Cape Verde remain unbeaten at the World Cup as improbable draw with Uruguay raises hopes of knockout qualification

Against all the odds, World Cup debutants Cape Verde have a very real chance of qualifying for the knockout stages after coming from behind to steal a valuable draw against two-time champions Uruguay. It was an historic night in Miami as Kevin Pina scored his country’s first ever World Cup goal to give them the lead in the first half.Normality was restored just before half-time when Maxi Araujo equalized, before Agustin Canobbio put the South Americans ahead six minutes into injury time.Cape Verde did not collapse, though, withstanding sustained periods of pressure to stay in the game, before Helio Varela stunned the world with a goal to level the game.The result leaves Uruguay and Cape Verde level with two points apiece going into the final matchday, with the minnows facing fourth-placed Saudi Arabia.The tiny island nation stunned tournament favorite Spain last week with a hard-fought 0-0 draw in their first ever World Cup game, but this was arguably better with two goals in their favor. Helio Varela (R) celebrates with team-mate Ryan Mendes after scoring Cape Verde’s second Cape Verde’s players celebrate after scoring a second goal against the two-time champions  Uruguay’s Maxi Araujo scores his side’s opening goal during the World Cup Group H clash Cape Verde’s Kevin Pina had earlier scored his country’s first ever World Cup goal in MiamiIt was another special moment for Cape Verde’s Vozinha, who became one of the tournament’s breakout stars after shutting down Spain. The 40-year-old goalkeeper had his mother in the stands for the match; she was unable to attend Cape Verde’s stunning opening draw against Spain because she couldn’t obtain a visa.It was also the first World Cup match with two starting goalkeepers aged 40-plus. Fernando Muslera, who made his 18th World Cup appearance, turned 40 on June 16.