Colombia beat Senegal 1-0 on Thursday afternoon to advance into the last 16 of the World Cup.
Colombia sneaked into the last 16 of the World Cup on Thursday afternoon with a narrow 1-0 win over Senegal, advancing via their superior disciplinary record.
Jose Pekerman’s men gave themselves work to do after a 2-1 defeat to Japan to open their campaign, but after hammering Poland 3-0, they went into a showdown with Senegal over a last 16 spot.
The two sides could have both gone through with a draw if Japan lost to Poland, and whilst Poland did win 1-0, Colombia dumped Senegal out of the competition as Yerry Mina thumped a header home from Juan Fernando Quintero’s corner.
Later in the night, England’s 1-0 defeat to Belgium handed Colombia a last 16 matchup with the Three Lions, and that game will certainly mean a lot to defender Davinson Sanchez.
Sanchez, 22, was joining Ajax from Atletico Nacional just two years ago, but is now a Premier League star with Tottenham Hotspur following a big-money move last summer, and is the key man in Colombia’s defence.
On Tuesday, he will be going up against Spurs teammate Harry Kane, but he already shackled one Premier League start with one of the moments of the World Cup on Thursday afternoon.
Senegal and Liverpool ace Sadio Mane broke into the box and looked set to score, only for Sanchez to produce a miraculous last-ditch challenge, and whilst it was initially given as a penalty, VAR helped overturn that decision, meaning Sanchez’s tackle was vital to their 1-0 win.
Tottenham fans took to Twitter after the challenge to praise Sanchez as a ‘hero’ for shackling Mane, praising him as a top talent, and a star of the future, hailing him for producing the tackle of the World Cup so far.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
