{"id":766143,"date":"2026-06-28T05:16:15","date_gmt":"2026-06-28T05:16:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/766143\/"},"modified":"2026-06-28T05:16:15","modified_gmt":"2026-06-28T05:16:15","slug":"dr-congo-to-face-england-in-last-32-after-dramatic-comeback-what-does-tuchels-side-need-to-know","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/766143\/","title":{"rendered":"DR Congo to face England in Last 32 after dramatic comeback. What does Tuchel\u2019s side need to know?"},"content":{"rendered":"

DR Congo will face England in the round of 32 after they staged a thrilling comeback from a goal down to beat Uzbekistan 3-1 in Atlanta.<\/p>\n

The Leopards needed a win in their final group game to qualify as one of the best third placed teams and after falling behind in the first half, they dominated the second half and are rewarded with a game against Thomas Tuchel\u2019s side in this stadium on July 1.<\/p>\n

It did not always look like being Congo\u2019s night. The first half brought two fantastic goals \u2014 but only one of them counted.<\/p>\n

First Eldor Shomurodov showed why he the top scorer in his nation\u2019s history with a superb lofted finish from a challenging angle on the left side of the box, the ball looping over Lionel Mpasi in the Congo goal.<\/p>\n

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Congo thought they had equalised through Nathaneal Mbuku\u2019s sweetly-struck half-volley from range, the ball flying in at the near post. Referee Felix Zwayer was called to the pitch-side monitor by the VAR team, and decided to rule out the goal because Mbuku\u2019s trailing hand had struck an Uzbek player in the build up.<\/p>\n

The Leopards created \u2014 and missed \u2014 an abundance of chances before they won a penalty in the 67th minute that Yoane Wissa rolled calmly into the net.<\/p>\n

That set up the game for an electric finish and Fiston Mayele, on as a substitute, flicked in brilliantly at the near post with 12 minutes left to put Congo into the lead.<\/p>\n

And then in stoppage time, Wissa added gloss, with his second and Congo\u2019s third with a low curling strike. It\u2019s Congo\u2019s first appearance at the World Cup for over half a century, and they advance to the knockouts for the first time in the competition\u2019s history.<\/p>\n

They finish third, behind group winners Colombia and second-placed Portugal, who will face Ghana and Croatia respectively in the Round of 32.<\/p>\n

\"\"\/<\/p>\n

Here, Felipe Cardenas and Tim Spiers dissect the key talking points on a dramatic night in Atlanta.<\/p>\n

Should England be worried?<\/p>\n

Fiston Mayele\u2019s clever flick will go down in DR Congo football history as the goal that took the African nation to the World Cup knockout rounds for the first time. DR Congo was against the ropes after Shomurodov\u2019s 10th-minute strike. Yoane Wissa penalty gave them life and Mayele put them ahead before Wissa finished it off in stoppage time.<\/p>\n

Mayele, who plays his club football in Egypt, was a menace all night on the left flank. His insatiable appetite to dribble and take on his opponent one-on-one was complemented by his opportunistic goal in the 78th minute. His goal sent Atlanta Stadium into a frenzy, which continued as the DR Congo supporters danced and sang in impressive unity.<\/p>\n

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\n Fiston Mayele, who scored the second, will be a threat against England (Lars Baron\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Should England be worried? Perhaps. England struggled to break down Ghana and Congo are a similarly disciplined defensive side. It will be a tough test for Thomas Tuchel\u2019s men.<\/p>\n

African teams have had a wonderful World Cup group stage. Cape Verde has stolen all the headlines after advancing from a group that included Spain and Uruguay. Morocco is an overall contender and Egypt won their group, progressing to the knockout round for the first time in their nation\u2019s history.<\/p>\n

Ivory Coast and Senegal are formidable sides and Ghana proved difficult as well. It may well be Africa\u2019s World Cup.<\/p>\n

Felipe Cardenas<\/p>\n

How good was Yoane Wissa?<\/p>\n

Newcastle United fans will all be asking who that Wissa chap is who plays up front for DR Congo.<\/p>\n

He can\u2019t be the same flop who scored just one goal in 19 Premier League appearances after a \u00a355million move from Brentford? And whose major contribution in the final weeks of the season was coming on for one minute of stoppage time at Crystal Palace and then having the temerity to swap shirts with Jean-Philippe Mateta at full-time?<\/p>\n

Well, yes, it\u2019s the same Wissa, but a very different version \u2014 and one that England should not take lightly.<\/p>\n

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\n Yoane Wissa calmly converts his penalty (Lars Baron\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Wissa has now scored three goals at this World Cup (the same number of Harry Kane), adding to his header against Portugal with two goals here. The first was a well-taken penalty, the second a stunning strike into the corner to seal victory in stoppage time and make it 3-1.<\/p>\n

