Hours after Cape Verde stunned Spain there looked to be another World Cup upset on their cards in Group H until Uruguay’s late equaliser against Saudi Arabia in Miami.

A first-half goal from centre-back Abdulelah Al Amri at the Hard Rock Stadium _ after the Uruguay goalkeeper Fernando Muslera had spilled the ball into this path — put the team ranked 49th in the world temporarily top of Group H.

But with 10 minutes left to play Uruguay eventually forced a breakthrough when Maximiliano Araujo whipped a shot into the far corner after another goalkeeping mistake, this time by Mohammed Al Owais. The Saudi goalkeeper made amends late on though, with some fine saves to preserve a point. Over the course of the game, Uruguay had 21 shots at goal.

Two draws in Group H means all four teams have one point after one round of fixtures.

Michael Cox and Jacob Whitehead analyse the key talking points from Miami…

Asian sides flying out the blocks at this World Cup

For many years, the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has been something of an afterthought at men’s FIFA World Cups — having only ever had one nation, South Korea in 2002, reach the semi-finals.

When the World Cup was expanded to 48 teams, many said that the tournament’s quality would be diluted — and with the AFC’s share rising from six to nine nations, the implication was that the qualification of more Asian countries would be part of that.

Not so in North America so far. AFC countries are unbeaten in their first five games at this World Cup, earning a total of two wins and three draws — with victories for South Korea and Australia (who have competed in the AFC since 2005 to play more competitive matches) as well as impressive comebacks for both Qatar and Japan.

Saudi Arabia will host the World Cup in eight years time, with the national team’s success a major part of the government’s vision — the evolution of the AFC into a stronger confederation will only help their development.

June 11, Group A — South Korea 2-1 Czech Republic
June 13, Group B — Qatar 1-1 Switzerland
June 13, Group D — Australia 2-0 Turkey
June 14, Group E — Japan 2-2 Netherlands
June 15, Group H — Saudi Arabia 1-1 Uruguay

Jacob Whitehead

How Muslera went from zero to hero — to zero

Back before the 2022 World Cup, Fernando Muslera had been Uruguay’s undisputed No 1 for the previous three consecutive tournaments — starring in their 2010 run to the semi-final before helping them to the knockouts in both Brazil and Russia.

Come Qatar, however, and the longtime Galatasaray goalkeeper was out of favour, replaced by Sergio Rochet as Uruguay were knocked out in the group stages. Worse was to come — he was subsequently banned for four games by FIFA after being found to have assaulted match officials following Uruguay’s final game. He announced his international retirement in April 2024.

Remarkably, having enjoyed an excellent season after returning to South America to sign for Argentine side Estudiantes, the 39-year-old found himself back in goal for Uruguay’s opener against Saudi Arabia — making him the first ever Uruguay to be in five World Cup squads, and just the 12th player in history.

Initially, he appeared to show why Marcelo Bielsa was so keen to have him back in the side — making a brilliant save after 38 minutes from the unmarked Abdulelah Al Amri to keep the score goalless.

Two minutes later, however, a nightmare. Hassan Al Tambakti headed another Saudi Arabian set-piece strongly towards goal, Muslera spilled the simple catch… and Al Amri was there to tap the ball in.

(REUTERS/Amanda Perobelli)

Eight years of waiting — to unfold like that.

Jacob Whitehead

How did Bielsa fix things for Uruguay?

So far, Group H isn’t quite what anyone expected. Two favourites and two underdogs? Not quite.

After Spain failed to break down Cape Verde, Uruguay had to settle for a point against Saudi Arabia. Marcelo Bielsa’s side were wretched in the first half, but much improved after half-time.

Uruguay dominated possession in the opening period of this match, but were desperately struggling for creativity. Their midfield three of Manuel Ugarte, Rodrigo Bentancur and Federico Valverde offers physically and tenacity, but didn’t offer anyone looking to receive the ball between the lines. Ugarte dropped into defence to allow Uruguay’s full-backs to push on, Valverde tried getting some combinations going down the flanks, but Uruguay didn’t look like creating anything in open play.

With the wingers staying high, and Darwin Nunez barely involved, Uruguay were flat and uninspired for long periods of the first half.

Bielsa took drastic action at half-time, making a double substitution. The main story was that he jettisoned Nunez and introduced Agustin Canobbio in his place — although he actually played on the right, with Federico Vinas moving infield to lead the line.

