Socceroos stay alivewith draw
France advances to round of 16 by beating Peru
Mile Jedinak has a knack for penalty kicks and his strategy is beyond simple.
“Just to get that ball in the back in the net,” the Australia captain said after converting fromthe spot to give Australia a 1-1 draw against Denmark on Thursday in Samara, Russia, and new life at theWorld Cup.
The 38th-minute penalty was set up after Denmark forwardYussufPoulsenwas called for a handball following a video review. Poulsen was also cautioned by the referee and will be suspended for the team’s final groupmatch against France because of yellow card accumulation.
The goal was Jedinak’s second from the spot at this year’sWorld Cup, and it snapped goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel’s five- match streak of shutouts for the Danes.
“It’smore just composing and staying concentrated, regardless of the situation, regardless of where you’re standing and regardless of what’s going on around you,” added Jedinak, who has converted 16 straight penalties.
Christian Eriksen scored in the opening minutes for Denmark, which has gone unbeaten in 17 straight international matches.
Going into the tournament, No. 36 Australia was the lowest-ranked team in Group C with the others all in the top 12.
With a loss to France in the opener, a defeat Thursday would have made it nearly impossible for the Socceroos to advance to the next stage. Denmark, mean- while, won its first match against Peru.
The yellow on Poulsen was not without controversy. After the pleas from Denmark’s players to the referee went unheard, Schmeichel had a few words with Jedinak to rattle him. It didn’t work.
“You still have to stay focused in getting good contact and maintain that focus,” said Jedinak, who plays for Aston Villa.
FRANCE 1, PERU 0 » Kylian Mbappe’s first World Cup goal put France into the round of 16.
The teenage forward tapped in a ball headed toward goal in the 34th minute to give France a victory in Yekaterinburg.
At 19 years and 183 days, Mbappe became the youngest scorer in France’sWorld Cup history.
With two wins from two matches in Group C, France is through to the next round with amatch to spare while Peru has been eliminated.
France coach Didier Deschamps made a pair of tactical adjustments after an underwhelming performance in the team’s opening win over Australia. He put Blaise Matuidi and Olivier Giroud in the starting lineup but kept his same 4-3-2-1 formation with Giroud out front.
Both used their speed and passing to expose gaps in Peru’s backline.
Paolo Guerrero started for Peru after coming off the bench in the opening loss to Denmark. He came out with energy, but he cooled down after receiving a yellow card in the 23rd minute. Guerrero nearlymissed the World Cup before having his doping ban lifted by a Swiss judge prior to the tournament. France goalkeeper Hugo Lloris was one of three opposing captains, along with Australia’s Mile Jedinak and Denmark’s Simon Kjaer, who signed a letter to FIFA supporting the lifting of the ban. ICELAND HAS ANOTHER TOUGHTASK » The last time Iceland pulled off a huge surprise at a major tournament, it was stung by a big letdown.
That’s something the team will be wary about when it faces Nigeria today in Volgograd, six days after holding Argentina to a 1-1 draw in the opening Group Dmatch.
“Whenever everyone is rowing in the same direction, anything is possible in football and we have to stick together,” Iceland captain Aron Gunnarsson said. “We knowit’s another tough task for us tomorrow.”
Iceland beat England 2-1 in the round of 16 at the 2016 European Championship in France. That result, though, was followed by a 5-2 loss to the host teamin the quarterfinals. BLATTER VISITS PUTIN » Sepp Blatter came to Moscow and saw Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin, defying FIFA’s wish that its suspended former president’s visit to theWorld Cupwould attract little attention.
Blatter said he went to see Russia’s president after watching Portugal’s 1- 0 win over Morocco on Wednesday wearing the laminate fan ID card required for all people attendingWorld Cup games in Russia.
“We had small talks,” said Blatter, who converses with Putin in German. “We spoke about football and the good start of the competition, the good start of the team.”
The 82-year-old Blatter is serving a six-year ban from official football duties for financial misconduct during his 17-year rule.