opener for the Indomitable Lions during stoppage time.

Despite the incredible turn of events in the nick of time, it wasn’t enough to change the outcome for Cameroon. The team did not pick up enough points to change Group G’s standings to advance to the Round of 16

Friday’s match at the Lusail Stadium had been largely uneventful for 90 minutes with both sides failing to find a breakthrough. Brazil had already booked its place in the next round and rested many of its key players.

Cameroon knew it needed at least a win against the Brazilians but had failed to really trouble its opponent until a frantic stoppage time period.

Aboubakar’s goal may not have helped its side into the Round of 16 but it’s historical nonetheless – Brazil hadn’t lost a group stage match since 1998.

However, the striker was also shown a second yellow card for taking his shirt off in celebration, meaning he was sent off the pitch before full-time.

Brazil will face South Korea in the next round on Monday.

This post has been updated with more details about the match.

Cameroon scored a goal, thanks to Vincent Aboubakar after an assist from Ngom!

The Indomitable Lions lead Brazil 1-0.

Aboubakar took off his jersey, leading to a second yellow card, but that didn’t stop him from holding his shirt up to cheering fans. That second yellow card sent him off the field.

What a way to go out!

Switzerland's Remo Freuler celebrates in front of Switzerland supporters after scoring his team's third goal.

The second half started much like the first half ended – with plenty of action.

It’s 3-2 after Swiss midfielder Remo Freuler scored a brilliant goal in the 48th minute. It was a team goal, set up by a flick pass from Reuben Vargas.

The boisterous Serbian fans have fallen a bit quieter as they nervously watch their team in need of two goals to advance in the tournament.

Cameroon's Collins Fai, left, controls the ball past Brazil's Gabriel Martinelli.

While action can be expected from both sides in this match, it is absolute table stakes for Cameroon to bring more ?? to their game, overcome the Sele??o defense, and score some goals if the team wants to stay in contention for a spot in the knockouts.

Brazil has kept the ball and made more attempts on Cameroon’s goal, but have not yet scored an opener.

At the moment, things stand at 0-0 for both teams.

Serbia's Dusan Tadic in action with Switzerland's Silvan Widmer on Friday.

The teams are back on the pitch for the second half at Stadium 974 in Doha, Qatar.

What’s in store? More goals, quite possibly, based on what we saw in the furious first 45 minutes of play.

While Switzerland can potentially advance to the knockout stage even with a draw, it is hoping for an outright win, which would guarantee a trip to the Round of 16.

Serbia is under even greater pressure. It must win for any shot at moving on.

Serbia's Strahinja Pavlovic, top, and Switzerland's Xherdan Shaqiri challenge for the ball.

An exciting first half has drawn to a close with Serbia and Switzerland deadlocked at 2-2.

Serbian Du?an Vlahovi?, a star striker who’s playing injured, scored his first World Cup goal to help his side pull ahead 2-1. But Switzerland was quick to answer shortly before halftime.

It’s been a truly even matchup —?the two sides have split time of possession roughly equally. Serbia has three shots on goal to Switzerland’s five.

Neither side can afford to lose this match if they want to move on to the knockout stage.

A thrilling second half is likely in store.

Brazil and Cameroon players vie for the ball.

A very uneventful first half between Brazil and Cameroon has ended. At halftime, both teams are in a scoreless tie.

Brazil might not need a goal, but Cameroon certainly does if it want to remain in contention for a berth in the Round of 16. So far, though, the Indomitable Lions have only amassed three yellow cards against Brazil’s one.

The Sele??o have dominated ball possession and made 10 attempts at Cameroon’s goal but frustratingly, they have failed to capitalize on each opportunity.

Let’s hope that at least one team returns in the second half with some fireworks to display.

Switzerland's Breel Embolo scores his team's second goal.

The goals keep coming in Switzerland vs Serbia – with the Swiss getting an equalizer in the 44th minute.

This time it was forward Breel Embolo who found the back of the net.

Serbia's Du?an Vlahovi? scores his team's second goal against Switzerland.

