Daniel Munoz “sent” the Colombian national team to the “32” of the 2026 World Cup, as in the 76th minute of the match against the Democratic Republic of Congo, he scored the only goal of the match, which concluded the 2nd matchday in the group stage.

    The 11th group match was held in Guadalajara, in front of 45,358 spectators, and the Colombians were completely dominant on the field, but they “fell” to the amazing goalkeeper, Lionel Embasi, who almost single-handedly kept the match in a draw.

    Finally, the Crystal Palace right-back scored (ed. as he had done in the premiere against Uzbekistan) in the 76th minute and essentially “gifted” the victory to his teammates, who celebrated their qualification to the next phase of the competition.
 
    Among the notable events of the match was the 10th appearance of former Olympiacos ace James Rodriguez in a World Cup finals, equaling the relevant record, also held by Freddy Rincon and Carlos Valderrama.

    In the stands, the DR Congo internationals had the support of Michel Nkuca Bolandinga, the team’s famous fan nicknamed the “living statue”, who made his World Cup debut after missing the first match against Portugal due to the Ebola quarantine protocol. 

    With two wins in as many matches, Colombia has six points and has secured qualification to the “32”, while they will claim first place in the group, in the match against Portugal, which has four points, while the Africans, who have one point, need a victory against Uzbekistan to have any reasonable hope of qualifying.

    Referee: M. Mariani (Italy)
    Yellows: Loukoumi, Lerma – Pickel
    Reds:
    Lineups:

    COLOMBIA (Nestor Lorenzo): Vargas, Muñoz, Lukumi, Puerta, Mojica, Sanchez, James Rodriguez (58′ Quintero), Arias (77′ Rios), Lerma, Diaz, Suarez (58′ Cordoba).

    DR CONGO (Sebastian Decabre): Embasi, Wan-Bissaka, Kapouadi, Tuanzebe, Ebeba, Mazouako (72′ Joris Kagembe), Mukau (46′ Sadiqui), Mutousami (82′ Ebuku), Edo Kagembe (72′ Pickel), Bakambu (57′ Banza), Guicha.