Shomurodov's bright spark fades as Uzbekistan exit World Cup

Uzbekistan's first World Cup ended without a point after DR Congo rallied to win 3–1 in Atlanta. Eldor Shomurodov gave your team a dream start with a lobbed goal, but DR Congo recovered and went on to reach the knockout phase (1). Fabio Cannavaro called the elimination "brutal." Three games, three defeats, the White Wolves return home knowing the gap between ambition and execution at this level is real, but a debut campaign that included holding Portugal to a 0–0 draw showed glimpses of what can be built.