Noon ET, Uruguay 3, Russia 0: Uruguay has crashed Russia’s surprise soccer party.
Uruguay beat Russia 3-0 on Monday in their 2018 FIFA World Cup Group A finale. The South Americans finish atop the Group A standings with the victory, while Russia falls to second place.
Uruguay striker Luis Suarez opened the scoring after just 10 minutes with this ingeniousness free kick.
World Cup debutante Diego Laxalt gave Uruguay a 2-0 lead in the 23rd minute when his shot deflected off Russia’s Denis Cheryshev for an own goal.
Chryshev’s own goal was just the latest example of the ongoing defensive misfortune we’ve seen in World Cup 2018.
Russia’s comeback hopes were dented in the 36th minute when the referee showed Igor Smolnikov his second yellow card of the game as punishment for his foul on Laxalt.
Russia played slightly better with 10 men but never really looked like troubling Uruguay during the second half.
Edinson Cavani put the finishing touches on the win with this 90th-minute goal, his first at this World Cup.
The margin of Uruguay’s victory reflects its superiority over Russia on balance of play.
Here are two reasons why the result was historic.
Man of the match: Suarez’s strike earned him MOTM honors for the second time in three World Cup 2018 games and further cemented his place in his country’s World Cup lore.
Next up: Uruguay will face Group B’s runner-up at 2 p.m. ET on Saturday in the Round of 16. Russia will play the winner of Group B at 10 a.m. ET on Sunday in the Round of 16.
