馃嚦馃嚘NamibiaSouthern Africa
Algeria and Austria advance to World Cup knockouts after 3-3 draw
via The Namibian3 min read
Algeria and Austria secured their places in the World Cup knockout rounds following a thrilling 3-3 draw in Kansas City. Riyad Mahrez scored what appeared to be a late winner for Algeria, but substitute Sasa Kalajdzic equalized for Austria in stoppage time. Both teams finished Group J with four points, behind Argentina, who topped the group with nine points. Austria reaches the knockout rounds for the first time since 1982, while Algeria matches their 2014 World Cup performance. Algeria will face Switzerland in the round of 32, and Austria will play European champions Spain. Marcel Sabitzer, who scored Austria's second goal, described the closing moments as "weird." Mahrez, named man of the match, expressed his delight at scoring his first World Cup goal and helping his team qualify for only the second time in their history. The match saw Marko Arnautovic open the scoring for Austria, followed by Rafik Belghali's equalizer for Algeria. Sabitzer and Mahrez then exchanged goals before Kalajdzic's dramatic late header, which eliminated Iran from the tournament.
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This summary was AI-generated from a story originally published by The Namibian.
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