Portugal, Brazil, grab victories in exciting Day 9 matchups

DOHA – Day 9 at the World Cup was once again one that had quite the climactic build up.

With a full slate of Group H and G play, there were some exciting matchups to be had. 

The morning was kicked off with a 3-3 draw between Cameroon and Serbia. The Cameroonians struck first by way of Jean-Charles Castelletto in just the 29th minute. But Serbia quickly grabbed a hold of the reins headed into the break with a pair of first half stoppage time goals. 

Serbia used that momentum to come out scorching in the second half as they came out pressing. Aleksander Mitrovic gave the Serbs the go-ahead goal in just the 53rd minute. 

But the Cameroonians were not ready to move over just yet. Vincent Aboubakar cut the deficit to just one in the 63rd minute, before Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting evened the tide at three apiece just three minutes later. And three apiece is how this one would end as Cameroon gave the Serbians quite a surprise in what turned out to be a very even matchup. Serbia had the edge in possession, holding 60% to Cameroon’s 40%, with the latter outshooting the Serbians on target 8-5. 

South Korea fell to the hands of Ghana, with two goals from Mohammed Kudus ultimately sealing the fate of the South Koreans who have a tough road ahead if they want any chance of sniffing the knockout stage. 

The tournament favourites in Brazil easily disposed of the Swiss in a 1-0 victory, as their Portuguese speaking counterparts dispatched of Uruguay in a 2-0 victory. Despite Cristiano Ronaldo being the star of their tournament opener, it was his former Manchester United teammate Bruno Fernandes who stole the show in this one, scoring in the 54th minute and in stoppage time, to help secure the victory. Portugal remains atop the table as the only team in their group with two victories in their two matches played.