Colombia Edge DR Congo as Muñoz Books World Cup Knockout Place

Colombia booked their place in the 2026 World Cup round of 32 on Tuesday, edging DR Congo 1-0 at Estadio Guadalajara through a deflected Daniel Muñoz strike in the 76th minute. It was the Crystal Palace right-back’s second goal in as many matches for Néstor Lorenzo’s side, who move to six points at the top of Group K with a game to spare. The result was decided by a 76th-minute deflection off Steve Kapuadi that wrong-footed his own goalkeeper.

Colombia hammered out 20 attempts worth 1.03 expected goals against a DR Congo side reduced to eight shots and 0.39 xG. The scoreboard read 1-0 only because Lionel Mpasi, the Le Havre goalkeeper, refused to bend for 75 minutes and posted eight saves, five of them inside the first 20. Sébastien Desabre’s team sit on a single point after drawing their opener with Portugal in Houston and will need to beat Uzbekistan in their final group game to keep alive any chance of progressing as one of the best third-placed teams. For Colombia, a draw against Portugal on June 27 at the same Guadalajara venue would be enough to seal first place in the group and a round of 32 tie in Kansas City. Defeat would drop them to second and a meeting with the runner-up of England’s group in Toronto.

Muñoz Strikes Again to Send Colombia Through

The goal arrived in the 76th minute and rode a generous slice of fortune. Substitute Jhon Córdoba let Juan Fernando Quintero’s pass roll through his path on the edge of the box, and Muñoz arrived from the right, swinging a low finish toward the near post that flicked off the foot of DR Congo defender Steve Kapuadi. The deflection wrong-footed Mpasi and spun into the bottom-left corner, per the Opta post-match report from Estadio Guadalajara. Colombia had been knocking since the opening minute without finding a clean finish until the deflection.

The goal secured the round of 32 with a match to spare and made Muñoz the first Colombia player to score in two consecutive World Cup matches since Yerry Mina, also a defender, did so in 2018, per Crystal Palace’s profile of Muñoz ahead of the World Cup. He is only the fourth Colombian to manage the feat at a World Cup.

The 26-year-old right-back has turned into the unexpected focal point of a Colombia attack stacked with bigger names. Luis Díaz, James Rodríguez and Jhon Arias all had chances to score before Muñoz did, yet it was the marauding full-back who opened the tournament against Uzbekistan in the 40th minute and finished it in Guadalajara. Lorenzo has leaned on the Palace man to stretch defences, and two matches in, the player has produced two goals.

Mpasi’s Wall Held for 75 Minutes

Mpasi made his case for man of the match across an exhausting 90 minutes. The Le Havre stopper produced eight saves in total, five of them inside the opening 20, and became the first player to make five saves within the first 20 minutes of a World Cup match since Jamaica’s Warren Barrett against Argentina in 1998, per Opta’s match centre from the Guadalajara game. He denied Jhon Arias from close range in the third minute, tipped a James Rodríguez long-ranger wide in the 11th, shoveled away a Johan Mojica effort and turned a Luis Díaz foot shot behind with his trailing leg in the 18th. Five minutes after the break, the same leg repelled another Díaz effort before Arias dragged the rebound wide. Colombia’s 20 shots ended the night with only one crossing the line.

Behind Mpasi, DR Congo’s back five and midfield shield did the unglamorous work. Charles Pickel, Edo Kayembe and Samuel Moutoussamy crowded the central lanes, with Yoane Wissa working off Cédric Bakambu as the lone outlet. The structure held until the 76th-minute deflection found a way through.

Our goalkeeper was excellent today. But I’m not surprised. He has been playing well for us.

Said DR Congo coach Sébastien Desabre after the match at Estadio Guadalajara.

Mpasi’s eight saves spanned every angle, low drives, long-range strikes, and close-range deflections. The goalkeeper’s busiest spell came in the opening 20 minutes, when he repelled five efforts. By half-time, the goalkeeper had already faced 15 of the 20 Colombian shots. Colombia needed a deflection in the 76th minute to finally beat him.

