The group stage is over for Curaçao, and with it their end to the World Cup.
Although they didn’t leave with any wins to their name, the tiniest World Cup nation in history with a little over 150,000 people, left a huge impact on the tournament.
For a team that many pundits thought would be the worst team at the World Cup, they proved many wrong during their three games on the global stage.
Let’s grade the Blue Wave.
Expectation
Pre-Tournament Ranking: #48
Oh wait, I was one of those pundits that they proved wrong.
Well, this is awkward.
Heading into the tournament, I thought they were going to get smashed by all three teams in their group. If Curaçao scored a goal in their three games I would have considered that a massive success.
Reality
The first game went as I imagined. They scored a goal against Germany and gave their country something to be proud of, but they ended up taking a 7-1 shellacking versus the four-time World Cup champions.
Then, though, they stole headlines by pushing a strong Ecuador team to a 0-0 draw, with goalkeeper Eloy Room saving the most shots in a non-extra time game in the tournament’s history.
Although they couldn’t recreate magic twice against Ivory Coast on the final day to try and qualify for the Round of 32, Curaçao performed five classes above their weight class and proved they belonged at the World Cup.
Final Grade: A