World Cup: Costa Rica advance while Italy falter; French thrash Swiss
Italy vs Costa Rica
Italy were left stunned in Recife after falling to a 1-0 defeat by lowly Group D rivals Costa Rica.
Los Ticos, who are ranked 28th on the Fifa world rankings, pulled off the shock victory over the four-time World Cup winners thanks to a 44th minute header from skipper Bryan Ruiz.
The result ensured Costa Rica's advancement to the Round of 16 - equalling their last best World Cup outing in 1990 - and condemned England to an early exit.
Italy will now square off against Uruguay on June 25 (Singapore time) to decide which of the two teams will join the Central Americans in the knockout stages.
Switzerland vs France
Elsewhere in Salvador, France underlined their credentials with an emphatic 5-2 thrashing of Switzerland in Group E.
The goal rush began in the 17th minute when Olivier Giroud rose highest to nod home a corner before Blaise Matuidi made it 2-0 barely a minute later after Valon Behrami gifted the ball to Karim Benzema with a shoddy back pass.
While Diego Benaglio stopped Benzema from making it 3-0 in the 31st minute with a penalty save, it only delayed the inevitable till the 40th minute after a rapid French counter-attack from a Swiss corner led to a tap-in for winger Mathieu Valbuena.
Benzema was to have the goal he deserved in the 67th minute when he stole in to convert this exquisite pass from Paul Pogba (with a little help from some pathetic defending by none other than Philippe Senderos).
The Real Madrid striker then capped his outstanding display by setting up Moussa Sissoko, who slotted home to complete the scoring for Les Bleus in the 73rd minute.
Despite being 5-0 down, Ottmar Hitzfeld's men didn't throw in the towel and struck late on through a long range free-kick by Blerim Dzemaili in the 81st minute.
Granit Xhaka then volleyed home a spectacular second, which would have been a fine winner on any other day, for the Swiss in the 87th minute.
However, it was too little too late for the Swiss as Didier Deschamps' Les Bleus side took a big step towards qualifying for the next round.
Honduras vs Ecuador
The day's action concluded with the other Group E match with Ecuador coming from behind to beat Honduras 2-1 in Curitiba.
Honduras, who have not scored a World Cup goal in 32 years since the 1982 tournament in Spain, took the lead in the 31st minute through Carlo Costly, who pounced on a poor Ecuadorian clearance to slam home a low drive.
However, it wasn't enough as Ecuador striker Enner Valencia reacted quickest to poach a 34th minute equaliser off a deflected cross before heading the winner from a free-kick in the 65th minute.
The result leaves Honduras' chances of advancement on tenterhooks as they face Switzerland on June 26 while a win against France should seal qualification for Ecuador.
Sources: OurMatch.net
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