…after 2-0 win over Curacao
Nicolas Pepe opened the scoring in the first half after fine work from teenage talent Yan Diomande.
Pepe then made sure of victory midway through the second half.
The win sends Ivory Coast through as Group E runners-up. Ecuador upset Germany in the other match.
There is no Curacao consolation. Shame.
They did very, very well to recover from the shell shock of that 7-1 defeat by Germany to take a point from Ecuador and give Ivory Coast a decent game. Not bad at all for a collection of players from second tiers and smaller leagues across Europe, and the smallest nation to qualify for a World Cup.
Scenes of joy and despair inside Lincoln Financial Field as Ivory Coast’s players pose for a team photo, huge smiles plastered across their faces.
It’s a different story for Curacao’s players, who look distraught. They desperately wanted to leave this World Cup with a victory, but they can be proud of their performance today, and in grabbing a historic draw against Ecuador earlier in the tournament.
