World Cup Recap: Round of 16 Day 2
Penalties needed as Croatia outlasts Denmark and Russia shocks Spain
Jul 1, 2018, 10:53 pm
The round of 16 in the 2018 FIFA World Cup continued on Sunday with Spain taking on host nation Russia and Croatia facing Denmark. Ninety minutes was not enough as both encounters went to extra time and, eventually, penalties.
Luzhniki Stadium Moscow
Attendance: 78,011
When the knockout round matchups were complete, it looked as though Spain had a clear path to the final. Instead, the 2010 champs were one-and-done at the hands of the host nation. Things started off promising for La Furia Roja as Sergio Ramos forced an own-goal from Russia’s Sergei Ignashevich in the 12th minute of the match. The reality is Spain spent too much time with the ball at their feet but not enough time doing anything with it. The Spanish were outshot 5-3 but the most impactful moment came on a defensive lapse. Defender Gerard Pique was called for a handball inside the bos and Artyom Dzyuba would convert the penalty to tie things at 1-1.
Russian goalkeeper Igor Akinfeev was the Man of the Match for his performance with two saves in the first half, three in the second half and four in extra time. Spain’s goalkeeper David De Gea was untested and didn’t record a single save throughout the 120 minutes. Spain finished with 25 shots (nine on target) while Russia only created six shots with one direct to goal. After a deadlock through extra time, the penalty shootout would decide who advanced.
Smolov, Ignashevich, Golovin and Cheryshev all converted their penalties for Russia while Koke and Iago Aspas would fail to convert for Spain. As a result, Russia advances to the quarterfinals to face Croatia.
Analysis: Spain was clearly not as strong as we all thought they were but they were still strong enough to get past Russia. What happened on Sunday will go down as a huge setback for a Spanish national team that was enjoying the best era in their football history. The golden age that brought Spain the 2010 World Cup title as well as back-to-back European Championships is now an afterthought. The Spanish national team could not reclaim the glory of their best days and, as 2010 World Cup final hero Andres Iniesta bids farewell to the national team, the team will surely get a new influx of youth. Spain is filled with talent, however, and will surely field a team that can contest for Euro 2020. First, they’ll need a new Manager after their former one was fired just days before Russia 2018.
The host nation knew what they had to do to give themselves a chance to win - and they accomplished it. Some will say it was boring football and a shameful display of “the beautiful game” but the end result is the only thing that matters, frankly. Team Russia, backed by its home fans, has reached the farthest stage in their World Cup history and are one win away from assuring to match their best performance of the Soviet Union national team - who finished fourth at England 1966. Will they be able to outlast Croatia with a compact defense? We’ll have to tune in on July 7 to find out.
Notable stat: Russia won their first penalty shootout at a FIFA World Cup.
Nizhny Novgorod Stadium, Nizhny Novgorod
Attendance: 40,851
This one got off to a hot start. Denmark’s Mathias Jorgensen scored off a throw in to surprise goalkeeper Danijel Subasic in the first minute. Unfortunately for the Danes, Croatia would answer back just three minutes later after Mario Mandzukic won a ball inside the box to tie the game. Croatia would be the team to generate more quality opportunities but the match would remain a draw through 90 minutes. Denmark keeper Kasper Schmeichel had two saves in the first half, two in the second and three in extra time while Subasic for Croatia only had two all match. Besides the scores, the other influential play was a denial of a goal scoring opportunity by Denmark’s Jorgensen. Croatia had now the best opportunity to get the win in the 115th minute - five removed from full time - but an exhausted Luka Modric failed the spot kick. The match would go to penalties.
With both teams exhausted, there were multiple misses on both sides. FC Barcelona’s Ivan Rakitic scored the winning penalty as the shootout went to the fifth attempt to advance Croatia to the quarterfinals.
Analysis: Croatia is enjoying their best World Cup performance since France 1998. They suffered on Sunday against Denmark but at times showed their class, not being able to take the lead. They are lucky to not have lost in penalties but can see this as new life and confidence as they go forward to face Russia. The host nation will most likely be compact like they were against Spain so Croatia’s midfielders will be challenged to break them open. The good news is they count on some of the best midfielders in the world today. Getting to the semis would be huge for Croatia.
Denmark, on the other hand, will feel heartbroken. They knew their limitations but could not have executed their game plan better. They made life hard for Croatia’s attack. Schmeichel could not have had a better day in goal and it’s a shame his team could not finished the rest of the job. Perhaps their best opportunity to win it was just before the end of the second half but no one showed the quality to get them the win. The biggest criticism, and deservedly so, will fall on Tottenham playmaker Christian Eriksen. After being invisible for most of the match, Eriksen had the opportunity to be the hero and instill confidence by making the first penalty in the shootout. Had he made it, this recap would’ve been written differently. Onwards towards Euro 2020 for Denmark.
