LIVE BLOG: Fifa World Cup, Day 6 - Qatar eliminated, England and US fire blanks

ToBeConfirmed

ToBeConfirmed

Published Nov 25, 2022

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Welcome to day 6 of the 2022 Fifa World Cup in Qatar. IOL Sport will bring you all the live updates on match days from the biggest sports event on the planet!

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FULL TIME: England 0, United States 0

Well, that was an anticlimax, if ever there was one. The World Cup game between England and the United States that promised so much ended in a goalless draw.

It’s time for Africa, says Senegal’s Aliou Cisse

Senegal manager Aliou Cisse said he believed an African team could win the World Cup after his side beat Qatar 3-1 on Friday to roar back into Group A contention.

— FIFA World Cup (@FIFAWorldCup) November 25, 2022

HALF TIME: England 0, United States 0

Neither side has been able to break the deadlock in the World Cup Group B clash between England and the United States at the Al-Bayt Stadium in Al Khor on Friday on Friday evening.

NEXT UP: England vs United States

England will reach the second round of the competition if they can claim all three points from their clash against a youthful United States side.

England (4-2-3-1): Jordan Pickford; Kieran Trippier, John Stones, Harry Maguire, Luke Shaw; Declan Rice, Jude Bellingham; Bukayo Saka, Mason Mount, Raheem Sterling; Harry Kane

United States (4-3-3): Matt Turner; Sergino Dest, Walker Zimmerman, Tim Ream, Antonee Robinson; Tyler Adams, Weston McKennie, Yunus Musah; Tim Weah, Haji Wright, Christian Pulisic

FULL TIME: Netherlands 1, Ecuador 1

Hosts Qatar have been eliminated from the World Cup after Netherlands and Ecuador both picked up a point from their clash on Friday evening.

HALF TIME: Netherlands 1, Ecuador 0

The Netherlands go into the break in front after Cody Gakpo put them ahead in the sixth minute of their World Cup clash against Ecuador on Friday.

FULL TIME: Qatar 1, Senegal 3

Qatar are hanging by a very thin thread and could become the second World Cup host nation after South Africa to be eliminated in the group stages of the tournament after going down to Senegal on Friday. Senegal also became the first African team to win a game at the 2022 World Cup.

— FIFA World Cup (@FIFAWorldCup) November 25, 2022

HALF TIME: Qatar 0, Senegal 1

A 41st minute Boulaye Dia strike has given African champions Senegal a 1-0 lead at half time of their World Cup game against hosts Qatar on Friday. Can they hold on and become the first African team to win a game at this World Cup?

TEAMS FOR THE MATCH:

Qatar (5-3-2)

Meshaal Barsham; Pedro Miguel, Ismail Mohamad, Boualem Khoukhi, Abdelkarim Hassan, Homam Ahmed; Karim Boudiaf, Assim Madibo, Hassan Al Haydos (capt); Almoez Ali, Akram Afif

Coach: Felix Sanchez (ESP)

Senegal (4-3-3)

Edouard Mendy; Youssouf Sabaly, Kalidou Koulibaly (capt), Ismail Jakobs, Abdou Diallo; Idrissa Gana Gueye, Nampalys Mendy, Krepin Diatta; Boulaye Dia, Ismaila Sarr, Famara Diedhiou

Coach: Aliou Cisse (SEN)

Referee: Antonio Mateu Lahoz (ESP)

Next up: Qatar v Senegal

FULL TIME: Wales 0 Iran 2

The major talking point came in the 86th minute of the clash with the sides locked at 0-0. Wales goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey became the first player to receive a red card at this World Cup, as his side were reduced to 10 men for the remainder of the clash. The player deficit would come back to haunt Wales as Rouzbeh Cheshmi and Ramin Rezaeian both scored deep in injury time to wrestle all three points.

HALF TIME: Wales 0 Iran 0

The teams were locked at 0-0 at half time. Iran thought they had scored through Ali Gholizadeh, but the goal was ruled out by VAR for offside.

TEAMS FOR THE MATCH:

Wales (3-5-2)

Wayne Hennessey; Chris Mepham, Joe Rodon, Ben Davies; Connor Roberts, Ethan Ampadu, Aaron Ramsey, Harry Wilson, Neco Williams; Gareth Bale, Kieffer Moore

Iran (4-4-2)

Hossein Hosseini; Morteza Pouraliganji, Milad Mohammadi, Majid Hosseini, Ramin Rezaeian; Saeid Ezatolahi, Ahmad Noorollahi, Ehsan Hajsafi (capt), Milad Mohammadi; Mehdi Taremi, Sardar Azmoun

Wales striker Kieffer Moore has been named in the starting line-up for Friday's match against Iran after his impressive performance off the bench in the opening 1-1 draw against the USA.

Midfielder Joe Allen, who has not played since September, has been named on the bench for the Group B clash.

Wales captain Gareth Bale will make his 110th appearance for the Dragons, breaking the team's all-time appearance record.

Iran coach Carlos Queiroz has made five changes to the side that lost 6-2 against England, bringing Bayer Leverkusen striker Sardar Azmoun back into the starting line-up.

