Cape Verde provide another shock in draw against Uruguay

Both sides may have drawn their opening Group H encounters, but the morale would have been unquestionably higher in the Tubaroes Azuis camp after holding Spain last time out. Uruguay were looking to gather some momentum after a lacklustre 1-1 draw with Saudi Arabia, and had the game’s first real chance when Federico Valverde fired wide from a tight angle after being picked out by Agustin Canobbio. 

However, what followed was a seismic moment in the history of Cape Verdean football.

Kevin Pina stood over a free-kick from well outside the area, unleashing a ferocious strike which went through Uruguay’s two-man wall and flew past a stunned Fernando Muslera. It was their first-ever goal at a WC finals, sparking pandemonium in the stands and leaving the Uruguayans shell-shocked.

But Marcelo Bielsa’s side completely turned the game on its head before HT. Maximiliano Araujo restored parity by reacting quickest to nod in the loose ball, after Sidny Lopes Cabral’s attempted clearance cannoned off the post.

La Celeste then moved into the lead when Araújo headed Manuel Ugarte’s searching cross into the path of Canobbio to fire home in first-half stoppage time.

La Celeste hoped to push on following the restart, but Tubaroes Azuis managed to get back on level terms after a Uruguayan defensive disaster. Mathias Olivera’s pass was intercepted by Helio Varela, who took the ball past a stranded Muslera and coolly slotted the ball into an empty net to score his first international goal.

The two-time WC winners were rattled, and Jamiro Monteiro almost scored a stunning third for Cape Verde when his long-range strike grazed the roof of the net. This topsy-turvy clash looked like taking another twist after Araujo reacted to Vozinha’s error to convert from close range, but the effort was disallowed for offside. 

Despite some late pressure from the South Americans, Bubista’s side claimed another hard-earned point. They can now look forward to facing Saudi Arabia in their final group game next Saturday with genuine hopes of reaching the knockout stages, while Uruguay face the daunting task of taking on a Spain side that has rediscovered their mojo in their quest to avoid an embarrassing elimination at the first hurdle.

Flashscore Man of the Match: Maximiliano Araujo (Uruguay)

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