Philadelphia, June 26 (IANS) Nicolas Pepe scored a dynamic double as Ivory Coast secured their place in the FIFA World Cup knockout stages for the first time with a comfortable victory over Curacao in their final Group E match here on Friday.

The African side were pushed hard, but in the end, their quality in the final third told as Pepe’s brace earned them a 2-0 victory at Philadelphia Stadium. They finished second in Group E and will face either Norway or France in the round of 32 in Dallas on Wednesday.

Pepe gave Cote d’Ivoire an early lead in the seventh minute, tapping in from close range after Yan Diomande won possession and squared the ball to him. He doubled the lead in the 64th minute, taking Ibrahim Sangare’s driven pass in stride before curling a left-footed shot into the top corner.

Curacao pushed forward after falling behind but struggled to create clear chances, as Cote d’Ivoire held on to secure the victory.

The result sent Cote d’Ivoire into the World Cup knockout stage for the first time after group-stage exits in 2006, 2010 and 2014. Curacao’s maiden World Cup voyage ended in Philadelphia but will live long in the memory of the Blue Wave faithful.

Pepe’s seventh-minute goal is the fastest scored by Ivory Coast in their World Cup history.

“It’s a source of pride and joy. We’ve qualified for the knockout stage, so for the people of Côte d’Ivoire, this is a source of pride. My two goals? It’s all thanks to the team. On the first one, Yan Diomande did a great job setting me up with the ball. The second was a magnificent pass from Ibra’ Ibrahim Sangare, and all I had to do was get my foot on it.

“It’s an individual honour, but also a team one. It’s one game at a time. We’re going to try to go as far as possible, we have the players and the quality to do it. We’ll need to stay focused, rest up, and see who we’ll be playing against,” Pepe said after the game.

–IANS

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