Cape Verde, with its Dutch influence, missed its first chance on Wednesday for a historic qualification for the FIFA World Cup. The islanders drew 3-3 with competitor Libya in a crazy match.
Cape Verde had been looking forward to the duel with competitor Libya for weeks, as it would be the place where the long-awaited World Cup dream of the island group in the Atlantic Ocean would come true. Nothing turned out to be less true in Tripoli.
Cape Verde was already behind after one minute of play. Roberto Lopes simply tapped a cross behind his own goalkeeper. The visitors seemed to get over that false start when Telmo Arcanjo headed into the equalizer.
But Libya then took the initiative again. It became 2-1 just before half-time, and after an hour Mahmoud Al-Shalui brilliantly put the 3-1 on the board. He shot a free kick from about 30 meters like a rock via the underside of the crossbar.
Cape Verde did not give up and came back to 3-3 in the final phase, although that was also thanks to the Libyan goalkeeper Murad Al-Wuheeshi. He ridiculously missed a failed pass from Rotterdam native Sidny Cabral at 3-2. Cape Verde was close to the crucial 3-4 in extra time, but Libya barely managed to get a shot off the goal line.
Cape Verde still has World Cup qualification in its own hands
The draw is a setback for Cape Verde, but the country still has World Cup qualification in its own hands. Cape Verde remains at the top of the World Cup qualification pool and only needs a win against Eswatini on Monday for the World Cup ticket.
A draw or a defeat could mean the end of Cape Verde’s World Cup dream. In theory, number two Cameroon and number three Libya can still climb above Cape Verde in the ranking.
The number two in the pool gets another chance via the play-offs, but the number three can completely forget about participation in next year’s World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico. The global final tournament consists of 48 countries for the first time in history.
No fewer than six players with a Dutch background play for Cape Verde. Garry Rodrigues, Jamiro Monteiro, Dailon Livramento, Cabral and the brothers Laros and Deroy Duarte were all born in Rotterdam.