Men’s Soccer | World Cup results | Thursday
Japan 2, Spain 1
DOHA, Qatar — Japan scored twice early in the second half to come from behind to defeat Spain and advance to the round of 16 of the World Cup.
Ao Tanaka scored the winning goal from close range early in the second half. It took about two minutes for video review officials to confirm the ball hadn’t gone out of bounds before the goal.
Álvaro Morata scored first for Spain in the 11th minute at Khalifa International Stadium, but Japan rallied after halftime. Ritsu Doan equalized in the 48th with a left-footed shot from outside the box, and Tanaka added the second one a few minutes later.
Japan also shocked Germany 2-1 in its opener at the same venue.
Germany 4, Costa Rica 2
AL KHOR, Qatar — Germany was eliminated from the group stage of the World Cup for the second tournament in a row.
The four-time champions beat Costa Rice but it wasn’t enough to advance to the round of 16. Japan’s 2-1 victory over Spain allowed both of those
teams to advance instead, with the Japanese team at the top of the group.
Playing as defending champions at the last World Cup, Germany also exited early.
Croatia 0, Belgium 0
AL RAYYAN, Qatar — Croatia advanced to the last 16 of the World Cup after a scoreless draw against Belgium, whose group-stage exit will likely usher in the breakup of its talented but underachieving generation of players.
The eastern European nation has reached at least the semifinals on each of the two times it has reached the knockout stage.
Belgium was eliminated after
scoring one goal in three games and failed to live up to its status as the second-ranked team and one of the tournament favorites.
Morocco 2, Canada 1
DOHA, Qatar — Morocco advanced to the last 16 at the World Cup for just the second time after clinging on for a win over Canada.
The Moroccans’ only other trip past the group stage came in 1986.
Hakim Ziyech scored for Morocco in the fourth minute after a bad error by Canada goalkeeper Milan Borjan left the winger to shoot the ball into an empty goal. Youssef En-Nesyri added a second in the 23rd.