Switzerland outlast Colombia on penalties and book Argentina in the quarters
Ruben Vargas took seven paces back, the weight of a nation in his legs, and hammered the ball past his namesake Camilo Vargas. The Swiss bench emptied towards him. In the centre circle, Colombia sank. Switzerland grabbed the last quarter-final berth at the World Cup, beating Colombia on penalties in Vancouver after a 0-0 stalemate and a 4-3 shootout. Next up: Argentina. The Nati reach this stage for the first time since 1954. Read that again. Seventy-two years.
Nobody will file this last-16 tie under classics, but it never stopped snarling. The first half was two heavyweights trading punches and missing. Gustavo Puerta forced a smart stop out of Kobel on 21 minutes. Zakaria threaded a ball through that Jashiri somehow failed to reach with the keeper stranded, eight minutes later. Rieder and Ndoye had their looks too. Nothing dropped. Colombia, roared on by a crowd that turned the stadium into a gig, dug in and rode the Swiss waves.
The second half told the same story. Switzerland edged into control without ever landing the finish. Sow got into the box and could not profit. Rieder curled a free kick wide. Luis Diaz, shadowed everywhere by Zakaria, barely got a kick. Extra time turned nastier. Lucumi thumped a header off the bar on 99 minutes, then Campaz lashed one that Kobel somehow clawed clear. Then the moment that decided it: 115 minutes, Xhaka switched off, and Campaz was clean through one-on-one. He missed the target. Colombia would pay for that.
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Kobel steals the night while Colombia are left to rue Campaz
The shootout belonged to Gregor Kobel. Named man of the match, the goalkeeper flung himself low to deny Hernandez and left the door open for his team. Ruben Vargas walked up and shut it, cool as you like. The Swiss celebrations spilled everywhere. Colombia, who had matched them blow for blow and stood one Campaz finish away from the last eight, crumpled where they stood.
Now comes Argentina, and Switzerland arrive with more than hope. Their defending has been stubborn all tournament, and their nerve holds when the pressure climbs. Kobel, Ndoye, Rieder, Zakaria: there is a spine to this team, and they will lean on every vertebra against Messi and his friends. Make no mistake, though. This one went to the wire.
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