Serbia has scored again, pulling ahead in a match against Switzerland that neither side can afford to lose.

It’s 2-1 in the 35th minute after the goal from Du?an Vlahovi?.

The striker’s score is all the more impressive as Vlahovi? has been nursing a groin injury.

Serbia's Aleksandar Mitrovi? celebrates scoring his team's first goal against Switzerland.

Serbia just tied it up with a goal of its own, making it 1-1 against Switzerland in a must-win clash between teams in Group G.

Aleksandar Mitrovi? scored with a brilliant header in the 26th minute, a swift answer to an opening goal from the Swiss.

Mitrovi?, who is a striker for Fulham in the Premier League, now has eight goals in his last seven matches for Serbia and 52 goals in just 79 international appearances.

Switzerland's Xherdan Shaqiri celebrates after scoring his team’s first goal against Serbia on during the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Group G match between Serbia and Switzerland at Stadium 974 on December 02, 2022 in Doha, Qatar. (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)

Switzerland struck first in its match against Serbia, making it 1-0 in the 20th minute.

Xherdan Shaqiri, a winger for the Major League Soccer club Chicago Fire, took a pass from teammate Djibril Sow and scored with a deflection.

Shaqiri also scored against Serbia in the 2018 World Cup.

Brazil is playing Cameroon at Lusail Stadium and Serbia is facing Switzerland in Stadium 974. Both matches have kicked off!

General view of the field before the match between Cameroon and Brazil on Friday.

Group G is up: Brazil faces Cameroon and Serbia plays Switzerland. Brazil is already through but the other teams are still in contention for a spot in the Round of 16. Here are the stakes for the 2 p.m. ET matches.

Serbia

Goalkeeper: Vanja Milinkovi?-Savi?

Defenders: Strahinja Pavlovi?, Nikola Milenkovi?, Milo? Veljkovi?

Midfielders: Du?an Tadi?, Andrija ?ivkovi?, Sa?a Luki?, Filip Kosti?, Sergej Milinkovi?-Savi?

Forwards: Du?an Vlahovi?, Aleksandar Mitrovi?

Switzerland

Goalkeeper: Gregor Kobel

Defenders: Manuel Akanji, Silvan Widmer, Ricardo Rodriguez, Fabian Sch?r

Midfielders: Remo Freuler, Granit Xhaka, Djibril Sow

Forwards: Breel Embolo, Xherdan Shaqiri, Reuben Vargas

The United States men’s national soccer team has announced that Christian Pulisic is now cleared to play in Saturday’s Round of 16 match against the Netherlands.??

A CNN crew was at US training on Friday and watched Pulisic and his teammates run through warmup drills in preparation of the win-or-go-home duel with the Dutch.?

Pulisic was involved in a heavy collision with Iran goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand as he scored the US’ winning goal on Tuesday. Pulisic revealed he had suffered a “pelvic contusion.”

Brazil plays Cameroon at 2 p.m. ET. While Brazil is through, Cameroon is still in need of a win to be in contention for the knockouts. Here are their starting lineups.

Brazil

Goalkeeper: Ederson?

Defenders: Alex Telles, Bremer, éder Milit?o, Dani Alves

Midfielders: Fred, Fabinho, Gabriel Martinelli, Rodrygo, Antony

Forwards: Gabriel Jesus

Cameroon

Goalkeeper: Devis Epassy

Defenders: Collins Fai, Christopher Wooh, Enzo Ebosse, Nouhou Tolo

Midfielders: André-Frank Zambo Anguissa, Pierre Kunde, Bryan Mbeumo, Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting, Nicolas Moumi Ngamaleu

Forwards: Vincent Aboubakar

South Korea players and coaching staff celebrate after defeating Portugal.

Even though Portugal dominated ball possession over the course of Friday’s match, South Korea kept attacking the Portuguese goal anyway, desperate for a win — and they were victorious in the end.

