WORLD CUP 2022
What Uruguay needs to qualify for the World Cup round of 16: all possible outcomes
Seen as one of the dark horses of the tournament, they will try to make it to the knockout phase, but what do they need?
One of the teams tipped to cause a positive impact on the World Cup was Uruguay, a solid team that has achieved good results under coach Diego Alonso, but which has disappointed in their opening two games at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
In their opener, La Celeste failed to find the back of the net against South Korea, a hard-fought battle that could have gone Uruguay’s way in the last minutes of the match. Despite being the favorites against the Asians, the clash ended in a goalless draw, which made their game vs. Portugal somewhat crucial.
However, the Uruguay fans suffered another blow after their team’s defeat to Portugal, who grabbed the three points thanks to a Bruno Fernandes brace.
Uruguay: how can they qualify?
The South American team is now in trouble. Sitting bottom of the group with only one point, tied with South Korea, who also lost in their second game vs. Ghana (2-3). However, Luis Suárez, Edinson Cavani, Federico Valderde & co. will still have the last chance to qualify in the third game of the group stage.
If Los Charrúas don’t want to go back home earlier than expected, they must to win their next game vs. Ghana, who are sitting second with three points.
If Uruguay beat the African side, they will also need for South Korea not to beat Portugal. If, however, the Asian side did win, the goal difference would be the immediate factor that would decide who takes the second spot in the group. Uruguay start with a -2 goal deficit, while South Korea are on -1, so the Asians have the edge here.
As we have seen in recent days, when the points and goal differences align, things get a lot more complicated, so we have a handy guide to take you through the other potential permutations.