World Cup 2022: Group Phase 3rd Round Review

5 min readDec 3, 2022

The end of the road for the round of 16

We are now on to the last games of the group stages, where heroes are made, and losers forgotten. The beautiful game spares no mercy for any team, regardless of how talented and skilled they may be. Netherlands-USA signs the start of the Round 16 of the World Cup 2022. You can take your position here.

Belgium Vs Croatia

This game was hugely important for the Belgian side, as the 2nd highest ranking international team faced an early exit from the tournament if they failed to beat the Croatian side. Ultimately the World Cup ended in heartbreak for the Belgian side, as the Belgian ‘golden generation’ failed to score at all against Croatia, leaving them in a paltry 3rd place in Group F.

Lukaku was added as a second-half substitute as the Red Devils sought a goal that would have won the game and advanced them to the round of 16.
The Chelsea striker, who is currently on loan at Inter Milan, wasted three excellent opportunities to put his team ahead. As the game’s final whistle blew, Thierry Henry of Belgium consoled the emotional player as he walked off the field.

Lukaku is consoled by Belgium coach, Thierry Henry

The game led to a shocking defeat for Belgium’s ‘golden generation’ of players, that based on their stars age, might be the end of an era.

Romelu Lukaku missed chances with the help of xG

Argentina Vs Poland

This was an extremely important match for the Argentinian side, as they faced potential elimination if they lost against Poland after their shock defeat to Saudi Arabia. On the flip side, the match was not as important for Poland, who would still proceed to the round of 16 on goal difference if they lost to the legendary Argentinian side.

At first Argentina struggled to make progress in the game, with the Argentinian side missing some great shots and Messi missing a crucial penalty in the first half of the game due to an amazing save by Szczęsny.

Despite an unlucky first half, Argentina ultimately found the will to win over the Polish side, firstly with a great strike of a cross by Mac Allister in the 46th minute, and then with another amazing strike by Alvarez in the 67th minute. Despite Argentina’s win, the Polish don’t have much to cry about just yet, as they are still through to the round of 16 regardless.

Alexis Mac Allister celebrates after scoring opening goal against Poland

Japan Vs Spain

A victory in this game was more essential for the Japanese side to qualify for the round of 16, as Spain’s 7–0 victory over Costa Rica meant that Germany would have had to beat Costa Rica with an entire 6 goals of GD (Goal Difference) to put the Spanish in 3rd place if the teams ended up being tied with points, which of course is a hugely difficult challenge for any international team. On the other hand, a Spanish defeat of Japan would have meant that Germany only had to simply win against Costa Rica to progress to the round of 16!

The first half began with an expected dominating performance by the Spanish Conquistadors, with Morata scoring an amazing header from an equally amazing cross into the penalty box by Azpilicueta. Following this goal, Spain had several other great chances, but failed to score a secondary goal in the first half.

The 2nd half saw the tide of the game change dramatically for the Spanish side, with Ritsu Doan scoring an absolute screamer outside the penalty goal in the early minutes of the 2nd half in minute 48, putting the Japanese side level with the Spanish!

Another 2022 World Cup game, and another hugely close but justified VAR decision in 51st minute of the game put Japan a goal ahead of the German side, with the ball looking almost certainly like it had gone out of play behind the German goal post byline before the ball was crossed in by Mitoma for a 2nd Japanese goal at the feet of Tanaka! At first the goal was disallowed for a VAR check by the referee but was subsequently given as a goal after this VAR check.

The Spanish side failed to score any successive goals, indirectly causing heartbreak for the German side, who would now find themselves in 3rd place due to the Spanish having a massively superior goal difference (7–1) due to their earlier 7–0 thrashing of Costa Rica, despite the fact that the Germans succeeded in beating the Costa Rican side themselves.

Honorable mention

On Friday, the World Cup was over for Ghana when the Black Stars were eliminated by Uruguay 2–0, more than 12 years after their memorable quarterfinal match in South Africa. Andre Ayew mimicked Asamoah Gyan by missing a penalty that would have given Ghana a 1–0 lead, evoking memories of that all-time great World Cup match. Giorgian de Arrascaeta scored twice in the first half to give Uruguay the victory, but South Korea’s unexpected 2–1 victory over Portugal allowed it to advance on goals scored rather than guaranteeing Uruguay a spot in the round of 16.