Notable stat: Croatia and Denmark set a new FIFA World Cup record for the fastest 1-1 scoreline.
Monday, July 2
9 a.m. - Mexico vs. Brazil (FOX, Telemundo)
1 p.m. - Belgium vs. Japan (FOX, Telemundo)
Tuesday, July 3
9 a.m. - Sweden vs. Switzerland (FS1, Telemundo)
1 p.m. - Colombia vs. England (FOX, Telemundo)
The Houston Texans addressed their most glaring needs by selecting offensive tackle Aireontae Ersery and a pair of Iowa State receivers in the NFL draft.
“The idea was to try to add good players, good people that are young, tough, hungry, that want to win, that put the team first,” general manager Nick Caserio said. “These picks exemplify that.”
The Texans got players that could help them quickly despite not picking in the first round for a second straight season. They didn’t have a first-round pick last year because of trades, including the one to move up and get defensive end Will Anderson with the third overall pick in the 2023 draft.
This season they shipped the 25th overall pick to the Giants on Thursday in exchange for several picks.
Their first selection in this draft was receiver Jayden Higgins, who was taken with the second pick of the second round. They added Ersery later in the second round with the 48th overall selection and picked up Higgins’ teammate Jaylin Noel in the third round.
Ersery could be Houston’s left tackle of the future after the offseason trade of five-time Pro Bowl left tackle Laremy Tunsil. Ersery started 38 games at left tackle over three seasons at Minnesota where he was a third-team All-American last season.
He comes to Houston to help shore up a line that allowed C.J. Stroud to be sacked 52 times last season, which was the second most in the NFL.
The Texans added veteran tackle Cam Robinson this offseason and Ersery will compete with him to protect Stroud’s blind side as the Texans attempt to reach the playoffs for a third straight season under coach DeMeco Ryans.
The 6-foot-6, 331-pound Ersery, who was the Big Ten’s Offensive Lineman of the Year last season, can’t wait to play with Stroud.
“C.J. Stroud is a baller,” Ersery said. “I’m so honored to be a guy to help out and come in and help protect him. I’m just super stoked and I know I’m going to a great organization.”
Higgins and Noel join the Texans to add more depth at receiver to complement star Nico Collins with Tank Dell recovering from a serious knee injury and Stefon Diggs gone to the Patriots.
Higgins, who has been compared to Collins, had 87 receptions for 1,183 yards and nine touchdowns last season for the Cyclones and Noel added 80 catches for 1,194 yards and eight scores.
After Higgins was drafted, Noel never imagined he’d be heading to Houston, too. He shared on social media a fortune he received from a Chinese restaurant that read: “Look forward to an unplanned reunion with an out-of-touch friend.”
Noel later shared his feelings about joining Higgins on the roster.
“I was surprised,” Noel said. “But they’ve seen that 1-2 punch all year. They’re going to be very happy with those selections for sure.”
Caserio said a talk with Iowa State coach Matt Campbell on Friday helped him make his final decisions on the receivers.
“He was effusive in his… belief and praise of both Higgins and Noel,” Caserio said.
The Texans now have three receivers from Iowa State on their roster after drafting Xavier Hutchinson in the sixth round in 2023.
Ersery and his four siblings were raised by a single mother and experienced homelessness when he was a child despite her working multiple jobs. He is thrilled to have put those struggles behind him as he embarks on his next chapter.
“I’ve got that hardworking mentality from her,” he said. “So, growing up times were tough but now I’ve got my foot in the door and I look forward to trying to change some things around.”
Caserio loves guys with work ethic like Ersery’s and said that’s one reason why they believe he’ll fit in with the Texans.
“If you come in and put your head down and work and just get better, take advantage of your opportunities, you’re going to have a shot to have success and do a lot of good things for the organization,” he said.
Along with Noel, the Texans added another Jaylin in this draft with they picked USC cornerback Jaylin Smith in the third round.
“We got Jaylins, and we got all these guys around. It’s going to be hard to keep them straight,” Caserio joked on Friday after they picked Smith.
Then on Saturday, the Texans added another player with the same name, albeit with a different spelling, when they took Penn State safety Jaylen Reed in the sixth round.
That gives them four players with the same name and three different spellings as the three rookies join starting safety Jalen Pitre on the team.
Along with drafting two players from Iowa State, the Texans also added a pair of players from Southern California when they picked running back Woody Marks in the fourth round after drafting Smith in the third.
Marks ran for a career-high 1,133 yards with nine touchdowns for the Trojans last season after transferring from Mississippi State.
Be sure to watch the video below as NFL.com Draft Analyst Lance Zierlein shares his thoughts on all the Texans' picks!