Everything you missed from day four at World Cup 2026: Summerville wondergoal, incredible Japan fans and Uruguay travel chaos | OneFootball

The 2026 World Cup has spiked in quality with Netherlands and Japan delivering a gripping 2-2 draw in Dallas.

Germany hit Curacao for seven, but not perform the World Cup minnows seized the moment of the day after levelling against their illustrious opponents.

Steve Clarke’s side are recovering from their heroic win over Haiti, but with three points in the bag, the Tartan Army must now focus on Morocco and Brazil, with a result needed to ensure no regrets over the slim margin of victory in Boston.

Germany hit seven but Curacao’s moment justifies new format

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(AP)

Kai Havertz scored a brace as Germany opened their World Cup campaign with a dominant 7-1 victory over debutants Curacao in Houston.

Felix Nmecha opened the scoring just six minutes in, but Germany were slightly stunned when Livano Comenencia levelled for minnows Curacao, making their maiden appearance at a World Cup, suggesting that the expanded new format is worthwhile when nations can produce moments that inspire generations.

However, a Nico Schlotterbeck header and Havertz penalty soon restored Germany’s advantage at half-time. A comfortable display saw further goals in the second half from Jamal Musiala, Nathaniel Brown, Deniz Undav and Havertz as Germany wrapped up three points in their first Group E game.

Japanese fans leave their mark off the pitch at World Cup

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(AP)

Japanese fans had plenty to celebrate after their 2-2 draw with the Netherlands at the Dallas Stadium in Texas but once again they will make headlines for an incredible gesture after the full-time whistle of the World Cup 2026 clash.

As usual in sporting events of this size, the stands of the stadium became littered with rubbish, such as food trays and empty drinks cups, but Japan’s supporters remained behind and cleaned up before departing the stadium.

Experts in Japanese culture cite a proverb: "tatsu tori ato wo nigosazu" which, when translated into English, means "stand up, take care of it, without leaving any traces behind" as one reason why Japan supporters tidy up after themselves.

Eberechi Eze prepared to step up in penalty shootout despite missed chance in Champions League final

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(Getty)

Eberechi Eze says he would gladly take a penalty in a shootout during this World Cup, and just sees the miss in Arsenal’s Champions League final as “part of the journey” to improve.

“If called upon, for sure,” Eze said when asked about taking a penalty. “Why wouldn’t I take it? Football is full of everything and you have to try to accept everything as it is, to enjoy it as much as you can. Playing in a Champions League final is where I want to be, it’s what I want to do. We’ll go for it again next season and if there is a penalty to take then I’ll be there again. All the big players have missed big penalties, have experienced these types of moments.

“I’ve had messages from everyone to speak on those moments. For me, it’s not something I wish never happened. I’m grateful it happened. I’m going to grow from it, learn from it and move forward.”

Uruguay blame Fifa after flight chaos hurts plans for World Cup 2026 match

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Uruguay fans gather in Miami Tropical Park, Florida (Reuters)

Uruguay’s national team have blamed Fifa after a chaotic start to their World Cup campaign following the delay to their travel from their Mexico base to Miami for their first match.

Marcelo Bielsa’s side have travelled to Cancun for final preparations before getting their World Cup underway against Saudi Arabia on Monday but the squad were left waiting as their prepared plane didn’t have clearance to fly to the US. The problem facing the team was reportedly due to issues with paperwork for the aircraft which meant it had not been approved to take the route from Cancun to Miami.

The AUF maintained Fifa was responsible, while adding in a statement: “Due to problems beyond the control of the AUF, the departure from Mexico has been delayed. The squad is resting at the hotel. The new departure time set by FIFA is 4.15pm.”

A Fifa statement read: "Due to an airline permitting error in Mexico, the Uruguay national team’s departure from Cancun to Miami was delayed. The airline has apologised for the inconvenience caused.

“FIFA remained in close contact with the Uruguay national team throughout their delay and worked alongside airport and operational partners to help expedite the process and minimise disruption to the team’s travel arrangements."

Sweden’s deadly duo Isak and Gyokeres both off the mark in win over Tunisia

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Viktor Gyokeres and Alexander Isak celebrate (Getty)

One of the big challenges for successive Sweden managers has been how to get the best out of Alexander Isak and Viktor Gyokeres on the same pitch, at the same time. Graham Potter’s solution against Tunisia was to play a 3-5-2 formation in which his star strikers were paired together, and it paid off with a 5-1 win in which both players got on the scoresheet – and Brighton’s Yasin Ayari scored two belters from range against his mother’s country.

The forward pair were helped by some poor Tunisian defending and goalkeeping, and there remain some question marks over their link-up play. At one point during the second half, Gyokeres should have played Isak through on goal but the Arsenal striker dallied and when he eventually passed, Isak was offside. Gyokeres’s goal might technically have been an Isak assist, but Isak was trying to score himself and the ball only ran to his strike partner when he lost control under pressure.

So perhaps there is still something to work on to develop a thriving partnership in which they are as happy to pass to one another as to take on the shot. But for Potter and Sweden, just seeing their star duo play together is a huge boost after Isak’s season of injuries. Group F rivals Netherlands and Japan will be wary of the threat Sweden pose.