After the equalizer in the first half, South Korea was not able to capitalize on any opportunities — including a free kick — for most of the second half. But substitute Heechan Hwang delivered an incredible second goal in the eleventh hour, putting South Korea and its hopes very much in contention for the knockouts as the match ended with the South Koreans winning 2-1 against Portugal.

With an emotional ending to the match, the suspense continued for South Korea. Everything rested on the score holding in Uruguay vs. Ghana, as that match could not have any more goals. And after eight excruciating minutes of stoppage time, it was over.

South Korea advances to the knockouts. It follows Portugal, which was already through atop Group H.

Uruguay's Luis Suarez, center, in action on Friday.

What was set up as an epic rematch between Uruguay and Ghana ended in defeat for the African side.

But there was no celebration on the field, as South Korea beat Portugal to take second place in Group H — sending both Uruguay and Ghana home.

Uruguay appeared to be on track to reach the knockout stage with a 2-0 lead over Ghana in the second half. But a late goal from South Korea sent a shock through the stands, with a ripple of disappointment as Uruguay fans saw the news from the other Group H match.

It was a fight to the finish, as Uruguay battled to find the net one more time and boost their goal differential, the key standings tiebreaker that could move them back ahead of South Korea. But it wasn’t meant to be.

Ghana never recovered after Uruguay’s Giorgian de Arrascaeta scored both of his team’s goals in the first half. It ended the match scoreless.

South Korea players celebrate after scoring a second goal against Portugal.

What a dramatic win for South Korea!

A goal during stoppage time has kept the hopes of the team alive to advance to the knockout match. Now, everything rests on the outcome of the other match underway. If the score in Uruguay vs. Ghana holds, South Korea will make it through.

South Korea's Hwang Hee-chan celebrates scoring his team's second goal.

An incredible second goal in the eleventh hour for South Korea keeps the hopes of the team and its fans very much alive!

Son Heung-min came with an absolute masterclass of a pass in the 91st minute of the match, and substitute Heechan Hwang turned that into a goal.

South Korea leads Portugal 2-1.

The Koreans now stand a very plausible chance to make it to the knockouts.

Fans in the crowd in Qatar are loudly cheering, with some even becoming visibly emotional.

Ghana's Jordan Ayew, left, and Uruguay's Guillermo Varela fight for the ball on Friday.

Uruguay leads Ghana 2-0 as the second half of the match gets underway.

Can Ghana bounce back from Giorgian de Arrascaeta’s two first-half goals? Let’s see!

Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo and South Korea's Kim Young-gwon vie for the ball on Friday.

The South Korean effort to stay in the game has been commendable and successful. However, it’ll mean nothing if they do not end this match with a win against Portugal.

As things stand: Portugal is already through. And the tied score means South Korea does not advance to the knockouts. Uruguay does. Only a win in this match could give South Korea a fighting chance. A win would mean that the goal differential would decide who advances to the knockouts: South Korea or Uruguay.

Bottom line: The South Koreans are back on the pitch looking for more goals. Expect continued attacks and a nail-biter of a match for viewers all around.

South Korea's Son Heung-min in action against Portugal on Friday.

Several players at this year’s World Cup are pairing their seemingly superhuman speed and skills with superhero-like masks. The coverings might make them look like Batman, but the masks are purely for protection.

In today’s match against Portugal, South Korea’s Son Heung-Min can be seen donning a black mask that covers his nose and eyes. Son suffered a fractured eye socket during Tottenham’s win against Marseille in the Champions League on Nov. 1.

Jasko Gvardiol from Croatia has also been wearing one, due to a nose and eye problem from a similar head clash for his club Leipzig in Germany.

Tunisia’s Ellyes Skhiri broke his cheekbone in October for FC Koln in Germany, so he also wore a mask that covered his nose and sides of his face.

And Iran’s Alireza Beiranvand kept a mask on during practices — but not in any games — after his head injury against England in Iran’s first group game. He missed the match against Wales but played maskless against the US on Tuesday.

Uruguay's Mathias Olivera, right, in action with Ghana's Mohammed Kudus on Friday.

Ghana will be playing catch up in the second half after Uruguay took control of the first.?

