Argentina, who started the World Cup with a big win over Algeria, now have their full attention on their match against Austria. They also have to keep an eye on Group H, because, barring something unexpected, Argentina will play their last-32 match against one of the teams in that group.
Group H contains Spain, along with Uruguay, Cape Verde and Saudi Arabia. Last night the Spanish side thrashed Saudi Arabia 4-0. With four points from two matches, the 2010 champions sit top of the table. Uruguay and Cape Verde are second and third with two points each, and Saudi Arabia are bottom with one point.
If Argentina top Group J and reach the knockout round, they will face the runner-up of Group H. The final group-stage matches have therefore created a range of permutations. As things stand, if Uruguay beat Spain and Cape Verde fail to win, Spain would finish as runner-up and meet Argentina in the knockout round. If both Uruguay and Cape Verde win, the group positions would be decided by goal difference, goals scored or, if needed, the fair-play index.
On the other hand, if Cape Verde win and Uruguay draw, the African side would finish as runner-up and play Argentina. Saudi Arabia are not entirely out of the equation either; if Uruguay fail to win and Saudi Arabia win their last match, they too could get the chance to finish as runner-up.
At this World Cup, if teams are level on points after the group stage, an Olympic-style tiebreaker will be applied. In that case, the first consideration will be the result of the head-to-head match, followed by goal difference, goals scored, overall goal difference, total goals, the disciplinary record and, finally, the FIFA ranking.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report