A controversial last minute penalty saw Greece eliminate Cote d’Ivoire in Brazil on Tuesday evening.
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With Andreas Samaris‘ goal just before half time, Greece led to this point of the game.
Additionally, in the 93rd minute, Georios Samaras‘ penalty kick beat Ivorian keeper Boubacar Barry to send the Greeks through the next round in a dramatic fashion.
Unfortunately, Ivorian Giovanni Sio was the culprit of the controversial penalty give-away that saw Greece take a 2-1 lead.
A 1-1 draw would have seen Cote d’Ivoire progress and that looked plausible when substitute Wilfried Bony scored in the 74th minute, placing the West Africans on level terms.
Although Cote d’Ivoire were in the driver’s seat as to who moved on to the next round for a good 16 minutes, Greece had threatened all night, hitting the woodwork three times throughout the night in Estadio Castelao.
Greece’s persistence finally paid off as they broke the African continent’s heart with the dramatic ending in Fortaleza.
Watch highlights (or lowlights) from the Cote d’Ivoire vs. Greece World Cup match here:
A qualification for Cote d’Ivoire’s golden generation would have been bittersweet for Yaya and Kolo Toure who both decided to stay with Les Elephant following the death of their brother in the United Kingdom on Thursday.
Still, Nigeria, Ghana, and Algeria are still in contention to represent the continent beyond the group stages.
