Luis Díaz Leads Colombia Past World Cup Debutants Uzbekistan

By Josue Lopez

MEXICO CITY, Mexico — Colombia overcame a spirited challenge from World Cup newcomers Uzbekistan to secure a 3-1 victory in their Group K opener, with Luis Díaz playing a decisive role in a hard-fought win at Mexico City Stadium.

For long stretches, Néstor Lorenzo's side looked in complete control, but Uzbekistan's historic first World Cup goal briefly threatened to spoil the party before Colombia's quality ultimately prevailed.

Los Cafeteros dominated possession from the opening whistle and immediately imposed their rhythm on the match. Led by the creativity of James Rodríguez and the pace of Díaz, Colombia repeatedly tested an Uzbek defense making its first appearance on football's biggest stage.

Jhon Arias came close to opening the scoring in the 17th minute with a powerful effort that flashed narrowly wide, while Díaz struck the post just after the half-hour mark after being brilliantly released through on goal.

The pressure finally paid off five minutes before halftime.

Díaz, who had been Colombia's most dangerous attacking outlet, spotted the run of Daniel Muñoz and delivered a perfectly weighted ball into the penalty area. The Crystal Palace full-back met it on the volley and fired an outstanding finish beyond Utkir Yusupov to give Colombia a deserved 1-0 lead.

At halftime, Colombia had controlled more than 70 percent of possession and limited Uzbekistan to virtually no attacking opportunities, appearing well on course for a comfortable victory.

The second half, however, produced a surprise.

Out of nowhere, Uzbekistan found an equalizer in the 60th minute and scored its first-ever World Cup goal. Eldor Shomurodov's volley was pushed onto the post by Camilo Vargas, but Abbosbek Fayzullaev reacted quickest to head home the rebound and send the Uzbek supporters into celebration.

For a brief moment, the debutants dreamed of a famous result.

That dream lasted just five minutes.

After winning possession near midfield, Colombia launched a rapid counterattack through Gustavo Puerta, who slipped a pass into the path of Díaz. The Bayern Munich winger struck first time from the edge of the box, and although Yusupov got a hand to the shot, he could not prevent it from finding the far corner.

The goal restored Colombia's lead at 2-1 and shifted the momentum firmly back in favor of the South Americans.

Uzbekistan continued to battle and nearly found another equalizer through Azizbek Karimov and Shomurodov, but Colombia's experience began to show as the match entered its closing stages.

With the Central Asian side pushing numbers forward deep into stoppage time, Colombia delivered the decisive blow.

Cucho Hernández chased down a seemingly lost cause near the byline and somehow kept possession alive before whipping an excellent cross across the face of goal. Substitute Jáminton Campaz arrived perfectly and powered a header into the net in the 99th minute to seal a 3-1 victory.

There was still time for Uzbekistan to nearly produce one final memorable moment when Karimov unleashed a thunderous strike from distance that crashed against the crossbar, denying the debutants a spectacular consolation goal.

For Colombia, the result represents a strong start in a group that became even more intriguing after Portugal was held to a surprise 1-1 draw by DR Congo earlier in the day. Lorenzo's side now sits atop the group and carries valuable momentum into its next fixture.

For Uzbekistan, despite the defeat, there were plenty of positives. Fabio Cannavaro's team scored the nation's first World Cup goal and showed resilience after spending much of the match under pressure.

The final score favored Colombia, but Uzbekistan proved they belong on the global stage. Meanwhile, Díaz once again demonstrated why he remains the heartbeat of Colombia's attack, contributing a goal and an assist to launch Los Cafeteros' World Cup campaign in style.