2026 FIFA World Cup Day 16 recap: Messi outshines Ronaldo again as Ghana miss out on Portugal clash

The group stage of the 2026 FIFA World Cup concluded on day 15, with the full round of 32 fixtures now set. 

Three groups were involved, and there was no shortage of drama in every game from each group. 

Group L teams kicked off the day’s action with England taking on Panama and Croatia facing Ghana. Following Group L games, Portugal took on Colombia at the same time DR Congo faced Uzbekistan. 

The group games concluded with Argentina’s clash against Jordan and Algeria’s game against Austria. 

Here’s a recap of how all the action went down. 

England finished top of Group L, but it was another unconvincing performance from Thomas Tuchel’s men despite beating Panama 2-0. 

The Three Lions struggled to break down Los Canaleros in the opening half, mirroring their much-criticised performance in the goalless draw against Ghana. 

Although the performance was better in the second half, as goals from Jude Bellingham and Harry Kane gave them the win, the Three Lions will need to improve going into the knockout stages. 

In the other group game, Croatia beat Ghana to finish second ahead of the Black Stars. Going into the game, Ghana knew they only needed a point to finish at least second ahead of Vatreni. 

However, goals from Petar Sucic and Nikola Vlasic condemned Ghana to a defeat, despite Derick Luckassen’s equaliser. 

The good news for Ghana, however, is that they qualified for the round of 32 as one of the best third-place teams but will now face Colombia instead of Portugal. As for Croatia, they will meet the Seleção after finishing second. 

Portugal and Colombia played a goalless draw in Miami in what was one of the games of the tournament so far. 

However, while it was an entertaining game, Portugal’s performance once again showed why many doubted their title chances. 

It was expected that Roberto Martinez’s men would come out guns blazing after beating Uzbekistan 5-0 in their second group game. 

However, the Selecao gave an average performance, despite needing a win to secure top spot in the group. In fact, Colombia were the better team and could have won it if Davinson Sanchez’s head had not been ruled out for offside. 

Although Portugal had their moments too, Martinez’s men never really played like a team that needed the win. In addition, Cristiano Ronaldo also had an ineffective performance up front after scoring twice in the win against Uzbekistan. 

Speaking of Uzbekistan, the Asian side’s campaign ended in another defeat, as they were beaten 3-1 by DR Congo in their clash. 

Fabio Cannavaro’s men were already out coming into the match but were looking to go out on a high. It looked like that would be the case when Eldor Shomourodov put them ahead in the tenth minute. 

However, the Leopards, who needed to win to book a round of 32 spot, came from behind in the second half to secure the victory. 

Yoane Wissa’s penalty restored parity for them in the 68th minute before Fiston Mayele put them ahead ten minutes later. 

Wissa’s second goal of the game in added time then sealed the victory, and the Leopards became the eighth African team to qualify for the knockout round of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. 

Argentina wrapped up their group campaign with a 3-1 win over Jordan, with Messi making history again, even though he did not start the game. 

Giovani Lo Celso put Lionel Scaloni’s men ahead in the 19th minute before Lautaro Martinez’s penalty doubled their advantage. 

Jordan pulled one back through Musa Al-Taamari, but Messi came off the bench to score a free kick of his own to seal the win. 

The goal made Messi the first player to score in seven consecutive World Cup games, extending his record haul to 18 goals. 

In the other group game, Algeria and Austria played one of the games of the 2026 FIFA World Cup as they booked their spot in the round of 32 following a 3-3 draw at Kansas City Stadium. 

Marko Arnautovic put Austria ahead, but Rafik Belghali restored parity for the Desert Warriors before the break. 

Marcel Sabitzer then put Austria back in the lead before Riyad Mahrez drew Algeria level once again. Mahrez then appeared to have won it for Algeria in the final seconds of the game, but Saša Kalajdžić’s header secured a dramatic point for Austria and second spot in Group J.