DR Congo Rally Past Uzbekistan 3-1 to Reach Round of 32

Knowing that victory would significantly boost their chances of progressing as one of the tournament's best third-placed teams, the Congolese side recovered from an early setback at Atlanta Stadium with two goals from Yoane Wissa and another from Fiston Mayele.

Uzbekistan made the brighter start and took the lead in the 10th minute. Akmal Mozgovoy delivered an excellent pass into the left side of the penalty area, where Eldor Shomurodov fired a powerful left-footed strike into the top-right corner to put the Central Asian side ahead.

DR Congo thought they had equalised seven minutes later when Nathanael Mbuku found the net, but the celebrations were cut short after a VAR review ruled the goal out.

Uzbekistan held onto their slender advantage until the interval, frustrating DR Congo despite increasing pressure.

The turning point came in the 66th minute when Uzbekistan defender Abdukodir Khusanov committed a foul inside the penalty area, prompting the referee to award a penalty.

A minute later, Wissa stepped up and calmly converted from the spot, placing a right-footed effort into the bottom-right corner to level the score at 1-1.

DR Congo completed the comeback in the 77th minute through Fiston Mayele. The striker finished off a rapid counter-attack with a powerful right-footed shot from close range into the top-left corner, giving his side a 2-1 lead.

Wissa then sealed the victory late in the match. Collecting a pass from Meschack Elia outside the penalty area, the Brentford forward unleashed an excellent right-footed strike into the bottom-right corner to score his second goal of the game and make it 3-1.

The comeback victory ensured DR Congo progressed to the Round of 32, while Uzbekistan's World Cup campaign came to an end after surrendering their first-half lead.

MMR