A day in two stages on this Monday on the lawns of the Qatari World Cup.
First with two prolific and ultra-spectacular matches which then gave way to two much more tactical oppositions.
The two favorites of the day, Portugal and Brazil, have already confirmed their ticket for the round of 16.
For their part, Cameroon, Serbia, South Korea and Uruguay no longer have a choice and will have to win on the final day to continue the Qatari adventure.
The end of the series: Cameroon finally snatch a point in the World Cup
They remained on a very sad series of seven defeats in a row during the last two World Championships disputed.
No points gleaned in 2010 in South Africa, no better in 2014 in Brazil.
This 2022 edition had started under the same auspices for the Indomitable Lions, defeated at the start by Switzerland (1-0) on a goal from a child of the country, Breel Embolo (1-0).
This Monday against Serbia, the scenario was set to repeat itself.
[📺 VIDEO SUMMARY] 🏆 #beINFWC2022 #CMRSRB
🤯 Cameroon snatch a draw against Serbia in a CRAZY match!
🔥 Led 3-1, the Indomitable Lions come back to 3-3 thanks to a sumptuous lob from Aboubakar and a goal from Choupo-Moting
💥 Cameroon stays alivehttps://t.co/79cJfKGTPD
— beIN SPORTS (@beinsports_FR) November 28, 2022
If Rigobert Song's men opened the scoring thanks to Castelletto, they then completely collapsed at the end of the first period, conceding two goals in quick succession from Pavlović then from Milinković-Savić.
The situation worsened on the return from the locker room with the 51st goal in the selection of Aleksandar Mitrović who then seemed to bury the last Cameroonian hopes.
It was without counting on two gross errors of alignment of the Serbian defense which allow Aboubakar then Choupo-Moting to snatch an unexpected point which keeps the Indomitable Lions alive in this World Cup.
Frustration: dominating is not winning for South Korea against Ghana
Led by Heung Min-Son, the South Koreans showed a pretty face on Monday against Ghana.
And yet, the men of Paulo Bento will leave empty-handed the stadium of the City of Education in Doha.
Voluntary but clumsy in the last gesture, they are surprised twice in the first half first by Mohammed Salisu then by his namesake Mohammed Kudus.
[📺 VIDEO SUMMARY] 🏆 #beINFWC2022 #KORGHA
🤯 Ghana snatch a monumental victory against South Korea!
🔥🔥 Hero of the match, Kudus scored twice!
Salisu saved the Black Stars on his line!https://t.co/1KjxLg3zNR
— beIN SPORTS (@beinsports_FR) November 28, 2022
The South Koreans are still rewarded for their efforts after the break.
Gue-Sung Cho slams a brace to come back level but Kudus does the same to give the Black Stars a one-goal lead.
Curled up in their last 20 meters, André Ayew's teammates then resisted the opposing attacks and won a precious success with a view to qualifying for the round of 16.
The trap avoided: Brazil get out of the Swiss rut and climb to 8th
Laborious match for Brazil at Stade 974 in Doha against the Swiss.
Deprived of Neymar, still in trouble with his ankle, Tite's men have long been too rough, especially in midfield.
The spark finally came from two Madridistas and a former White House member.
[🎞️RESUME] 🏆 #FIFAWorldCup
🇧🇷🇨🇭 Brazil struggled but was able to count on a golazo from Casemiro to overcome Switzerland!
✅ A success synonymous with qualification in the 1/8 finals for the Seleção #beINFWC2022 #BRASWIhttps://t.co/Y5d46Vd9N2
— beIN SPORTS (@beinsports_FR) November 28, 2022
Ten minutes from time, Vinicius serves Rodrygo near the surface.
The latter plays in first intention for Casemiro who concludes with a sudden strike with the right foot which leaves Yann Sommer in plan.
A stunt that will be more than enough for the happiness of the Seleção who won by the smallest of margins (1-0) and who continued the adventure in Qatar.
Revenge: Portugal have Uruguay, their executioner of 2018
Faced with an ultra-tight and compact Uruguayan block, the task was going to be tough for Cristiano Ronaldo's Portugal.
Fernando Santos' men had to be patient to crack the defense of Celeste.
And it was Bruno Fernandes who stuck to it.
First on this victorious center shot that Cristiano Ronaldo believes deviate before the goal is officially awarded to the Manchester United player.
Then, in stoppage time, on this penalty obtained and then transformed by him.
Too unambitious, the teammates of Edinson Cavani - author of a double in the round of 16 in 2018 against Portugal - logically bow.
The troop of "CR7" qualifies, at the same time, for the next round.
The player: Aboubakar changed everything
Mistreated by Serbia, Cameroon was heading straight for a second defeat in as many days.
But that was before Vincent Aboubakar entered.
From his first steps on the pitch, the Al-Nassr striker changed everything, multiplying class gestures.
On the second goal (63rd), one of the most beautiful in the World Cup, he did everything on his own.
On the third (66th), his call to the limit of offside is sharp and his back pass for Éric Choupo-Moting is perfect.
The goal: the wonder of Aboubakar
Just entering the game, Vincent Aboubakar is launched in depth by Jean-Charles Castelletto.
At the end of the race, he avoids a sliding tackle from Nemanja Maksimovic, launched after him, with a clever feint.
Now alone against Vanja Milinković-Savić, who came out to meet him, he then opted for a clever and improbable ladle, which bounced behind the goalkeeper and ended up in the back of the net.
[📺 VIDEO - GOAL] 🏆 #beINFWC2022 #CMRSRB
🇨🇲🇷🇸 We're enjoying Aboubakar's goal seen from a magical angle!!!
👀 The goal of the world? https://t.co/NQhxj9JSj3
— beIN SPORTS (@beinsports_FR) November 28, 2022
A real gem, which the attacker could not savor immediately: it took a long time to use the video to determine that he was not offside at the start of the action.
Image of the day: an LGBT flag bursts onto the lawn of Lusail
A man burst onto the lawn of Lusail Stadium during Portugal-Uruguay to wave an LGBT flag.
AFP/Kirill Kudryavtsev.
AFP or licensors
As we played the 50th minute of the match between Portugal and Uruguay, the game had to be interrupted for a few moments.
The fault of an individual who managed to thwart the vigilance of the security forces to enter the lawn of Lusail Stadium and wave a flag in LGBT colors.
A symbol banned in Qatar, a conservative Muslim country.
A gesture that comes a few days after FIFA banned the wearing of the “One love” armband on which these famous colors appeared.
The number: 14
By winning against Switzerland on Monday (1-0), Brazil qualified for the next round for the 14th consecutive time in the World Cup.
The last failure dates back to 1966 and the World Cup in England.
Despite an inaugural success against Bulgaria (2-0), the Auriverdes then lost to Hungary (3-1) then to Portugal on the same score.