Spain, Portugal eye World Cup last 16

LOS ANGELES: European champions Spain and Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal aim to book their places in the last 16 of the World Cup on Thursday as Algeria look to salvage some pride for African football.

Spain take on Austria in Los Angeles, where a win will keep them on course for a potential meeting with Portugal in the next round.

Portugal play Croatia in Toronto in a game that could mark the final career World Cup match for either Ronaldo or his former Real Madrid team-mate and veteran Croatian midfielder Luka Modric.

The late match sees Algeria aim to revive African fortunes after a rocky start to the knockout rounds for teams from the continent.

Ivory Coast, Senegal and the Democratic Republic of Congo have all fallen at the first hurdle in the last 32 after advancing from the group stage.

Algeria, who squeezed into the last 32 with a thrilling 3-3 draw against Austria on Saturday, face Switzerland in Vancouver.

Bosnia boss says players should be proud of World Cup journey

After arriving at the World Cup as one of the favourites, Spain have made a relatively low-key start to the tournament.

A shock 0-0 draw with Cape Verde was followed by a 4-0 rout of Saudi Arabia before an attritional victory over Uruguay.

But Spain coach Luis de la Fuente maintains his team are on an upward curve and are exactly where they want to be as they reach the business end of the tournament.

“This squad is used to breaking records and overcoming rough patches; we are determined to keep moving forward,” De la Fuente said Wednesday.

“From the time we arrived here up to the Uruguay match, we’ve seen the team begin to regain the automatic movements and patterns they had in the past. Now we have to deliver; there is no margin for error.”

Penalty jinx

Spain were eliminated on penalties in the last 16 of the past two World Cups, in 2018 and 2022, and have prepared for the eventuality of another shoot-out against Austria.

“Taking a penalty is no trivial matter,” De la Fuente said. “Not everyone is cut out to take one. There’s the psychological aspect - it’s a human element, and every footballer is different.”

A win over Austria will see Spain advance into a last 16 game with the winner of Portugal’s tie with Croatia.

The game in Toronto will mark the first time that two outfield players aged over 40 – Ronaldo and Modric – will take to the same field in a World Cup match.

Portugal midfielder Vitinha described Modric as a “great reference for all football players.”

“It’s a pleasure to play against him and hopefully tomorrow he’ll be a little bit sadder than me,” Vitinha said.

“We have to stop a team tomorrow, and hopefully that will be the team of Luka Modric.”

The late match will see Algeria attempt to avoid becoming the latest African team to fall by the wayside in the knockout rounds following the demise of Ivory Coast, Democratic Republic of Congo and Senegal. Only Morocco have gone through.

Algeria has never won a World Cup knockout game in four previous trips to the tournament.

Thursday’s action takes place after another spellbinding day of drama on Wednesday that saw England stumble into the last 16 thanks to two late goals from captain Harry Kane against DR Congo in Atlanta.

Kane’s double secured a 2-1 win and headed off a monumental upset. England will now face a daunting trip to take on Mexico at the Estadio Azteca on Sunday.

The United States booked their place in the last 16, where they will face Belgium, after a 2-0 defeat of Bosnia-Herzegovina in Santa Clara, California.

The US win was bittersweet though with star striker Folarin Balogun – who scored the opening US goal – receiving a red card in the second half which will rule him out of the Belgium game.