Türkiye 0 – 1 Paraguay

In an emotional encounter in San Francisco, Turkey were sent packing early in the World Cup and were beaten 1-0 by defeated Paraguay after also suffering at the hands of Australia.

As a result, Türkiye, one of the pre-tournament dark horses, joined Haiti through the exit door as soon as possible. They failed to score a goal despite a combined 62 attempts – the most in the competition’s history without a goal spanning two matches.

Throughout 180 minutes of uncomfortable football, Vincenzo Montella, who was booked on the night, could only watch as his side squandered chance after chance. Orlando Gill made five saves to deny the likes of Kenan Yildiz, Can Uzun and Deniz Gul. Painfully, nothing will stick. They are the second team to be eliminated.

Paraguay, meanwhile, are very much alive and kicking in Group D. They were forced to play the entire second half with 10 after Miguel Almiron was sent off just before the break, penalized by VAR in a new rule designed to add more clarity and fairness to the game. Almiron covered his face with Mart Muldur, the video officers saw.

And after on-field referee Evan Barton was sent to the screen to review the incident, the result was inevitable.

The game-winner came long before the tie, in fact 65 seconds later, when Matias Galarza struck from range for the fastest goal of the tournament so far. Paraguay were hostile, sharing just 22 per cent possession but enough defensive noses to protect their lead with one player less.

Their tournament fortunes will come down to the final round of group-stage matches, where they will face Australia in a direct battle for second place. Hosts USA are already assured of finishing as Group D winners.

What does the result mean?

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