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I’ll leave you with our match report from Nizhny Novgorod. Thanks for your company, goodnight!
In the other Group E game, Brazil did the necessary against Serbia and will face Mexico in the last 16 on Monday afternoon.
Full time: Switzerland 2-2 Costa Rica
That was a lively, engaging game of football, even if it was apparent early on that the result was unlikely to matter. Costa Rica were terrific and deserved at least a point. Switzerland got what they came for – a point that confirms their place in the last 16. They will face Sweden on Tuesday.
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GOAL! Switzerland 2-2 Costa Rica (Sommer own goal 90+3 min)
Bryan Ruiz, with what is almost certainly his last kick at a World Cup, steps up - and he scores! Well, kind of. The penalty hit the underside of the bar, rebounded onto the back of Sommer and into the net. It’ll go down as an own goal.
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PENALTY TO COSTA RICA!
90+2 min This referee seems determined to give Costa Rica a penalty. Campbell goes over after a challenge from Zakaria and a penalty is given. It’s a bit soft, that - if anything Campbell fouled Zakaria.
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90+1 min When it comes to offsides, VAR has worked almost perfectly. The rest of it, not so much.
VAR: NO PENALTY TO COSTA RICA
Yes, the decision has been overturned. I’m not sure it was a foul either.
90 min Waston was also booked for shoving the referee from behind as he appealed for a penalty. I think the decision is going to be overturned because Bryan Ruiz was offside when he received the ball in the aea.
PENALTY TO COSTA RICA!
89 min Bryan Ruiz goes down in the area and the referee gives a penalty. It looked a bit soft but we haven’t seen a replay.
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That was a fine finish. Zakaria played a low ball into the box from the right, and when Acosta slipped it allowed Drmic to run onto the ball and curl a classy first-time shot into the corner.
GOAL! Switzerland 2-1 Costa Rica (Drmic 88)
Josep Drmic has won it for Switzerland!
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87 min “Rodney Wallace coming on,” says Rachel Clifton, “is giving me some severe Southampton nostalgia.”
Wait till you see Colombia’s rugged right-winger, Tommy Widdrington.
86 min “Thanks, Karl Lindgren, for including the Netherlands among the giants,” says Jan Karremans. “But that’s too much honor for us, these days.”
84 min Borges’s cross is headed away superbly under pressure by Lichtsteiner, who is clattered by Wallace in the process. That was great defending.
83 min Schar is booked for pulling back the superb Campbell. It’s a slightly harsh booking, which means he’ll also miss the Sweden game in the last 16.
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81 min Switzerland make their final change, with Michael Lang replacing Xherdan Shaqiri. And Costa Rica bring on Rodney Wallace for the excellent Daniel Colindres.
79 min After a terrific, shambling run from Campbell, Borges’s fierce strike is beaten away by Sommer.
78 min Drmic hits the post! It was a thumping header from Embolo’s flat cross, and it clattered off the top of the post before Navas had chance to dive.
77 min “Dear Rob,” says Karl Lindgren. “Sweden are a bit of an enigma. They are ranked number 23, with no transcendent stars and no strikers to speak of – an average also-ran if there ever was one. Yet, what team has slain more giants on the way to the 16 than the Ssons? Netherlands, Italy, Germany – yes, I am aware they lost to Germany... give an expat Swede a break!”
With the way the draw is, they could get to the semis. They are so solid defensively. It wouldn’t surprise me if they beat Switzerland and then took Belgium or England to penalties in the quarters.
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75 min Zakaria is booked for pulling back Gamboa.
73 min The match is petering out now. I don’t know what else to say, because there’s nothing of note to report.
70 min Brazil have gone 2-0 up against Serbia. That means Switzerland are going through to the last 16, where they will almost certainly meet Sweden.
69 min Another Switzerland change: Mario Gavranovic is replaced by Josip Drmic.
68 min Nothing much to report. Costa Rica are still pushing hard for a consolation victory; Switzerland are experiencing the age-old stick/twist dilemma.
64 min Costa Rica look the likelier winners. Switzerland have been a bit pedestrian going forward for most of the game.
60 min A Switzerland substitution: Denis Zakaria replaces Valon Behrami.
