Cape Verde’s remarkable debut FIFA World Cup campaign continued as they held two time champions Uruguay to an entertaining 2-2 draw in Miami, keeping their hopes of reaching the last 32 firmly alive.
Having already shocked many observers with a goalless draw against Spain in their opening match, Cape Verde took the lead in the 21st minute through Kevin Pina, whose long range free kick went straight through the middle of the Uruguay wall and into the net.
The goal transformed the contest, with Cape Verde pushing forward more aggressively but leaving gaps at the back for Uruguay to exploit.
Uruguay capitalised on the additional space when Maxi Araujo dived low to head home an equaliser after defender Sidny Lopes Cabral flicked a delivery back towards his own goal.
The South Americans then completed the turnaround in first half stoppage time. Agustin Canobbio, restored to the starting line up after missing the opening whistle in Uruguay’s 1-1 draw with Saudi Arabia, justified his selection by converting an Araujo pass from close range.
Cape Verde struggled at times to play through Uruguay’s relentless pressing game, with poor distribution making it difficult to build attacks from deep. However, they continued searching for opportunities and were eventually rewarded.
The equaliser arrived following a costly defensive mistake from Uruguay. Mathias Olivera attempted to play the ball across his own penalty area but failed to spot Helio Varela lurking nearby. Varela calmly controlled possession, rounded the goalkeeper and slotted into the empty net to make it 2-2.
Uruguay thought they had found a late winner when Federico Valverde bundled the ball over the line from close range, but the effort was ruled out for offside.
Both sides created further chances during stoppage time, yet neither could find the decisive third goal as the match ended level.
The result leaves Uruguay second and Cape Verde third in Group H, with both nations on two points from two matches and still firmly in contention for a place in the last 32.
Faridah Abdulkadiri
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