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In the second match of Group J at the World Cup, where both teams were on the brink of elimination, Algeria secured a thrilling comeback victory against Jordan. With this second consecutive loss, Jordan has become the first Asian nation to be officially eliminated from the tournament.

Reporter Bae Jeonghun has the story.

[Reporter]

In a clash between two teams that both lost their opening matches, Jordan—facing immediate elimination with another loss today (June 23)—showed more intensity early on.

In the 36th minute of the first half, Al-Tamari attempted a shot but missed the ball, allowing it to roll back. Al-Rashdan connected with the ball, firing a right-footed outside-foot shot into the net.

Jordan’s dream of securing their first-ever World Cup victory, which seemed within reach as they led 1-0 at halftime, was shattered in the second half.

Algeria’s focus during set-piece situations proved to be the difference.

In the 24th minute of the second half, Bensebaini headed a sharp corner kick from Mahrez into the corner of the net, leveling the score.

Thirteen minutes later, another corner kick situation saw the ball drop in front of the goal, where Gouiri tapped it in with his right foot to score the winner.

With this 2-1 comeback victory, Algeria tasted the joy of a World Cup finals win for the first time in 12 years, since their victory against South Korea in 2014.

As their elimination from the group stage was confirmed following two straight losses, the Jordanian players, including FC Seoul starting defender Yazan, collapsed onto the pitch in disappointment.

[Petkovic / Algeria National Team Head Coach: We fully deserved this victory. This result will give us clear confidence and stability as we continue to compete in the tournament and prepare for the next match.]

Algeria, having boosted their chances of reaching the Round of 32 with a record of one win and one loss, will face Austria in their final group stage match to decide second place in the group.

(Video Editing: Hwang Ji-young)