Midfielder Giorgian de Arrascaeta scored twice, delivering both of Uruguay’s goals just six minutes apart.

What’s at stake:?

Even if Uruguay wins, the team can only make it through to the knockout stage with a Portugal win or draw against South Korea. Uruguay will be out of the World Cup with a loss or tie against Ghana.

Ghana can still make it through if the team comes back to win in the second half.?

Portugal's Ricardo Horta, left, and South Korea's Jinsu Kim battle for possession on Friday.

It’s an exciting match with South Korea and Portugal tied at the half.

After Ricardo Horta’s first goal, the Koreans made more attempts at the Portuguese goal in an effort to equalize until Kim Young-gwon finally slipped the ball past goalkeeper Diogo Costa to score in the 27th minute.

South Korea will need to keep attacking and converting, because the team needs a win to get through to the knockout stage. A loss or a draw will deny them a spot in the knockouts.

Uruguay's Giorgian de Arrascaeta scores his team's second goal against Ghana on Friday.

Goal! Uruguay doubled its lead over Ghana with Giorgian de Arrascaeta scoring again in the 32nd minute.

The midfielder’s two goals came within a span of six minutes and put Uruguay in control of this match for now.

The nation’s fans will continue to nervously monitor the other Group H match between South Korea and Portugal. Even with a win, they’ll need help to advance.

South Korea's Kim Young-gwon celebrates scoring his team's first goal on Friday.

South Korea isn’t playing like an underdog, as Kim Young-gwon scored an equalizer in the 27th minute!

Uruguay's Giorgian de Arrascaeta scores his team's first goal against Ghana on Friday.

Giorgian de Arrascaeta scored the first goal of the match in the 26th minute, giving Uruguay a 1-0 lead over Ghana.

Portugal players call for an offside ruling after South Korea's Kim Jin-su scored a goal on Friday.

South Korea’s Kim Jin-su just pushed the ball in the back of the net, but the goal won’t be counted in the match with Portugal because it was ruled offside.

If you’re wondering what offside means, here’s what you need to know:

First of all, only the team with possession of the ball in its opponent’s half of the field can be offside.?

Let’s say a player on Team A is attacking with the ball. If this player’s teammate — head, arms, body and feet included — is ahead of the ball and doesn’t have at least two of Team B’s players (including the goalkeeper) in line or in front of them when the ball is played, then this teammate is offside.

It’s kind of like conveniently camping out at the goal post, waiting to receive the ball.

Even if this teammate was not passed the ball, the fact that they were positioned this close to the goal or opposition goalkeeper ahead of time makes them offside, colloquially referred to as “still interfering with play.”

And timing is of the essence. Because when the teammate receives the ball while onside, they are then free to outrun Team B’s players, get close to the goal and score.

The exception to this rule is corner kicks, goal kicks and throw-ins.

Portugal's Ricardo Horta scores his team's first goal against South Korea.

Ricardo Horta gets an opening goal for Portugal on the scoresheet in the 5th minute of the game. The pressure is on early for South Korea.

Portugal now leads South Korea 1-0.

The matches featuring Ghana vs Uruguay and South Korea vs Portugal are underway.

Portugal is already through to the knockout stage, but today’s matches will determine which other team from Group H will secure a spot in the next round.?

Group H is up today: Portugal plays South Korea and Ghana faces Uruguay at 10 a.m. ET. Portugal is already through, but today’s matches can determine group standings as well.

Here’s how the scenarios could shake out for the team:

The match between Ghana and Uruguay kicks off at 10 a.m. ET. Here are their starting lineups.

Ghana

Goalkeeper: Lawrence Ati-Zigi

Defenders: Alidu Seidu, Daniel Amartey, Mohammed Salisu, Baba Rahman

Midfielders: Thomas Partey, Salis Abdul Samed, Mohammed Kudus, Andre Ayew, Jordan Ayew

Forward: Inaki Williams

Uruguay

Goalkeeper: Sergio Rochet

Defenders: Mathias Olivera, Sebastian Coates, Jose Giménez, Guillermo Varela

Midfielders: Giorgian de Arrascaeta, Rodrigo Bentancur, Federico Valverde, Facundo Pellistri

Forwards: Darwin Nu?ez, Luis Suárez

The match between South Korea and Portugal will be underway at 10 a.m. ET. Here are their starting lineups.

