As a contemporary football expert once said: "For me, Bielsa needs to pull off his 'Bielsa move'"; and it has already happened twice. Uruguay not only drew 1-1 with Saudi Arabia in their debut, but now they also equaled, this time 2-2, against what was initially considered the most accessible rival in Group H: Cape Verde.
The first minutes of the match were marked by a slight dominance of La Celeste in possession, which would not translate into clear chances, and a friction-filled game that included two early yellow cards, one for each side. After the second of these, a foul by Rodrigo Bentacur on Telmo Arcanjo in the midfield, Kevin Pina would take a low free kick that would end up going through the middle of a poorly coordinated wall made up of Maximiliano Araújo and Federico Viñas to score the unexpected 1-0 for the Africans, the first in their history in World Cups.
Although the players directed by Marcelo Bielsa would try to reduce the deficit, for several minutes they would not significantly breach the defense of a Cape Verde that would have a few promising approaches to extend the lead, but they would also not be precise in their finishing.
When it seemed that the match would go to halftime without further incidents, in the 43rd minute Uruguay would equalize: from the left flank Federico Valverde would send a cross to Bentacur, who would hit the post with his header, completely leaving Vozinha off balance, who would watch as Araújo, with the goal at his mercy, would dive in to score the 1-1.
On the African side, this goal brought some controversy, as at the moment of the play Arcanjo was lying on the ground due to an alleged injury, but referee Espen Eskås would not stop the game.
