Hello and welcome to Daily Mail Sport’s World Cup Breakfast from day seven at the tournament – your one-stop shop for everything you’ve missed overnight in North America.For all the latest news, viral moments and what to look out for, stay right here.OVERNIGHT ACTION This is what happened while you were asleep… Portugal 1-1 DR Congo (Group K)DR Congo might have been without their totemic fan Michel Nkuka Mboladinga, best known for his ‘Lumumba’ tribute in the stands, but they showed their mettle and then some to hold Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal to a draw in the first match of the day. Neutrals were left fearing a rout when just six minutes into the David versus Goliath clash, Joao Neves scored an unbeatable header to put the Portuguese ahead. But despite Portugal dominating possession, they were never able to entirely snuff out the spark lit by the Congolese, with Yoane Wissa catching their defence sleeping to pull off his own audacious headed goal on the stroke of half-time. Swinging in cross after cross, there was little Portugal, or its greatest star, could do to wrench back momentum after the break. In yet more evidence of a lacklustre showing, Ronaldo failed to secure a single shot on target. And he was first off the field too, darting down the tunnel with a face like thunder as his team-mates regrouped to acknowledge the crowd. But the plaudits were all for DR Congo, as yet another shoal of minnows stunned a weary-looking European giant. READ IAN HERBERT’S REPORT HERE
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Yoane Wissa banished memories of his tepid Premier League form to score one of his nation’s most important international goals After an ineffectual showing, Cristiano Ronaldo stalked off down the tunnel in Houston aloneEngland 4-2 Croatia (Group L) England enjoyed a commanding start to their group stage travails in Dallas – but not without some scares along the way. In what would be a harbinger of drama to come, England opened their World Cup account in somewhat chaotic style, via a sensationally missed Harry Kane penalty – which was later re-taken, in style, after goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic was deemed to be off his line, and Josko Gvardiol was encroaching inside the box. But England were by no means deserving of their lead, and a further sign of an unsettled crowd came with the first ‘hydration break’, which was roundly booed by fans in the stands experiencing it first-hand for the first time. The pause, which felt particularly pointless inside an enclosed, air-conditioned Dallas Stadium, has been widely unpopular but the England fans made their dissent known in their own uniquely English way – chanting ‘what the f***ing hell was that?’After the pause, Croatian pressure told, with Martin Barurina firing in a wonder-strike to haul his nation level. Kane bagged his second shortly after, via a spinning header from Declan Rice’s well-struck corner, but again, England were unable to stay ahead for too long, with Petar Musa outsmarting Jordan Pickford this time, moments before half-time whistle. So England trooped into the dressing-room level downcast, but whatever Thomas Tuchel and Co meted out in the bowels of the stadium worked: Jude Bellingham, Tuchel’s at times uncertain starter, rifled home a stunning third. Cooking with gas now, it took a heroic performance from Livakovic to keep out a barrage of English chances. One did slip through the net however, a spirits-raising goal for Marcus Rashford, for so long in the England wilderness but now making a case for a spot in the starting XI after coming off the bench to bury the fourth. Gone was the cageyness most often found in the stands at England’s matches of late; instead, England were cruising in Texas, and taking all three points back to Kansas has ensured that the Three Lions have well and truly arrived Stateside. READ OLIVER HOLT’S REPORT HERE, AND CRAIG HOPE’S PLAYER RATINGS HERE
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A strong start to the second-half saw Jude Bellingham spur England into the lead in Dallas A fourth scored by substitute Marcus Rashford capped a fine showing from the Three LionsGhana 1-0 Panama (Group L)England’s Group L rivals Ghana snatched a dramatic victory over Panama, who were cruelly denied their first ever World Cup point. Cecilio Waterman had his effort tipped over early on and Panama again went close when Cristian Martinez smashed a shot into the side netting. Carlos Queiroz’s side created precious little themselves but the decisive moment came in the 95th minute. Caleb Yirenkyi tapped home in the dying seconds after latching onto Brandon Thomas-Asante’s ball across the six yard box to break Panamanian hearts.But the African side may feel fortunate to escape with the victory and England and Croatia will both have found little to fear from the Black Stars.
