Yerry Mina’s second-half header sent Colombia into a last-16 tie with England at the World Cup at the expense of Senegal, who lost out to Japan having received more yellow cards. Senegal spent the final 20 minutes pushing for an equaliser which would have sent the African side through – Aliou Cisse’s side were level with Japan in terms of points and goal difference, but crucially not yellow cards. Colombia had to win to be sure of their progress but with Poland beating Japan 1-0 in Volgograd, African representation at the World Cup was ended as Senegal failed to secure the point they needed.
The South Americans will face Group G runners-up England in Moscow on Tuesday, while Japan take on Belgium in Rostov-on-Don on Monday. Senegal thought they had been awarded a 16th-minute penalty after a tackle by Davinson Sanchez on Liverpool’s Sadio Mane, but the decision was correctly overturned by Champions League final referee Milorad Mazic, with VAR showing the Tottenham defender clearly touched the ball with what was a risky challenge. Former England midfielder Danny Murphy, speaking on BBC One, called the tackle “the best of the tournament”. Colombia’s chances were dealt a blow just after the half-hour mark as James Rodriguez was forced off due to injury – having missed the first game with a calf problem – four years to the day since his stunning volley against Uruguay in the 2014 World Cup.
Yerry Mina scored his second goal at the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia™ to see Colombia defeat Senegal 1-0 at Samara Arena and finish as Group H winners. In the group’s other match, Poland edged Japan 1-0 meaning Senegal and the Blue Samurai finished level on four points, however the latter became the first team in history to advance to the World Cup knockout stage on the fair play rule. The game was played evenly throughout, with few significant goal scoring chances of note. The decisive moment came when Los Cafeteros’ towering centre-back Mina leapt above his markers to head in the winning goal in the second half. But with Barcelona defender Mina’s second consecutive goal from Juan Quintero’s corner sending Colombia through as group winners, Senegal missed out having received two yellow cards more than Japan.