He looks fully committed, fully fit and a huge threat in and around the penalty area. Basically the player Newcastle thought they were signing a year ago. England take note.<\/p>\n

Tim Spiers<\/p>\n

Was this the worst refereeing decision of the World Cup so far?<\/p>\n

When Nathanael Mbuku spectacularly arrowed in a left-footed half-volley in the 18th minute, it looked for al the world that DR Congo had equalised.<\/p>\n

However, when experienced German referee Felix Zwayer was quickly sent to the VAR screen, clearly something was up.<\/p>\n

As it transpired, 14 seconds before he scored, Mbuku had basically tickled Sherzod Nasrullaev on the cheek when holding him off near the halfway line.<\/p>\n

In fact held off isn\u2019t even the correct term, he used his flailing arm as a barrier as he tried to ward off Nasrullaev\u2019s challenge and sprint forward, but the contact was faint and minimal. A brush of the cheek.<\/p>\n

Nasrullaev melodramatically fell to the floor like he\u2019d been knocked down by a heavyweight boxer and it was that pathetic reaction which probably helped sway Zwayer, whose decision was a swift but embarrassing one.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo 7 committed a foul with the hand in the face of the opponent,\u201d he announced.<\/p>\n

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The officials have been praised for generally having a decent World Cup but that hasn\u2019t stopped some terrible decisions being made, like Kylian Mbappe not being given a penalty when he was taken out in the Senegal box, or Ezri Konsa\u2019s two-footed lunge not leading to a penalty for Ghana against England.<\/p>\n

This was right up there with the worst we\u2019ve seen.<\/p>\n

Tim Spiers<\/p>\n

Was this one of the goals of the tournament?<\/p>\n

Every World Cup is remembered for its goals. Pel\u00e9\u2019s masterclass against Sweden in 1958 is an all-time classic. Surely you remember Jared Borgetti\u2019s snap header from an impossible angle against Italy in 2002. Igor Belanov\u2019s thunder strike in 1986 was topped of course by Diego Maradona\u2019s wonder goal against England in 1986.<\/p>\n

The 2026 World Cup has seen some memorable goals, as well, and on Saturday, Eldor Shomurodov added his name to the tournament\u2019s lore. The Uzbek striker has been one of the hardest-working players at this World Cup. He is a tireless runner who tends to do the dirty work for his team. Against DR Congo, his hustle was rewarded.<\/p>\n

A ball was played to Abbosbek Fayzullaev near the Congolese penalty area. The diminutive midfielder attempted a circus flick but missed.<\/p>\n

Shomurodov sprinted to the ball and caught it on a bounce with his left foot before it reached the end line. With a well-measured strike, Shomurodov lobbed the ball over Congo goalkeeper Lionel Mpasi and into the corner past Mpasi far post.<\/p>\n

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\n Eldor Shomurodov\u2019s finish was a thing of beauty (Lars Baron\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Shomurodov\u2019s technique was pristine. And the contact he made was perfect. We\u2019ll see this goal in every 2026 World Cup goal compilation video.<\/p>\n

Felipe Cardenas<\/p>\n

Will we see Uzbekistan at the World Cup again?<\/p>\n

Reaching a first ever World Cup was the greatest achievement in the history of the Uzbekistan national team.<\/p>\n

It was long overdue \u2014 they had fallen narrowly short on three painful occasions \u2014 but, while just being there was a major watermark moment, there will be huge disappointment in not claiming a single point.<\/p>\n

Games against Colombia and Portugal saw a clear chasm in quality, but this was the match they had targeted and, having gone 1-0 up, defeat will be devastating, not least for Abdukodir Khusanov who, having scored an own goal against Portugal, gave away a penalty here and had a poor tournament.<\/p>\n

However, looking at the bigger picture, huge investment back home in infrastructure, training facilities, coaching and stadiums means their World Cup appearance shouldn\u2019t be a one-off. They have impressed in recent Under-17 and Under-20 tournaments and there are hopes that structures are being put in place to ensure Uzbekistan become a regular at major tournaments.<\/p>\n

While there weren\u2019t many positives for Fabio Cannavaro\u2019s overawed, inexperienced team to take from their three matches, the performances of diminutive attacking midfielder Abbosbek Fayzullaev certainly stood out.<\/p>\n

The 22-year-old Istanbul Basaksehir player, who was young Asian player of the year in 2023, was full of guile, trickery and opportunism, plus he worked tremendously hard.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not the last we\u2019ve heard of him or Uzbekistan.<\/p>\n

Tim Spiers<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"DR Congo will face England in the round of 32 after they staged a thrilling comeback from a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":766144,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[49,48,264021,103818,82,2457],"class_list":["post-766143","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sports","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-congo-dr","tag-fifa-mens-world-cup","tag-sports","tag-uzbekistan"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/766143","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=766143"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/766143\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/766144"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=766143"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=766143"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=766143"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}