Riding on a brace from Yoane Wissa and a goal from Fiston Mayele Congo completed a sensational comeback from a goal down and delivered a 3-1 win over eliminated Uzbekistan, who are heading home after finishing bottom of FIFA World Cup 2026 Group K.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Congo, competing at the World Cup for the first time since 1974, when the nation, then known as Zaire, became the first sub-Saharan African country ever to qualify for the tournament, followed Colombia and Portugal, who played out a goalless draw in Miami, into the knockout phase.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
After back-to-back defeats, debutants Uzbekistan were clearly intent on claiming a positive result in their third World Cup outing, and they took an incredible lead after just 20 seconds at Atlanta Stadium.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
That lightning effort from Eldor Shomurodov was ruled out for offside, but the forward did break the deadlock shortly afterwards, getting the celebrations for his upcoming 31st birthday started a couple of days early as he looped home a delicious finish from a tight angle in the 10th minute, reports Xinhua.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Seven minutes later it was Congo DR\u2019s turn to have an effort disallowed, with Nathanael Mbuku's precise strike chalked off for a foul in the build-up. Shomurodov almost doubled Uzbekistan\u2019s advantage with another delicate attempt in the 51st minute, but this time the ball dropped onto the roof of the net.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
That lightning effort from Eldor Shomurodov was ruled out for offside, but the forward did break the deadlock shortly afterwards, getting the celebrations for his upcoming 31st birthday started a couple of days early as he looped home a delicious finish from a tight angle in the 10th minute, reports Xinhua.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Wissa added his second in injury time with an excellent finish from the edge of the box to ensure Congo DR's progress as one of the best third-place finishers. England will be their Round of 32 opponents in Atlanta on 1 July.<\/p>\r\n\r\n