How the Night Stacked Up in Guadalajara

Colombia opened the night as if the breakthrough would come early. Muñoz struck the outside of the post from close range in the third minute after Arias’s initial effort was parried, then bundled a follow-up over the line only to be flagged offside from Mojica’s cross. The close call set the tone for a night of Colombian pressure.

The pattern held for the entire first half. James Rodríguez’s dipping volley from distance in the 11th minute forced Mpasi into a full-stretch dive to his left, while Díaz controlled a chipped pass, turned smartly and fired a shot that the goalkeeper turned behind with his foot in the 18th. Gustavo Puerta and Johan Mojica both tested Mpasi from range before the break. By half-time, Colombia had registered 15 of their 20 shots, including six on target, with nine of their 10 outfield players attempting efforts.

The second half tilted further onto Mpasi. Wissa, DR Congo’s most dangerous outlet, curled a shot from a Simon Banza assist that was blocked in the 73rd minute, three minutes before Muñoz finally broke through. The Colombian siege had produced a single, deflected goal from 20 attempts.

The final 15 minutes carried their own disorder. Díaz thought he had doubled the lead with a finish into the top corner only for the effort to be ruled out for offside, then saw a second chalked off, this time for a foul in the build-up. At the other end, Camilo Vargas had to go full stretch to tip Nathanaël Mbuku’s long-range strike around the post in the 91st minute to preserve the lead. The margin held, and the substitutes Jhon Córdoba and Juan Fernando Quintero, who combined for the winning goal, walked off having shaped the match from the bench. Colombia’s six points and a plus-three goal difference leave them in control of Group K with a final group game to play.

DR Congo, who had taken a point from Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal in their opener, were left with everything to do against Uzbekistan. The two results left the Group K table tilted firmly toward a South American vs Iberian finish.

The Statistical Shape of a 1-0 Win

The Opta numbers frame just how thin the margin was on the scoreboard against how wide the gap was underneath it. Colombia finished with 1.03 expected goals from 20 shots, against 0.39 from DR Congo’s eight attempts, per the full Opta post-match data. The single goal was the closest a one-sided xG split can come to flattering the defence.

Colombia’s 20 attempts were their highest single-match World Cup tally since they registered 21 against Tunisia in 1998. James Rodríguez became the first Colombia player to create five chances in a World Cup match since Carlos Valderrama against England in 1998, a small echo of two generations of Colombian playmakers. Díaz and Puerta both attempted five shots, the match-high. The story of the match sits inside these splits, per the Group K standings and fixtures log.

Colombia’s dominance sat on one side of the table, Mpasi’s resistance on the other. The breakdown:

• Colombia have won four of their five World Cup matches against African nations, the lone defeat a meeting with Cameroon in 1990.
• James Rodríguez equalled the record for most World Cup appearances by a Colombian player (10), joining Carlos Valderrama and Freddy Rincón.
• Colombia have won their first two group matches at a World Cup for the second time in seven appearances, the previous being 2014 when they reached the quarter-finals.
• DR Congo have conceded just two goals in two matches at this World Cup. They conceded 11 times in their first two matches as Zaire in 1974.

What Remains in Group K

Colombia will take six points and a plus-three goal difference into the final Group K match against Portugal on June 27 at Estadio Guadalajara. A draw is enough to seal first place and a round of 32 tie in Kansas City against one of the best third-placed teams. DR Congo sit on a single point after the 1-0 defeat and the 1-1 opening draw with Portugal in Houston, per the Group K standings and fixtures. Desabre’s side must beat Uzbekistan in their final group fixture to keep alive any chance of progressing.

“We have played the two favourites in the group, ranked fifth and 13th at the start of the tournament,” Desabre said after the match. “This is lots of experience we’ve been faced with. We will have to take risks. Our approach will have to be different. A draw will not be enough.” For Colombia, the final word on the group belongs to Portugal, and a draw in Guadalajara would carry Lorenzo’s side into the knockout rounds as group winners.