Pepe steers Ivory Coast into World Cup last 32 as Curacao go home

AI Summary

Nicolas Pepe scored twice to lead Ivory Coast to a 2-0 victory over Curacao, securing the Ivory Coast's first-ever advancement to the World Cup knockout stages. Curacao's campaign ended following this defeat in Group E.

Nicolas Pepe scored twice as Ivory Coast beat Curacao 2-0 on Thursday to reach the World Cup knockout rounds for the first time ever and bring the tiny Caribbean country's run at the tournament to an end.Ivory Coast finish with six points in Group E with this victory following their opening 1-0 win over Ecuador and a 2-1 loss to Germany.