World Cup 2022: Uruguay Beat Ghana Again But Pay the Price For Poor performances and Exit Qatar Early
Luis Suarez thought the job was done. The veteran forward exited Uruguay’s final group-stage match with a 2-0 lead and received good news from across town: Portugal was tied with South Korea, which, if the results held, meant Uruguay would be through to the knockout rounds.
They didn’t!
When South Korea went ahead, 2-1, the updated Group H standings were almost immediately shown on the large in-stadium monitors, with Uruguay on the outside looking in. The camera cut to Suarez, who looked like he had seen a ghost.
Uruguay needed another goal to flip the tiebreaker in its favor and despite some good chances over the game’s final 15 minutes, the goal never came. It wasn’t quite the type of revenge Ghana was looking for – as its own tournament ended in defeat – but 12 years after Uruguay eliminated Ghana in the quarterfinal thanks largely to Suarez’s famous handball, the Black Stars returned the favor.
As the game neared its conclusion, the monitor returned to a live shot of Suarez. He looked like he was holding back tears and by that point, the Ghanaian fans better understood the circumstances.
They cheered loudly. Suarez, holding back tears, pulled his jersey over his head, retreating like a turtle into its shell in what will likely be the last image of him on the World Cup stage.
