World Cup Day 10: Germany wins in the 93rd, Dutch thrashing and Curaçao makes history

If you missed Saturday, you missed the real thing. Matchday two of Groups E and F had it all: a record from an almost anonymous goalkeeper, a stoppage-time goal that sent a giant through, a five-star thrashing, and a perfectly round milestone. Match by match rundown.

Ecuador 0-0 Curaçao: the night of Eloy Room. Goalkeeper Eloy Room turned hero with a masterclass in shot-stopping and left Ecuador looking rather sheepish. Curaçao—just 156,000 inhabitants, the smallest nation ever in a World Cup— walked away with a point worth its weight in gold. The 'Tri' kept knocking, but the underdogs wrote the script.

Germany 2-1 Ivory Coast: never switch off a Germany match. Franck Kessié put the Africans ahead and it smelled like a shocker, but up popped Deniz Undav off the bench with a brace: the second in stoppage time (93rd minute) to send Germany into the round of 16. As a bonus, Manuel Neuer added another veteran masterclass to his collection. That's the 'Mannschaft' for you: write them off and they rise from the dead in the 93rd.

Netherlands 5-1 Sweden: a warning for the favourites. The 'Orange Machine' woke up with a bang: braces from Brobbey and Gakpo and a goal from Summerville. Elanga pulled one back for Sweden, but the message was loud and clear: Holland means business and tops Group F.

Tunisia 0-4 Japan: a Japanese masterclass in the 1,000th match. In the 1,000th match in World Cup history, Japan served up a clinic: Kamada (min. 4), a brace from Ueda and a goal from Itō. Tunisia are out; Japan are into the round of 16 easy peasy. That a round milestone should fall on a demolition and not some forgettable 0-0 is almost a scriptwriter's miracle.

Three things to take away: (1) small-nation football exists and its name is Eloy Room; (2) never switch off a Germany match before the 95th; and (3) Japan is the dark horse that's already in the light. Long live the World Cup.

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