Matchday seven of the 2026 FIFA World Cup promised more of the same, as the current edition of the tournament continues to draw eyes despite the controversies off the pitch.
Portugal faced off against the Democratic Republic of the Congo, or DR Congo in short. Much like their Iberian neighbors Spain, they went away disappointed, succumbing to a 1-1 draw against a team more than 30 places below them. Then England went and soundly defeated Croatia, solidifying their position as one of the contenders
for the trophy.
Ghana vs Panama was a bit of a lowlight, compensated by the drama of an extremely late winner. Then Colombia went on to struggle against Uzbekistan, a team playing their first ever World Cup. If a few shots were a little more accurate, we could have been talking about a different result. Talk about dramatic.
Check out all the goals, highlights, and more from the seventh matchday of the FIFA World Cup!
Oh look a header in the box, of course it’s Ronal … wait what?
A scrumptious delivery by Pedro Neto saw João Neves head the ball in after just six minutes played. Talk about an early breakthrough.
Honestly, you’d expect Cristiano Ronaldo to get on the end of that and not the guy who’s 171cm tall. Brilliant header, though.
Against all odds, DR Congo strike back!
Portugal controlled the entire half only to give up a set piece right near the end. “Surely not,” everyone thought. Then Arthur Masuaku sent in a perfectly curled delivery, homing like a sidewinder onto the head of Yoane Wissa. Goalkeeper Diogo Costa did not stand a chance.
What a way to score your country’s first World Cup goal! It ends up being the decisive moment of the game, as Portugal were unable to break down the DRC and score another.
1-1 at full time. On to the next one.
HARRY WHAT ARE YOU DOING
Luka Modrić took out Noni Madueke inside the box and the referee whistled for a penalty kick. Harry Kane stepped up and you would expect it to be 1-0 shortly. Then the unthinkable happened.
Harry ran up, and … Dominik Livaković dove to his left and SAVED THE PENALTY!
Never mind
Turns out the goalkeeper was off his line. VAR allowed the penalty to be retaken. Harry Kane stepped up once again, and there was no saving it this time.
Baturina fires past Pikford! 1-1
Martin Baturina took a thunderous shot after Petar Sučić squared the ball from inside the England box. A flying Jordan Pickford did well to get a hand on it, but there was no stopping the Croatian equalizer.
Note how the attack begins with Luka Vušković. Despite being a center-back he was at the heart of the offense and defense.
Harry Kane says nuh-uh
Harry Kane is pretty good. Teams should consider marking him.
Here’s what happened. England went into the Croatian half and won a corner. The men in blue were caught napping as a certain Bayern Munich striker slalomed into the box and headed it in, just like he so often does at club level. Everyone watching it thought the same thing: “Too easy.” It wasn’t easy, Kane just makes it look easy.
This goal saw Kane tie Gary Lineker as England’s top scorer at the FIFA World Cup.
Petar Musa makes it 2-2!
Veteran attacker Ivan Perišić notched up an assist at Croatia made it 2-2, courtesy of a well taken shot by Petar Musa. The goal, however, belongs to man who made it happen, as without the timed run and header back across, Musa never would have been in a position to score.
Perišić really is still doing it at age 37.
Jude Bellingham replies after halftime
Elliot Anderson dropped deep and sent an inspired pass up the pitch, with Jude Bellingham running into an empty space left by the Croatians out wide. He made a stunning fast break and slotted it past the keeper, putting England up for the third time inside 60 minutes.
Rashford puts the game to bed
Thomas Tuchel subbed on Marcus Rashford for Anthony Gordon in the 72nd minute. Then, as the game finally petered out near the end of normal time, the former Manchester United star got the ball in space. He cut inside on his right foot and shot it past the keeper, putting England 4-2 up and sinking Croatia’s hopes of getting anything from the game.
Lawrence Zigi goes flying!
Goalkeeper shenanigans were the only thing of note in the first half between Ghana and Panama. The African side managed zero xG and zero attempts at goal. Yikes.
It’s the ninety-fifth minute, they’re not going to … OH MY GOD
Hard to say how Ghana pulled this one off. Brandon Thomas-Asante rocketed past the opposing defender and squared it into the path of Caleb Yirenkyi, who tapped it in for the goal that secured all three points. Panama had only themselves to blame. They had all the momentum in the first half and did nothing with it.
A stadium full of Panama fans rendered silent. 1-0 to Ghana at full time.
Díaz hits the post 30 minutes in!
Huge opportunity for Colombia as Bayern Munich star Luis Díaz charged into the penalty box and and shot from a tight angle, only just hitting the post. First warning for Uzbekistan.
Colombia strikes right before halftime!
A beautiful ball over the top of the Uzbek defense by Luis Díaz saw Daniel Muñoz make it 1-0 minutes before halftime. Uzbekistan, meanwhile, did not even have an attempt on target up to that point. Zero touches inside their opponent’s box in 45 minutes.
One-sided? Maybe. Colombia looked excellent.
Uzbekistan opens their account! Colombia rattled
What happens when the keeper saves the shot, but it bounces straight up? You get a goal like that. Uzbekistan scores their first ever goal in a World Cup courtesy of Abbosbek Fayzullaev. Simply a stunning turn of events. To put it into perspective, their last three touches (including the goal) were their first three touches inside the box.
Well that didn’t last long
He’s done it over and over for Bayern Munich. Now he’s doing it at the World Cup. After assisting the opener, Luis Díaz scored to make it 2-1, just minutes after Uzbekistan found their equalizer.
Insane hustle by Cucho Hernández! 3-1 to Colombia
You’d expect a ball like that to be a lost cause. Cucho Hernández doesn’t think that way. Somehow he chased it down, fended off his defender, then put a perfect cross into the box. Jaminton Campaz converted with a leaping header, sealing the game for Colombia.
His goal ended up being the final one of the matchday, which saw 13 goals scored and extremely late winners. Maybe that was the theme of the day.
Now, with their first games all played, England seem to have a commanding lead and are well-positioned to qualify at the top of Group L. For the rest, it’s more of a mixed bag. Colombia put themselves in a good position with a win, but their performance did not inspire confidence. Things could change a lot in the coming weeks, as this tournament has proven exceptionally volatile. We’ll just have to wait and see.
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