Congo DRvs
UzbekistanFor an hour in Atlanta, Uzbekistan looked like they might actually pull it off. Eldor Shomurodov had put them ahead in the 10th minute, Mozgovoy with the assist, and Congo DR — despite owning the ball and the territory — couldn't find a way through. Then the second half opened, the yellow cards piled up, and everything changed.
The first 68 minutes were a study in frustration for Congo DR. They had the possession — 57.6 percent by the end — and ran 19 shots to Uzbekistan's three, but only four of those found the frame. Uzbekistan, for their part, were physical and compact. Sixteen fouls across the 90 minutes tells you the shape of their evening: sit deep, foul when necessary, and protect what Shomurodov had earned them.
Noah Sadiki picked up a yellow in the 21st minute for Congo DR, and Nathanaël Mbuku followed just before the break, in first-half stoppage time. Uzbekistan's Abdukodir Khusanov went into the book at 43'. The half ended with the score still 1-0 Uzbekistan, and en qué clavo se encontraba Congo DR — a World Cup group stage game, one goal down, the clock running.
The Turn
Sherzod Nasrullaev was booked three minutes into the second half, and Samuel Moutoussamy joined him in the 62nd — but it was the 68th minute that broke the match open. Congo DR won a penalty, and Yoane Wissa stepped up and converted. Level at 1-1, and suddenly the game had a completely different texture.
Ten minutes later, Fiston Mayele made it 2-1. No assist recorded, just a goal that gave Congo DR the lead for the first time all night and effectively ended Uzbekistan as a threat. Their shot count never moved. They had registered one shot on target all match — the Shomurodov goal — and that was that.
Wissa wrapped it up in the first minute of stoppage time, Meschack Elia with the assist. Three goals in 23 minutes after going behind. Cabal, that is what a team looks like when it finally finds its rhythm.
Verdict
Our pre-match read made Congo DR the favorite at 57 percent, and that is exactly how it played out — though anyone watching the first hour would have been forgiven for doubting it. The numbers back the result: Congo DR had the shots, the passes, the territory. What they lacked for most of the night was the finish.
Uzbekistan came in with five straight losses and showed enough defensive organization to make this genuinely uncomfortable for a while. They will feel the game slipped away once the penalty went in — that moment shifted the weight of the match entirely.
For Congo DR, Wissa is the name to remember. Two goals, a penalty and a late assist-aided finish, and the Leopards advance. The question now is whether they can carry this kind of second-half resolve into the next round, because it will take more than 19 shots to trouble better defenses than Uzbekistan's.
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