Jhon Arias scored the only goal as Colombia beat Ghana 1-0 in the Kansas City heat on Friday to book their place in the FIFA World Cup Round of 16 and continue their impressive unbeaten run.
Arias found the net in the 14th minute, finishing off a perfect cross from substitute Luis Suarez. Colombia then defended brilliantly to seal the win and set up a last-16 clash against Switzerland.
The South Americans may not have attracted much attention before the knockout stage, but they topped Group K without losing a game, finishing ahead of Portugal, Uzbekistan and DR Congo.
Their winning goal came after an early setback. Jhon Cordoba was forced off with a suspected groin injury in the eighth minute, bringing Luis Suarez into the match. Just minutes later, Suarez delivered a pinpoint cross to the far post, where Arias had escaped his marker and calmly guided the ball into the bottom corner.
The atmosphere inside the stadium felt more like a home game for Colombia. Thousands of fans dressed in yellow packed the stands, waving flags, singing throughout the match and cheering every attack despite the scorching 30-degree Celsius heat.
The support lifted Colombia, who controlled most of the game and looked the better side from start to finish.
Luis Diaz came close to adding a second goal on several occasions. He hit the side netting in the first half and thought he had scored early in the second, only for the effort to be ruled out for offside.
Colombia continued to create chances, but Ghana goalkeeper Lawrence Ati-Zigi kept his team in the contest with a series of excellent saves in the closing stages.
Ghana struggled to create clear opportunities, with Antoine Semenyo posing the biggest threat, but Colombia’s organised defence kept him quiet for most of the match.
The victory made Colombia the fourth South American team to reach the Round of 16, joining Paraguay, Brazil and Argentina.
The match also saw a rare World Cup first, with both teams forced into injury substitutions inside the opening 15 minutes. Ghana defender Marvin Senaya came off with a hamstring injury in the 13th minute, just five minutes after Colombia had lost Cordoba.
Colombia will now face Switzerland on Tuesday in Vancouver for a place in the quarter-finals.