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Caleb Yirenkyi (centre) scored at the death to snatch victory for Ghana Uzbekistan 1-3 Colombia (Group K) The first round of group fixtures are officially done and dusted!Uzbekistan put up a valiant fight against Colombia but class and experience eventually told. Daniel Munoz of Crystal Palace scored the opener, finishing off a brilliant team move involving Luis Suarez and Luis Diaz. Abbosbek Fayzullaev then nodded in an equaliser – Uzbekistan’s first ever World Cup goal – after Camilo Vargas made a complete mess of attempting to save a volley. But parity was short-lived when Bayern Munich star Diaz fired his team back in front after they pressed and won the ball in a dangerous area. He was overcome with emotion during his celebration and carries the nation’s weight on his shoulders in the US. It was a tough outing for the Colombians but they added some gloss to the scoreline deep into stoppage time when Jaminton Campaz headed in Cucho Hernandez’s cross. READ JEFF POWELL’S REPORT HERE
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Luis Diaz was overcome with emotion after scoring his side’s second goal of the gameVIEW FROM THE GROUND – JACK GAUGHAN IN DALLASInternational tournaments bring people together. Even those who only live half an hour away.I got a message from an old friend a few days ago saying he was in Dallas and we should catch up. The funny thing is: he’s north Manchester and I’m south Manchester. We’ve not met for years.So arriving in the Dallas Cowboys part of town five hours before England’s opener to meet his group of four was somewhat surreal. They’re here for the first two games and we headed for a drink (strictly Coke Zero for this hack) around the stadium at lunchtime.The trouble is, nothing is available. Not unless you want to enter the stadium’s perimeter and navigate those extortionate prices. What fans following Croatia and England chose was to raid the Walmart over the road, clearing the supermarket out of chilled lager, and supping on a grass bank (not knoll) by the side of the road.With no bottle openers available, we saw a strong moment for international relations when my mate embarrassingly attempted to prise the top off his Corona with a knife, cutting himself in the process.A Croatian came over, tutting, and whipped it straight off. And then kept coming back, each time with more impressive panache. His faux exasperation went down well with the crowd and a knowledgeable police officer correctly referenced tangerine and not orange when the group’s Blackpool banner was unfurled.All very convivial until Walmart’s manager surfaced to ban the drinking of his own alcohol on the premises.Decibel levels rose over 100 before kick-off and those who had made the journey had a lovely moment later on, after a swashbuckling second-half when England’s stars stayed applauding one end for quite some time. Almost worth the second mortgage required to buy a pint inside. Touching too were the strains of Oasis’ ‘Wonderwall’ which boomed around the stadium at full-time, leaving John Stones and Jude Bellingham looking quite emotional on the turf as they were serenaded by the supporters. PICTURE OF THE DAY North America, here I am. Jude Bellingham’s imposing goal celebration has become immediately recognisable after his dazzling 2023-24 debut season at Real Madrid, but there is no finer stage for it than the World Cup. The former Birmingham City star has been in and out of Tuchel’s squad since the German arrived at St George’s Park, but as he stressed in his post-match interview, he is always available to ‘step up’ for his country when called upon. Bellingham stretched his arms aloft after scoring for England against Croatia on WednesdayVIRAL MOMENT OF THE DAY On the pitch, there were large swathes where Portugal and DR Congo looked evenly matched, and the final score saw the points shared. To get a scale of the upset the nation pulled off, you might instead look at scenes from a viewing party in Lisbon, where a gaggle of Congolese fans celebrated their equaliser ecstatically – amid a grim-faced sea of red. Nothing could dim the joy of the small clutch of DR Congo fans celebrating the equaliser in the centre of LisbonCELEBRITY WATCH Meeting of the minds at the Dallas Stadium, where John Terry was spotted nose to nose with old foe Arsene Wenger. Beyond cackling at social media wags editing Terry into his full England strip, as is custom after his Champions League final exploits in 2012 with Chelsea, it does prompt the question: what were they discussing? Reminiscing about their respective Premier League glory days? A fervent discussion about whether Thomas Tuchel was right to start Anthony Gordon? Or perhaps they’re chatting politics? John Terry and Arsene Wenger were seat-mates as England played Croatia in Texas last nightSTATS OF THE DAY After the heroics of Lionel Messi, 38 years young, bagging a hat-trick against Algeria on Tuesday evening, Ronaldo had a tough ask to look the fresher of the two titans of international football – both of whom are featuring at their sixth World Cup. Needless to say, the Manchester United and Real Madrid legend was unable to do one better than the diminutive Argentine. Instead, he had a game to forget as his Portugal side limped to a draw with feisty DR Congo. Personally, things also looked gloomy: with the final whistle blown, Ronaldo has now gone 10 consecutive major tournament games without scoring for his country, missing out on a total of 33 shots. 