France, Belgium and Spain They won their respective groups and reached the round of 32, as expected. There Spain capitalized on a Muslera save to eliminate Uruguay from the World Cup and become only the second team, after Mexico, to finish the group stage without conceding a goal. Cape Verde, after having held his own against the Red Furies, he deservedly qualifies together with Egypt and Senegal. The man of the day was Ousmane Dembélé, who played like a Ballon d'Or winner, scoring a hat-trick in 32 minutes against Norway, who played with a 11th-minute change and without Haaland. The 4-1 victory relegated the Scandinavians to second place, who will face Ivory Coast in the round of 32. Cape Verde finished behind Spain, coming close to a victory against Saudi Arabia with clear chances that they barely missed. The 0-0 draw promoted both teams, but the islanders, in addition to qualifying for the first time and undefeated, also gifted themselves a match against Argentina. Kevin De Bruyne and Leandro Trossard were the key players in Belgium's overwhelming 5-1 victory over New Zealand. First place was decided on goal difference, and after the New Zealand goal, Romelu Lukaku and Alexis Saelemaekers rounded out the scoreline. Senegal became the first African team to score five goals at a World Cup, beating Iraq. This five-goal haul secured qualification, making them one of the best third-placed teams. The 1-1 draw between Egypt and Iran doesn't exactly reflect what happened on the pitch, as the North Africans' qualification was the result of their goalkeeping prowess combined with a healthy dose of favorable circumstances. Ramin Rezaeian, who scored Iran's equalizer in the first 15 minutes of the match, became the unfortunate protagonist in the final 15 minutes, having a goal ruled out for a millimeter offside. They hit the posts twice and forced Mostafa Shoubir, who twice saved the woodwork, to make spectacular saves, dashing Iran's dream of overturning the result.
Ballon d'Or winner Ousmane Dembélé scored a hat-trick against Norway (Credits: Fifa.com)