60 min An unexpected feature of this tournament has been rousing farewell performances from teams who have already been eliminated: Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Costa Rica, Peru and of course Korea. I know Korea could technically have gone through today but it was pretty unlikely.
57 min There’s no need for Switzerland to worry just yet – they only need a draw to go through, and even a defeat will be fine if Brazil maintain their lead against Serbia.
GOAL! Switzerland 1-1 Costa Rica (Waston 56)
Kendall Waston scores Costa Rica’s first goal of the tournament! Campbell swerved a right-wing corner towards the six-yard line, where Waston shoved Akanji aside and flicked an accomplished header into the corner.
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54 min Campbell’s cross is nodded down smartly by Colindres for Oviedo, who lashes the bouncing ball over the bar. It wouldn’t come down quickly enough for him. It was another lovely move, though. Costa Rica have played some really neat attacking football.
52 min Shaqiri plays a superb angled pass into the area to find Embolo, whose shot from a very tight angle is beaten away by Navas.
50 min As things stand, Switzerland will play Sweden in the last 16 on Tuesday.
49 min Rodriguez wallops a fine shot just over the bar from 25 yards.
48 min Campbell misses an excellent chance to equalise! A corner was only half cleared and dumped back into the area by Borges. It was dummied cleverly by Waston, allowing it to run to Campbell, but he sliced it well wide on the half-volley.
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47 min Oviedo is lucky not to be booked for a kick at Shaqiri.
47 min “Was there another keeper as physically imposing yet capable of the darndest feline-like acrobatics as Schmeichel?” says Phil Podolsky. “Besides Neuer, I mean, whose howler doesn’t mean he is suddenly not the best in the world.”
I can’t think of anyone, no. He really was an elastic beast.
46 min Peep peep! Costa Rica begin the second half.
Half time: Switzerland 1-0 Costa Rica
Peep peep! Despite a torrid start to the match, this dogged Switzerland side are on course for the last 16. See you in 10 minutes for the second half.
42 min A neat move from Costa Rica. Ruiz feeds an excellent pass into Campbell, who moves it across to Colindres. He has a great chance to play in Borges on the right of the area, but he overhits the pass.
41 min Costa Rica have faded a little after that terrific start. Switzerland have them under control at the moment.
37 min Lichtsteiner is booked for a late tackle on Colindres. That’s bad news for Switzerland, as it means he’ll miss their match in the last 16. The resulting free-kick is swung towards the far post and just past the stretching Waston.
36 min More good news for Switzerland: Paulinho has given Brazil the lead against Serbia.
33 min Dzemaili almost gets his second. Gavranovic touched the ball back to the edge of the area, where Dzemaili ran onto the ball and hit a fierce shot that deflected wide off Gonzalez.
That was a well-constructed goal. Lichtsteiner’s deep cross was headed down superbly by Embolo into the path of Dzemaili, who battered it into the net from eight yards.
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GOAL! Switzerland 1-0 Costa Rica (Dzemaili 31)
Switzerland take the lead against the run of play.
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29 min Campbell holds off Akanji, who goes down holding his face. Campbell is booked. That seems a bit harsh - he did catch him with his arm but he was only trying to hold him off.
28 min If only Costa Rica had been able to start with this front three in the first two games. They have been really splendid.
26 min “I’m just off to play the hottest, sweatiest game of indoor 5-a-side, so is there any way you could stop any massive drama from happening?” pleads Matt Dony. “Or, at least, simply not report on it? The FOMO is real. (I will be trying very, very hard to Nacho one into the far corner.)”
24 min Another chance for the dangerous Colindres, whose attempted Thierry Henry finish from the left side of the box is crucially blocked by Akanji. I think that was going in.
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22 min Switzerland will be grateful that it’s still 0-0; they could easily be 3-0 down.
20 min Campbell and Colindres have made such a difference to this Costa Rica team. They combine nicely again before Colindres, on the left edge of the box, cuts across a wicked left-footed shot that is palmed round by the diving Sommer. That’s another mighty fine save.
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18 min As things stand, Switzerland will play Sweden on Tuesday: the immovable object versus the immovable object.