Nunez makes way at half-time for Uruguay (IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters/Sam Navarro)

This improved Uruguay immeasurably. Vinas had two good headed efforts shortly after half-time, the second from a Cannobio cross. Uruguay made inroads down that right flank, taking advantage of the fact 34-year-old Saudi Arabia captain and left-winger Salem Al Dawsari isn’t the most diligent player defensively. Valverde, as he does so effectively for Real Madrid, drifted to the right and played some dangerous balls into the box.

As it happens, the equaliser eventually came from a left-wing cross — Vinas had his third good headed effort of the second half, which was saved, and Maxi Araujo slammed in the rebound. It was his final contribution before being substituted.

But it is Nunez who will fear for his place ahead of the game against Cape Verde — Vinas was a much better option up front.

Michael Cox

Spain were in an extremely happy place, until Monday.

It’s been all smiles and jokes in their build-up to the World Cup: injured players such as Lamine Yamal and Nico Williams recovered from injury sooner than initially expected, the chemistry and vibes looked better than ever and the vast majority of the squad publicly accepted Spain should be regarded as top contenders to win the competition.

It all evaporated as the final whistle was blown in Atlanta and a World-Cup debutant team denied them victory. Cape Verde’s defiance, and the heroics of 40-year-old goalkeeper Vozinha in particular, will be remembered for some time in Spain. The next week in the United States will give Spain plenty of food for thought.

The mood among players in the mixed zone was telling. The optimism and euphoria were gone. Players trudged out of the stadium with their eyes fixed on the floor, not even entertaining the thought of engaging with questions. Goalkeeper Unai Simon and striker Mikel Oyarzabal were the only Spain players who spoke after the game.

“This is a result nobody was counting on, we are expected to win against Cape Verde,” admitted Simon. “They were rock solid at the back and we lacked a bit of efficiency up front.”

Oyarzabal urged the team not to let the result hit their confidence. “We have to stay as calm as we were yesterday,” he said. “This is the time to trust in ourselves more than ever. We have a solid group.”

It was an unusual Spanish performance. They were slow and predictable in possession and their strongest qualities over the past two years under Luis De la Fuente faded in Atlanta. Oyarzabal, who had registered 12 goals in his previous 11 games for Spain, had not touched the ball by the 30th-minute mark.

After the game, the focus was on Spain’s wings and the lack of attacking threat they had on multiple levels.

Yamal and Williams were available but not fit enough to start and play the full game.

So badly did the team miss Yamal that De la Fuente decided to accelerate the 18-year-old’s return to the side, bringing him on in the 71st minute, earlier than planned.

The good news for Spain was that he came through that test unscathed. Walking through the mixed zone after the game, Yamal said he was feeling “perfect, with no problem.”

Yamal’s arrival gave Spain another gear. He sent in seven crosses, the second-most in the game despite playing little more than 20 minutes. Yamal still looked a bit rusty, though, understandable given this was his first game of football since April 22. Williams came in at the 87th minute and barely had an impact.

Spain’s hopes of going far in this competition rest on Yamal and Williams being fit and sharp when it really matters. After the Cape Verde draw, it’s difficult to envisage Yamal not starting on Sunday against Saudi Arabia.

Gavi was the surprise pick in the starting line-up and although he was not the worst player on the pitch, that call did not work out well for De la Fuente. On the right flank, Ferran Torres had a forgettable display. The lack of wing-threat forced left-back Marc Cucurella to become Spain’s best weapon with his runs from deep. And that is not a good sign.

Ferran Torres struggled against a packed Cape Verde defence (Mattia Ozbot/Getty Images)

A week of reflection and self-questioning is incoming. There have even been hints in Spanish media that some are questioning the tactical fit of the midfield, and whether Fabian Ruiz and Pedri can play effectively together. Pedri was used in an attacking midfield role, a more offensive position compared to the deep-lying playmaker role he occupies for Barcelona. That deeper spot was reserved for Ruiz, who did not have his best game. Dani Olmo and Mikel Merino are candidates to shake things up.

And there is still a positive lens through which to look at this performance. Parallels can be drawn with the 2010 World Cup, when Spain started with a 1-0 defeat to Switzerland and ended up winning the competition. In fact, Spain have only won the first match at three of their last 15 tournaments (with five draws and seven defeats).

In 2022, world champions Argentina were beaten in their opening game by Saudi Arabia. A wake-up call can be handy in a competition like this — and that is the message De la Fuente needs to communicate to his players.

Spain have a lot to play for and they are still the best team in their group. With wins over Saudi Arabia and Uruguay they should top Group H and go through to the next round as group winners.

Cape Verde was a lesson. Now Spain need to show that they have learned it, and that they have what it takes to become champions.