South Korea

Goalkeeper: Kim Seung-gyu

Defenders: Kim Moon-hwan, Kwon Hoon-chang, Kim Young-gwon, Kim Jin-su

Midfielders: Jung Woo-young, Hwang In-beom, Lee Jae-sung, Lee Kang-in, Son Heung-min

Forward: Cho Gue-sung

Portugal

Goalkeeper: Diogo Costa

Defenders: Jo?o Cancelo, António Silva, Pepe, Diogo Dalot

Midfielders: Vitinha, Rúben Neves, Matheus Nunes

Forwards: Cristiano Ronaldo, Ricardo Horta, Jo?o Mário

Germany's Thomas Muller and Antonio Rudiger embrace after their loss to Costa Rica on Thursday.

Germany was knocked out of the 2022 World Cup on Thursday after a quite extraordinary finale to Group E, despite beating Costa Rica.

At varying points of the two games, fans of Spain and Japan as well as Costa Rica and Germany each thought that their countries might be on their way to the knockout phase.

Completely outplayed by Spain in the first half and trailing to Alvaro Morata’s first-half goal, somehow Japan stormed back to win 2-1 and top the group.

Japan’s two goals – from Ritsu Dōan and Ao Tanaka – came in the space of three minutes early in the second half.

Germany won 4-2 against Costa Rica, despite trailing at one point, but it wasn’t enough with Japan and Spain going through to the last 16.

Germany coach Hansi Flick said the “disappointment is huge” for Germany’s squad.

“In the first half I was disappointed and very angry at my team and how we allowed the opponent to come back,” Flick said, per Reuters.

The conclusion to Group E means Japan will face Croatia in the next round, while Spain will play Morocco.

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Christian Pulisic speaks during a press conference in Al Rayyan, Qatar, on Thursday.

US Men’s National Team (USMNT) captain Christian Pulisic is on track to play in team’s Round of 16 match against Netherlands tomorrow.

Pulisic suffered a pelvic contusion after being involved in a heavy collision with Iran goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand as he scored the winning goal on Tuesday.

Luis Suarez of Uruguay handles the ball on the goal line during the 2010 World Cup match between Uruguay and Ghana.

Uruguay and Ghana’s quarterfinal meeting in South Africa 12 years ago is widely viewed as one of the most iconic?World Cup?matches in history.

On a tense evening in Johannesburg, this was a game that had everything; drama, controversy, heartbreak, a villain and a hero – incidentally, both played by the same person.

Luis Suárez’s role as Uruguay’s savior that night made him persona non grata in Ghana, even earning him the nickname “El Diablo,” or “The Devil.”

With the scores level at 1-1 and the game approaching the final seconds of extra time, Suárez blocked a goal-bound winner on the line with his hands. It was a goal that would have put Ghana into the World Cup semifinal, making it the first African team in history to reach the final four.

Instead, Suárez was sent off, but Asamoah Gyan, Ghana’s star man and captain, missed the penalty. Images of Suárez wildly celebrating the miss in the tunnel became one of the enduring moments of that World Cup and only further angered the already incandescent Ghanaian supporters.

Ghana went on to lose the subsequent penalty shootout and with it the team’s chance at creating history.

Another angle shows Suarez stopping the ball with his hands in 2010.

Now, ahead of the first meeting between these sides since that memorable night more than 12 years ago, Suárez insists he has nothing to say sorry for.

“I don’t apologize about that … but the player is gonna miss a penalty,” Suárez told reporters in the buildup to the rematch, per Reuters. “Maybe, I can say [I] apologize if I injure the player and take a red card.

“But in this situation, I take a red card and the ref said penalty. This is not my fault because I didn’t miss. It’s not my responsibility to shoot the penalty.”

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