It was a stunning finish as the substitute opened his left foot to divert the ball into the corner after a powerful run from Wilfried Singo - and it ended a 19-game unbeaten run stretching for almost two years for Ecuador. Amad was a surprise exclusion from Ivory Coast's starting line-up on their return to the World Cup for the first time in 12 years. But he made a major impact with the winner which gives them a huge chance to qualify out of Group E - which also includes Germany and Curacao - and reach the knockout stages for the first time in their history. Ecuador hit the woodwork three times but could not find a breakthrough as John Yeboah and Alan Minda struck the bar in the first half. Veteran striker Enner Valencia then hit the post from a tight angle in the second half for the South American side. It was an even game, though Ecuador did not have a shot on target until the 68th minute when Gonzalo Plata forced Ivorian keeper Yahia Fofana into a save. Ivory Coast also hit the woodwork when Nice forward Elye Wahi shot against the bar early in the second half. It looked like Ecuador, who had previously kept 12 clean sheets in 19 games under manager Sebastian Beccacece, had done enough to stifle Ivory Coast's attack including star man Yan Diomande until Amad found the winner.

The Liverpool forward - who has been hampered by injuries since completing a £125m move to Anfield in September - found the bottom corner with a thumping finish after a powerful run from the left on the half-hour mark. The goal came after linking up with strike partner Viktor Gyokeres, with the Arsenal forward holding off his marker on the halfway line before laying the ball into the path of his fellow Premier League forward. His strike doubled Sweden's advantage after Yasin Ayari had rifled a shot into the top corner after seven minutes following a sloppy piece of defending from Tunisia. The 22-year-old Brighton midfielder - who made his senior international debut while on loan at Coventry City in 2023 - refused to celebrate after becoming Sweden's youngest World Cup scorer since Tomas Brolin in 1990, with his first international goal coming against the country of his father's birth. Tunisia halved the deficit two minutes before half-time when defender Omar Rekik headed home from Hannibal Mejbri's free-kick. But Sweden hit back when Isak turned provider - first for Gyokeres on the hour mark, then again 24 minutes later when substitute Mattias Svanberg scored the fastest goal by a substitute in World Cup history, just 12 seconds after coming on. Ayari applied the gloss to a five-star performance by smashing home his second long-distance goal, and Sweden's fifth, to send Graham Potter's side top of Group F.

One of the most anticipated games in the tournament's group stages was a slow burner before developing into a second-half thriller, after the Dutch side's Premier League contingent looked to have set them on their way to an important victory. Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk and West Ham United forward Crysencio Summerville were on target before Crystal Palace's Kamada struck with a deft header to divert Koki Ogawa's effort with two minutes left and secure a draw. Ronald Koeman's side posed the greater threat in a subdued first half, with Donyell Malen the main danger, forcing three saves from Japan keeper Zion Suzuki. The game burst into life after the restart, captain Van Dijk heading the Dutch in front after 51 minutes with a precise header from Liverpool team-mate Ryan Gravenberch's cross. Japan were never out of contention and they were level six minutes later when Keito Nakamura's low shot carried too much power for Dutch keeper Bart Verbruggen. The Netherlands responded with a moment of real quality to restore their advantage after 64 minutes, Summerville cutting inside the area before sending a low drive beyond the outstretched arm of Suzuki. Japan continued to press and got their reward through Kamada, to the delight of the thousands of Samurai Blue fans who were in Dallas to support their country.

Tears streamed down the 40-year-old's face as the magnitude of what he had just achieved was starting to sink in, after his side's 0-0 draw with World Cup favourites Spain. The stands erupted and thousands of Cape Verde supporters, who had carried their team with relentless noise for 90 minutes, celebrated together - hugging, dancing, and relishing the result. On the pitch, players raced towards each other in complete joy. Even the neutrals had been swept up in the occasion - by full-time, many were celebrating too. Against European champions Spain, veteran goalkeeper Vozinha had delivered the performance of his life to earn a heroic clean sheet and the most memorable result in his country's history. "I cried because I grew up with my grandparents," said Vozinha after being awarded player of the match. "Unfortunately they were not here. They died a few years before. They were everything for me, everything for my life. "And also because of my mum. She didn't manage to be here because of the visa. Because of the money you have to pay for the visa, we didn't manage on time. I would like her to be here." He added: "Our best weapon is our unity. Regardless of the player who arrives today, or the player who is 10 or 15 years old, the way we treat our family is our greatest strength. "Everyone thought that we came here just to enjoy the World Cup, but no, we know that we have teams that we will always respect, because this is our first time, but we are here to compete, and we are here to fight for our country."

Die Mannschaft went ahead in the sixth minute with the tournament's earliest goal so far coming from a delightful curling effort from one-time England youth international Felix Nmecha after a classy Florian Wirtz touch. But they were stunned by a historic leveller from the smallest nation ever, by size and population, to take part in a World Cup. With around 155,000 inhabitants, the Caribbean island of just 171 square miles is smaller than the Isle of Man with a population the same as Huddersfield. Zurich midfielder Livano Comenencia wrote his name in Blue Wave folklore on 21 minutes with a left-footed drive from the edge of the box which deflected past Germany keeper Manuel Neuer, appearing in a fifth tournament at the age of 40 and surpassing Lothar Matthaus as his country's oldest international. Moments after Curacao striker Jurgen Locadia then had a penalty appeal waved away after nipping past Jonathan Tah, a hydration break midway through the half gave the unsettled Germans the opportunity to reset. Julian Nagelsmann's side did just that, showing fresh impetus in attack and restoring their lead after 17 minutes of parity through Nico Schlotterbeck's flashing header from Nathaniel Brown's corner to the near post. The pressure intensified and a calm penalty from Kai Havertz in the fifth minute of first-half stoppage-time - following a rash lunge on the impressive Nmecha by Riechedly Bazoer - gave the eight-time finalists breathing space. Just 69 seconds after the interval Jamal Musiala fired in an angled finish from Joshua Kimmich's neat pass to signal Germany's intent as they took control of the game. Left-back Brown lashed home a volley after a neat flick from substitute Deniz Undav, who then swept home a sixth from Kimmich's pass. The former Brighton forward, now at Stuttgart, then set up Havertz for Germany's seventh goal two minutes from time, a lovely dink over Curacao keeper Eloy Room to seal a dominant success. The victory matched their 7-1 semi-final success over Brazil in 2014 - the last time they lifted the trophy - and took them past the Selecao as the World Cup's leading scorers with 239 goals.