NEPAL NEWS

With four points, Hungary are already guaranteed at least third spot and qualification as a best third place team. They will top the group with a win and can also do so with a draw, provided Iceland do not beat Austria by two goals or more.Portugal will also qualify if they win and will top the group unless Iceland win by a larger margin. Still following? It gets complicated if Portugal and Iceland both draw. In that scenario, Portugal can only finish second if they score more goals than Iceland this evening. In the event of a 1-1 draw for Portugal and a 0-0 for Iceland, it will go down to the sides’ fair play ranking.

Chile has long been known for its pressing style, but against Mexico, it wasn’t just the habit of defending high up the field that upset El Tri. The attack went from standing still to warp speed. Whenever Chile won the ball in its own half, it looked to exploit Mexico’s high line. An Arturo Vidal long ball found Edson Puch in the clear in the 10th minute, and only a fantastic desperation tackle from Nestor Araujo saved the day.

Chile’s ability to switch the point of attack with long passes also proved troublesome, especially when it resulted in attacking Mexico’s left flank that was defended by attack-minded full-back Miguel Layun.

Of course, it helps to have a star such as Alexis Sanchez on your team as well, and he proved instrumental in orchestrating both of Chile’s first-half goals. His diagonal run into the space behind Layun saw him collect Gary Medel’s pass. For a moment, the danger seemed to be averted, but Sanchez picked out the late-arriving Marcelo Diaz. His shot was saved by Mexico goalkeeper Memo Ochoa, but Puch was on hand to slot home the rebound.