On Thursday, it was a day of intrigues, surprises and despair as four-time champions, Germany exited the 2022 FIFA World Cup at the group stage while the golden generation team from Belgium failed to live up to their expectations and were shown the way out of Qatar, thesportsbay.com reports.
Croatia 0-0 Belgium
• Croatia have reached the knockout stage for the third time in their history – their second-place finish in 2018 and third-place finish in 1998 are the only two previous occasions in which they have reached the knockout stage of the FIFA World Cup.
• Croatia have now reached the knockout stage for successive World Cup final competitions for the first time and have gone unbeaten in the group stage for a second consecutive World Cup.
• Croatia have lost only one of their last ten FIFA World Cup matches (W5 D4) while remaining unbeaten in their last six World Cup group stage matches (W4 D2). This is their longest run without a defeat in the group stage.
• Croatia have lost only one of their last 19 international matches (W12 D6).
• Thibaut Courtois is now third on the all-time list of appearances in the FIFA World Cup for Belgium alongside Franky Van Der Elst on 15 and behind Jan Ceulemans (16) and Enzo Scifo (17)
• That is the sixth goalless draw in Qatar – just one less than 1982, 2006, 2010 and 2014 editions which saw the most (7).
• That is just Belgium’s second goalless draw in 51 matches in FIFA World Cup history.
Canada 1-2 Morocco
• Morocco had only won two matches in the FIFA World Cup prior to this tournament, and they have doubled that tally in Qatar.
• Youssef En-Nesyri becomes the first player to score in two separate FIFA World Cup final competitions (2018, 2022) for Morocco.
• Canada scored the 100th goal at FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™ via Nayef Aguerd’s own goal.
• Hakim Ziyech’s goal in the fourth minute is the fastest-ever goal scored by Morocco in FIFA World Cup history. The previous quickest was scored by Khalid Boutaib against Spain in 2018.
• Morocco have become the second African team to top a group twice in the FIFA World Cup after Nigeria (1994 and 1998). Cameroon are the only other African team to top a group as well becoming the first African team to obtain seven points in a FIFA World Cup group.
Japan 2-1 Spain
• Japan have only ever come from behind in two FIFA World Cup matches and both have come in this group stage against Germany and Spain.
• Japan have qualified from their group at successive World Cups for the first time and have now made it through to the round of 16 for the fourth time in the last six World Cups.
• Japan have lost only two of their last nine World Cup group stage matches against European nations (W4 D3) and have won their group for the second time. They finished top of their group in 2002 with seven points.
• Spain have now qualified from their group in the opening round at nine of the last 11 World Cup final competitions.
• Álvaro Morata is the second Spanish player to score in all three matches in a FIFA World Cup group stage after Telmo Zarra in 1950.
Costa Rica 2-4 Germany
• Keylor Navas and Celso Borges move clear as leading appearance-makers for Costa Rica with 11 appearances following this game.
• Kai Havertz has become the second German player to score two goals as a substitute at the World Cup after Andre Schürrle in 2014 against Brazil.
• Germany have now won seven of their nine World Cup matches against Concacaf teams and have now won both matches played against Costa Rica in the FIFA World Cup by the same 4-2 scoreline.
• This is the 20th time that Germany have scored four goals or more in a FIFA World Cup match.
• Germany have failed to get past the group stage at either of the last two World Cups, after they progressed through the first round in their previous 16 tournaments since 1954.
