Nicolas Pépé flicked home his first goal in Philadelphia, and with it sent Côte d’Ivoire into the World Cup knockout stage for the first time in their history. The 2-0 victory over Curaçao, sealed by the former Arsenal winger’s brace, was underwhelming in performance yet monumental in consequence. The Ivorians finished as Group E runners-up, finally escaping a group stage that had eluded them through generations of talented but underachieving sides.
“Celebrate this historic qualification, like we should,” manager Emerse Faé told his compatriots afterwards. “Once we’re done celebrating, we want to go as far as possible in this competition. This is a young group. They’re all at their first ever World Cup. They’re playing well. There is a lot of solidarity in this group.”
“Nicolas Pépé scores twice as Côte d’Ivoire beat Curaçao 2-0 to reach World Cup knockout stage for the first time.”
The match itself was an imprecise contest, played in the cradle of American democracy. Curaçao, making their World Cup debut, had proved surprisingly competitive throughout the group stage. They equalised against Germany in their opener before being hammered 7-1, then played out a spirited 0-0 with Ecuador in which goalkeeper Eloy Room made 15 saves – the most at a World Cup since 2014 and the most on record in a game without extra time. But against the Ivorians, the Blue Wave could not summon one more upset, and they leave their first World Cup with a whimper.
For Côte d’Ivoire, the achievement is a long time coming. A nation that has produced excellent players for years, they were stuck in the upper-middle class of global football. The tournament’s expansion from 32 to 48 teams has opened the door for underdogs like Curaçao, but it has also allowed established sides such as the Elephants to finally break through. Now they head to the last 32, a young squad with nothing to lose – and everything to gain.