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17 min A loose ball is picked up by Gavranovic, who curls a low shot wide from 20 yards. Navas has it covered.
13 min Switzerland look a bit startled by the spectacular attacking verve of Costa Rica. They need to slow the game down for a bit and restore some order.
10 min Colindres hits the bar with a brilliant effort! Costa Rica have started this match brilliantly and have already hit the woodwork twice. Colindres nicked the ball off Shaqiri down the left and cut inside on his right foot. He saw Sommer slightly off his line and curled a booming shot that beat the keeper and clattered off the underside of the bar.
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9 min That save from Sommer gets better every time you see it. It was reminscent of Peter Schmeichel’s famous save against Rapid Vienna in 1996.
7 min Costa Rica look busy and dangerous. Colindres, found by Bryan Ruiz, crashes a good shot just over the bar from 20 yards. Sommer had it covered.
6 min Sommer makes a stunning double save! The first, from Campbell’s shot, was good; the second was exceptional. Borges’s superb downward header was going in the corner before Sommer changed direction, dived full length to his right and somehow brushed it onto the post. That might be the save of the tournament.
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5 min Campbell twists Rodriguez’s blood on the right of the box and clips the ball across goal. It brushes the outstretched hand of Rodriguez, who was falling over, and Xhaka clears. There was no VAR reivew, though I’d like to see that again.
4 min Brilliant play from Shaqiri, who nutmegs Oviedo and cuts the ball back to Gavranovic, whose snapshot is blocked by Gonzalez.
2 min Embolo is fouled 25 yards from goal, a long way to the left of centre. Shaqiri belts a low cross that flashes past Gavranovic and out for a goalkick.
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1 min Peep peep! Switzerland, in red, get the match under way. Costa Rica are in white.
The players emerge from the tunnel to the familiar bassline of Seven Nation Army. Switzerland’s players look stern and focussed.
Weird stat of the day Four of the last five World Cup winners have gone out at the group stage of the next tournament.
An email “Maybe we shouldn’t gloat so much about Germany,” says Hubert O’Hearn. “If memory serves, they didn’t react very well after that 1938 first round defeat.”
It’s worth repeating Germany are out of the World Cup. Germany are out of the World Cup. Germany are out of the World Cup.
Also in Group E... Should you inexplicably deem it a more exciting or important match, you can follow Serbia v Brazil with the marvellous and marvellously bald Paul Doyle.
Some pre-match reading
Team news
Switzerland (4-2-3-1) Sommer; Lichtsteiner, Schar, Akanji, Rodriguez; Behrami, Xhaka; Shaqiri, Dzemaili, Embolo; Gavranovic.
Costa Rica (3-4-2-1) Navas; Acosta, Waston, Gonzalez; Gamboa, Borges, Guzman, Oviedo; Bryan Ruiz, Colindres; Campbell.
Referee Clement Turpin (France).
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Preamble
The World Cup? Bloody hell. Germany’s stunning elimination confirms that this is the most unpredictable tournament since at least 2002. As in that tournament, there’s a great chance for an outsider to make the semi-finals, which for a smaller country is the equivalent of winning it.
Switzerland won’t want to get too far ahead of themselves – they still need to qualify from their group – but they are one of maybe 10 smaller teams who have the chance to become immortal in their own country by reaching the last four. They should certainly be aiming higher than the usual low-key exit in the last 16.
In a sense, Switzerland have been the team of the tournament – not the best team, but the team that best represents the tactics and themes of this open competition. They have a defence that could have been organised by George Graham, a resourceful, intelligent attack and no fear of superior opponents.
Switzerland deserved to draw 1-1 with Brazil in their first game, before stealing that dramatic 2-1 win over Serbia. Xherdan Shaqiri’s injury-time winner changed everything in Group E, and means that Switzerland only need a draw against Costa Rica to reach the last 16, where they would face Sweden or Mexico.
Costa Rica, who have no points and no goals in the tournament, have nothing to play for except pride. The Swiss could even go through with a defeat, if Brazil beat Serbia. Ordinarily you’d think that was likely. But in this tournament, it’s unwise to assume too much.
Kick off is at 7pm BST, 9pm in Nizhny Novgorod.
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