Spain edge Uruguay in Guadalajara chaos; humble Cabo Verde advance

Manuel Ugarte had been so vital to Uruguay's aggressive pressing game against Spain that when he went down in a heap with an injury, there was chaos. The midfielder had committed himself to a tackle on Oyarzabal but came off worse.

It was just before half time and both sides were effectively a man short. But not having their forward in the final third did not hinder Spain's contingency plans as much as it did for the South Americans, who would have wanted their midfielder back in the defensive half to deal with a situation.

Spain were on the ball, and Alex Baena found himself in an unusual position inside the box, with an opportunity to shoot. He shot, and a fumble from the usually reliable Fernando Muslera gave Spain a 42nd-minute goal. Ugarte, who had recovered from a shambolic performance against Cabo Verde, was incidentally the 'fall' guy again.

Luis de la Fuente's Spain had to dig deep after scoring the only goal of the match. While Spain secured three points to top Group H, Uruguay crashed out. The unlikely early exit of the former champions meant the humble islanders of Cabo Verde advanced with a goalless draw against Saudi Arabia. They will face World Champions Argentina in the round of 32 in Miami on July 4.

Ugarte's injury, which required him to be stretchered off soon after the goal, had disrupted Uruguay's organisation. The South Americans had frustrated their illustrious European opposition until then. Spain's star man, Lamine Yamal, had been kept silent by a fearless Mathias Olivera while the rest of Marcelo Bielsa's side pressed heavily throughout the pitch.

All it took was one unplanned event to ruin Uruguay's game plan. 

Uruguay did not press with the same intensity in the second half; it seemed like they had run out of steam. But as the game ticked on, frustration crept in, and after an appeal for a penalty was turned down in the 90th minute, there was utter chaos. Augustin Canobbio was given a straight red for a sliding tackle on Pau Cubarsi.

By minute 56, Bielsa had lost faith in his skipper, Federico Valverde. Bielsa, who is called 'El Loco' (the madman), had substituted Muslera and placed Sergio Rochet in goal at half time. It was arguably a rash decision, just like everything else that transpired in their plan since going behind. Uruguay had a plan until they went behind, and it was effective. Only if Ugarte had not suffered an untimely injury!