Group D
The match between Denmark and Tunisia ended as a goalless draw; both teams had goals disallowed by offside calls.[167] Danish midfielder Christian Eriksen made his first major international appearance since suffering a cardiac arrest at the UEFA Euro 2020.[167] Defending champions France went a goal behind to Australia, after a Craig Goodwin goal within ten minutes. France, however, scored four goals, by Adrien Rabiot, Kylian Mbappé and two by Olivier Giroud to win 4–1.[168] The goals tied Giroud with Thierry Henry as France's all-time top goalscorer.[168] Mitchell Duke scored the only goal as Australia won against Tunisia. This was their first World Cup win since 2010.[169][170] Mbappé scored a brace as France defeated Denmark 2–1. This was enough for France to qualify for the knockout round—the first time since Brazil in 2006 that the defending champions progressed through the opening round.[169][171] Mathew Leckie scored the only goal as Australia defeated Denmark 1–0, qualifying for the knockout round as runners-up with the win.[172] Wahbi Khazri scored for Tunisia against France in the 58th minute. Although Antoine Griezmann equalised in stoppage time it was overturned for offside. Tunisia finished third in the group, as they required a draw in the Denmark and Australia game.[173]
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| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  France | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 3 | +3 | 6 | Advanced to knockout stage |
| 2 |  Australia | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 4 | −1 | 6 | |
| 3 |  Tunisia | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | |
| 4 |  Denmark | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 3 | −2 | 1 |
Group E
Group E began with Japan facing 2014 champions Germany. After an early penalty kick was converted by Germany's İlkay Gündoğan, Japan scored two second-half goals by Ritsu Dōan and Takuma Asano in a 2–1 win.[174] In the second group match, Spain defeated Costa Rica 7–0. First-half goals by Dani Olmo, Marco Asensio, and Ferran Torres were followed by goals by Gavi, Carlos Soler, Alvaro Morata, and a second by Torres.[175][176] This was the largest defeat in a World Cup since Portugal's victory over North Korea in the 2010 event by the same scoreline.[177] Costa Rica defeated Japan 1–0, with Keysher Fuller scoring with Costa Rica's first shot on target of the tournament.[178] Germany and Spain drew 1–1, with Álvaro Morata scoring for Spain and Niclas Füllkrug scoring for Germany.[179][180][181] Morata scored the opening goal for Spain against Japan as they controlled the first half of the match.[182] Japan equalised on Ritsu Doan before a second goal by Ao Tanaka was heavily investigated by VAR for the ball potentially being out of play.[183] The goal was awarded, and Japan won the group following a 2–1 win. Disputes over the VAR's call was only settled when the Associated Press released an iconic bird's eye photo of the ball after the match.[183] Serge Gnabry scored on ten minutes for Germany against Costa Rica and they led until half-time. Germany required a win, and for Japan to not win their match, or for both teams to win their matches by a combined goal difference of at least 9 goals, to qualify. In the second half, goals by Yeltsin Tejeda and Juan Vargas gave Costa Rica a 2–1 lead, which would have qualified them into the knockout stages ahead of Spain. Germany scored three further goals—two by Kai Havertz and a goal by Niclas Fullkrug, ending in a 4–2 win for Germany—which was not enough to qualify them for the final stages. This was the second time in a row that the four-time champions failed to progress past the group stages.[184] Japan won the group ahead of Spain.[185]
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| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Japan | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 3 | +1 | 6 | Advanced to knockout stage |
| 2 |  Spain | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 3 | +6 | 4 | |
| 3 |  Germany | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 5 | +1 | 4 | |
| 4 |  Costa Rica | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 11 | −8 | 3 |
| Spain | 7–0 | Costa Rica |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
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