Manchester United’s Facundo Pellistri was involved in Uruguay’s win over Ghana in their final group game, but it wasn’t enough to send the South Americans through to the knockout stage of the tournament.
It was an action-packed first half. Uruguayan goalkeeper Rochet brought Kudus down in the box, and after a lengthy VAR check, Ghana were awarded a penalty.
Andre Ayew stepped up and his soft penalty was easily saved by Rochet, who dove to his left.
At the other end, Núñez thought he had made the breakthrough for Uruguay when he dismissed him over the goalkeeper, but Ghana defended him from the line.
However, it wasn’t long before they took the lead, De Arrascaeta finishing with a header after Suárez’s opening shot was saved by the keeper.
On the other hand, De Arrascaeta with a brilliant volley put Uruguay in control and they went up 2-0.
With South Korea still losing to Portugal at this point, it looked like Uruguay might be in the lead with the Portuguese.
In the second half Ghana came out fighting but Uruguay also had their chances and the drama continued when Uruguay had a shout out from a penalty. Núñez was brought down this time and although VAR called the referee to the monitor, he decided that the Ghanaian defender had won the ball.
Pellistri’s last act of the match was a brilliant third-goal chance when the ball fell to him in the box, but his controlled shot went wide and found the side of the net.
Although the 20-year-old had had a pretty good game on the surface, his passing accuracy was poor, with only 69% of his passes being completed. He won only a third of his ground duels and none of his aerial duels.
However, he was an exciting player to watch as he tried to get as involved as possible, making some key tackles and good long ball deliveries going forward.
The Uruguayan coach removed his scorer De Arrascaeta, Suárez and Núñez, thinking that he had done enough and proposed more defensive alternatives, but the news leaked that South Korea had scored. It was 2-1 for them against Portugal.
Luis Suárez was practically crying on the bench as he watched the big screen. This meant that South Korea would go through as Korea and Uruguay had the same points and goal difference, but Korea had scored more.
Ex-Red Edinson Cavani had a golden opportunity to find the third, but the Ghanaian keeper pulled off a world-class save but landed awkwardly. He would have been declared offside, but he couldn’t know that.
South Korea waited patiently as eight minutes of added time ticked away with Ghana chasing two goals and Uruguay looking for that crucial third that would send them out.
A last-minute free kick was handily saved and when the final whistle was blown, the Uruguayan players surrounded the referee and officials with several of them, including Cavani, being booked.
It was a dramatic conclusion for Group H.
