KHALIFA INTERNATIONAL STADIUM - AL RAYYAN - QATAR

Already finished the second round in each of the groups, we begin the last round in each of them, and we must start with group A, where the selections of Ecuador, Netherlands, Senegal and host Qatar make life in this world championship: Ecuador, Netherlands, Senegal and the host Qatar, who would go to give the definition to this zone, since in the vast desert of the Far Middle East, there is no longer room for the four, and there will only be places for only 2, with the home team already eliminated from the second date, Ecuadorians, Senegalese and representatives of the Netherlands, it was their turn to give the final color to this elimination round prior to the round of 16.

LLEGA LA HORA DE LA CALCULADORA / IT'S TIME FOR THE CALCULATOR

For these instances, the various teams involved and with a real chance, managed to get their accounts and arrive at this last day, prepared to give their best and not be left out, on the way to conquer the World Cup, with the matches played at the same time, to avoid rigging them, the selection of Ecuador who faced Senegal, only a draw was enough to advance, while the Africans, only needed to win and would put in evidence all their physical game to displace the South Americans.

The accounts for the team coached by the Argentine Gustavo Alfaro have remained in theory, the gaucho coach has not been able this time and has failed to classify the Ecuadorian team despite the great performance in the previous days, exciting a whole country to transcend in this championship, the tactical operation for this match, The tactical performance for this match was apparently not the same and did not work either, being very weakened and to the point of not appearing in the match against the Senegalese, who were very strong physically, limiting the yellow team to only make clearances and being up against the wall on several occasions before the first goal of the match.

In the other group match played at the same time, there was not much to watch or study, since the Netherlands had every chance of winning against an opponent that showed absolutely nothing as was the selection of Qatar, the odds of victory for the tulips were almost 100%, and so it was, they had control of their own classification and in their hands was only to make it effective to advance first and avoid a possible cross against England, which in my opinion never passed through their minds.

Los Africanos, luego de insistir pese a su mermada técnica de juego, hicieron el desgaste suficiente como para romper el 0 en el marcador, y pues creo era cuestión de tiempo, el físico de estos, era superior al de los Ecuatorianos, y ímpetu y determinación lo han llevado a conquistar el primer gol en el marcador, ha sido por la vía del penal y con un poco de polémica, pero con bastante merecimiento a quienes desde un principios sabían que ganar era su única opción para avanzar a la siguiente ronda.

The Africans, after insisting despite their diminished technique of play, made enough wear to break the 0 on the scoreboard, and I think it was a matter of time, the physique of these, was superior to the Ecuadorians, and momentum and determination have led them to conquer the first goal on the scoreboard, has been by way of the penalty and with a bit of controversy but quite deservedly to those who from the beginning knew that winning was their only option to advance to the next round.

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A halftime talk that was urgent, to see how this result was leaving out the selection of Ecuador, had its effects, but it was only momentary, the reaction of those led by Alfaro, only lasted a few minutes, and then Kalidou Koulibaly was responsible for silencing the Ecuadorian fans that had been turned on after the reaction of theirs, And although there was still a long time to go before the end of regulation time, it was noticeable that it was something that would mark the definitive end of the match, as the Senegalese team's display was more confident than in all that had happened so far in the match.

I was struck by the attitude of Senegal's coach, Aliou Cissé, this young manager, who will always be remembered as the player who scored the winning goal in the 2002 World Cup against France in the opening match. His behavior in front of the South Americans was very patient and calm, transmitting, so to speak, that way of directing his players, who finally managed to follow his instructions, finally achieving victory and advancing to the next round as runners-up, winning 2 goals to 1.

UN TOQUE DE REALIDAD / A TOUCH OF REALITY