11 of those were on target. Few reasons to be cheerful for CR7 until that changes, it seems. But a second stat might prove even more unbelievable. By beating Croatia, England claimed their first World Cup finals win against an opponent inside FIFA’s top 15 in the world rankings since 2002. That’s nearly 24 years without beating a top team. The last win before victory against 11th-ranked Croatia? The Three Lions’ 1-0 defeat of Argentina in Sapporo in 2002. THREE THINGS TO LOOK OUT FOR TODAY 1. Declan Rice injury updateOne of the only blemishes on England’s brilliant 4-2 win over Croatia was the sight of an uncomfortable Declan Rice being brought off early. Afterwards Thomas Tuchel admitted he would never usually bring off the Arsenal midfielder but Jude Bellingham had to drop into central midfield to play with Elliot Anderson. He said: ‘I hope they are OK because normally I would never take Declan out, but I didn’t want to take any risk.’ITV reported that Rice limped down the tunnel and any issue that keeps him out of action would be a catastrophic blow for the Three Lions. So all eyes are on Rice and England for an injury update ahead of the second game against Ghana on Tuesday. 2. Mexican party moves to GuadalajaraThe opening game of the World Cup was a sight to behold in Mexico City and now the co-hosts will move north. There was relief at the Azteca last week but now the country has moved into full party mode. Working from home has been mandated. Schools have been closed in both Mexico City and Guadalajara. It also looks as though this game will end up deciding the group, with South Korea also winning their opener against Czechia. Whatever the result, the atmosphere on Thursday night could be one of the very best at the World Cup. Mexican fans congregate in Guadalajara ahead of their side’s clash with South Korea3. Pressure ramped up on CanadaIs this the real group of death? Canada, Qatar, Switzerland and Bosnia all shared the spoils in the opening round of fixtures. And even though the Canadians will feel they deserved more against Bosnia, the point really cranks up the pressure on a must-win game with Qatar. Qatar should have been about four or five goals down when they managed to snatch a late equaliser to stun the Swiss. But in such a tight group, Jesse Marsch will be targeting Thursday’s game in Vancouver. Will the glare of the national spotlight get to the co-hosts? As an attacking force, there’s not a huge amount to fear when Qatar roll into town having scored just twice in their last five games. A win here for Canada almost assures them a spot in the knockouts and will allow them to relax ahead of the toughest Group B game later this week against Switzerland. TODAY’S GAMES Czechia vs South Africa (5pm, Atlanta, BBC) Both teams will be keen to wipe the memory of their openers from the collective minds of their fans, with neither Czechia nor South Africa gaining a point from their matches against South Korea and Mexico respectively. For Bafana Bafana however, the sting will continue to smart in Atlanta, with two of their players – starter Yaya Sithole and 60th-minute substitute Themba Zwane – picking up red cards in the spiciest game of the tournament so far. Both Czechia and South Africa were let down by their lacklustre performances on their first match day, and neither team will want to wait until their final game of the group to earn the necessary three points that will greatly help their hopes of qualifying through to the knockout stages. It might not be pretty, but Czechia will have the edge, thanks to quality forward Patrick Schick, and hardened Premier League stalwarts Tomas Soucek and Vladimir Coufal. Prediction: Czechia win Switzerland vs Bosnia and Herzegovina (8pm, Los Angeles, ITV) In a World Cup whose early stages have been defined by somewhat shocking draws – no, that’s not an oxymoron – Switzerland were the guinea pigs, drawing late on with Qatar just moments from scooping up all three points. Having been burned once, the Swiss will be unwilling to make the same mistake twice, with Murat Yakin’s men again the overwhelming favourites. But they may still face trouble from a Bosnian side fired up by their smash-and-grab draw against Canada. Sergej Barbarez will look, as Qatar did, to capitalise on the Swiss fondness for possession, hitting on them the counter-attack as they did against the co-hosts in Toronto.But Switzerland will be in need of a statement-making win if they are to make good on their credentials as the group’s stand-out, and should see out their first win of the tournament. Prediction: Switzerland win It was bedlam in Santa Clara when Qatar stunned Switzerland with a goal in the 94th minuteCanada vs Qatar (11pm, Vancouver, ITV) With all of Group B square after matchday one, this is where things could get interesting in the hunt for qualification. Qatar will be revved up and hunting for another upset after holding Switzerland hostage to a draw in their opener, with Canada in need of the home fans to buoy them up after escaping via the same score against Bosnia and Herzegovina – despite somewhat of a chasm of quality. Julen Loteptegui and Co are again, on paper, no match for Jesse Marsch and Canada, especially with the latter’s hope of welcoming captain Alphonso Davies back into the side after a hamstring injury saw the Bayern Munich star miss out on featuring in his nation’s first match. The co-hosts will also hope that exertions against Switzerland will have placed strain on their opponents, who are in the thick of a seven-match winless run ahead of their meeting in Vancouver. Prediction: Canada win Mexico vs South Korea (2am, Guadalajara, BBC) The home crowd for Mexico’s first match against South Africa, kicking off the tournament as a whole, was so overwhelming that Daily Mail Sport’s venerable Jeff Powell MBE deemed the Azteca to be the loudest atmosphere he had ever experienced at a World Cup – of which this is his 13th. Mexico will need all their home fans in the stadium to bypass South Korea, after their eye-catching win against Czechia, which they will attempt to do without Cesar Montes, the defender who started with the armband, but earned the third red card in the chaotic opener. Instead, Mexico will have to call upon their veteran captain Edson Alvarez – a team stalwart, but by no means at peak physical fitness as he continues to play his way back from injury. But South Korea are not without their own challenges – a late goal ensured they were only millimetres from sharing the points with Czechia, and head coach Hong Myung-bo has still not got the best of the talismanic Son Heung-min. Prediction: Draw Can YOU master Craig Hope’s World Cup quiz? Test your knowledge HERE