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Colombia win knocks Poland out of World Cup

By Reuters - Jun 25,2018 - Last updated at Jun 25,2018

Colombia's Radamel Falcao celebrates scoring his second goal against Poland at the Russia 2018 World Cup in Kazan on Sunday (Reuters photo)

Goals from Yerry Mina, Radamel Falcao and Juan Cuadrado gave Colombia a convincing 3-0 win on Sunday against Poland, which was eliminated from contention at the World Cup before its last Group H match.

Japan and Senegal, who both picked up wins in their first games, drew 2-2 earlier on Sunday and are in a battle with Colombia to qualify for the knockout stage.

Mina headed home from close range in the 40th minute when midfielder Juan Fernando Quintero caught the Poland defence off guard from a short corner with a smart clipped pass to James Rodriguez who whipped it in first time with his left foot.

Quintero's defence-splitting pass then gave captain Falcao, who missed the 2014 tournament due to injury, his first World Cup goal in the 70th minute, while Rodriguez got his second assist five minutes later when he set up Cuadrado to make it 3-0.

 

Japan play out thriller

 

Japan twice came from behind to draw 2-2 with Senegal in their World Cup Group H encounter on Sunday.

Goals from Senegal captain Sadio Mane and Moussa Wague were matched by strikes from Takashi Inui and Keisuke Honda for the Samurai Blue.

Senegal took the lead in the 11th minute when Japan goalkeeper Eiji Kawashima punched a cross into Mane's leg and the ball bounced back over the line and in, before Inui's curled finish on 34 minutes meant the sides went in level at the break.

Wague's powerful shot into the roof of the net on 64 minutes looked to have secured the points for Senegal, but Japan substitute Honda turned in a brilliant Inui pull-back with 12 minutes remaining to give the Asian side a share of the points.

The draw means both nations go into the final round of matches on four points at the top of the group.

 

England marches on

 

Harry Kane struck a hat-trick as England marched into the last 16 of the World Cup after with a record 6-1 win over a woeful Panama in its World Cup Group G match on Sunday.

The result, a record win for England in a World Cup finals match, means England qualified for the knockout stage with a game to spare, along with Belgium which also has six points. Tournament debutants Panama is eliminated along with Tunisia.

England were 5-0 up at halftime after taking full advantage of a poor Panamanian defence. A header from a corner by John Stones, a penalty from Kane and a beautiful strike from the edge of the box by Jesse Lingard set them on their way.

A Stones header from a well-worked free-kick routine and a second Kane penalty gave them a 5-0 lead going into the break.

The England captain, now the tournament's top scorer with five goals, completed his hat-trick when a shot from Ruben Loftus-Cheek deflected in off the Tottenham forward in the 62nd minute.

Kane became just the third England player to score a hat-trick in a World Cup game following Geoff Hurst in the 1966 final and Gary Lineker against Poland in the 1986 tournament.

Panama pulled a goal back in the 78th minute through Felipe Baloy — the Central American nation's first goal at a World Cup.

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