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12pm: Wales v Iran

Based on performances earlier this week, Wales will be regarded as the marginal favourites for this contest. However, with Iran having more recovery time and playing at a time of the day which should benefit them, a competitive low-scoring draw is on the cards.

Iran began this World Cup campaign with a 6-2 loss at the hands of England and will be desperate to respond to their thrashing with a vastly improved performance. Wales is ranked one place higher than Iran in the Fifa rankings, and this should be a motivating factor for the Middle East team.

A late Gareth Bale penalty earned Wales a 1-1 draw against the United States in their opening match and a first win at the World Cup since 1958 will now be the target against Iran. Wales showed great staying power against the USA, more so after they were hopelessly outplayed in the first half.

Players to watch:

Wales: Gareth Bale (forward), Daniel James (winger), Brennan Johnson (forward)

Iran: Mehdi Taremi (winger), Sardar Azmoun (striker), Karim Ansarifard (attacking midfielder)

Head-to-head record

The two countries have met once previously and that was back in 1978 when Wales won 1-0 in a friendly game in Iran.

3pm: Qatar v Senegal

Both nations will be playing catch-up following defeats in their opening matches. Qatar went down 2-0 to the South American side Ecuador, and Senegal went down by the same margin to the Netherlands.

The difference was that Senegal had a lot to be impressed with in its performance against the Netherlands. For the most part, they were solid defensively and their two costly errors resulted in the opposition scoring the match-winning goals.

The record books will show that Qatar are the first host nation in World Cup’s 92-year history to lose its opening fixture. However, they were nervous in their opening match and never managed to settle down, but this team is capable of greater things since they are the reigning Asian Cup of Nations champions.

Players to watch:

Qatar: Saad Al Sheeb (goalkeeper), Abdelkarim Hassan (left-back), Hassan Al-Haydos (forward)

Senegal: Edouard Mendy (goalkeeper), Kalidou Koulibaly (defender), Idrissa Gueye (midfielder)

Head-to-head record

This will be the first time that Qatar and Senegal have ever played each other in international football.

6pm: Netherlands v Ecuador

Going into their second group match, both sides are coming off 2-0 victories in their opening games, with the Netherlands taking down Senegal and Ecuador downing hosts Qatar.

The Netherlands will be keeping an eye on Ecuador's in-form striker Enner Valencia who dominated the opener and scored a brace. He looked to be one of the classy players after all the opening games were completed. However, the former Everton and West Ham striker Valencia is a doubtful starter for the match after he was forced to leave the field with an ankle injury.

The two teams are tied at the top of Group A and the outcome of this match will go a long way towards not only determining which side will qualify but also who will top the group. The Netherlands are tipped to beat Ecuador because of their dangerous attacking firepower upfront.

Players to watch:

Netherlands: Virgil van Dijk (centre-back), Denzel Dumfries (right-wingback), Frenkie de Jong (midfielder)

Ecuador: Enner Valencia (forward), Gonzalo Plata (forward), Moises Caicedo (midfielder)

Head-to-head record

To date, the two countries have met twice in friendlies. The Netherlands recorded a 1-0 win in their first-ever meeting against Ecuador in 2006 while the game in 2014 ended in a 1-1 draw.

9pm: England v USA

England go into their second game full of confidence after the 6-2 victory over Iran. Should Gareth Southgate’s ‘Three Lions’ will be motivated by the fact that should they defeat the US they qualify for the round of 16.

The major concern for England is the concern of fitness captain Harry Kane who injured his ankle against Iran. Should Kane not be fit to start, Marcus Rashford and Callum Wilson are the options to take his place.

After the 1-1 draw with Wales, the USA have their work cut out for them to earn a result against England. Importantly, the USA duo Weston McKennie and Yunus Musah who came off against Wales, should be fit to start against England. The USA might do well to include Borussia Dortmund’s Giovanni Reyna who was an unused substitute last time out.

Players to watch:

England: Bukayo Saka (forward), Declan Rice (midfielder), Harry Kane (striker)

USA: Weston McKennie (midfielder), Yunus Musah (midfielder), Christian Pulisic (attacking midfielder)

Head-to-head record

England and the USA have played 11 matches. England have won eight, the USA two, and one was drawn.

Brazil outclassed Serbia 2-0 in their World Cup opener. Richarlison's second-half goals, including a spectacular overhead kick, propelled the five-times champions to the top of Group G.

— CBF Futebol (@CBF_Futebol) November 24, 2022

Cristiano Ronaldo drew a line under a tumultuous tournament build-up as he wrote his name in the record books to become the first player to score in five World Cups in a 3-2 victory for Portugal over Ghana.

— CNN (@CNN) November 24, 2022

The returning Son Heung-min could not inspire South Korea as the Tigers of Asia started their World Cup Group H campaign with a 0-0 draw against Uruguay.

— FIFA World Cup (@FIFAWorldCup) November 24, 2022

Breel Embolo scored against the country of his birth as Switzerland defeated Cameroon 1-0 to make a winning start to their Fifa World Cup campaign.

Here’s Wednesday’s Live Blog if you missed any of the day’s action or just want to recap what unfolded.

IOL Sport