Nicolas Pepe scored twice as Ivory Coast beat Curacao 2-0 on Thursday to qualify for the FIFA World Cup Round of 32 for the first time. The victory secured second place in Group E and booked a knockout clash against either France or Norway in Arlington, Texas, on Tuesday.
The defeat ended Curacao’s impressive World Cup debut. The Caribbean nation, the smallest country ever to qualify for the tournament, became the eighth team to be eliminated.
Ivory Coast had finished third in the group in each of their previous World Cup appearances between 2006 and 2014, but this time they did enough to reach the knockout stage.
Pepe was an unlikely hero. The forward had failed to score in five World Cup qualifying matches and was left out of coach Emerse Fae’s recent Africa Cup of Nations squad. However, he produced a clinical display, scoring his first competitive international goals since October 2024.
The breakthrough came after another lively run from 19-year-old Yan Diomande. The youngster capitalised on a mistake by Curacao while they were trying to play out from the back, reached the byline and pulled the ball back for Pepe, who fired a first-time finish past goalkeeper Eloy Room from close range.
The game slowed down in the hot conditions, but Ivory Coast doubled their lead with another well-worked move. Ibrahim Sangare picked out Pepe’s run into the penalty area with a perfectly weighted through ball, and the forward calmly curled his shot inside the far post.
Curacao had a few chances despite the defeat. Just before half-time, Leandro Bacuna weaved past three defenders but dragged his shot wide of the near post. After the break, Sherel Floranus also went close, firing narrowly over the crossbar.
Ivory Coast’s first scorer of the tournament, Amad Diallo, was substituted at half-time, although it was not immediately clear whether the change was due to an injury.
