Australia just did something that felt inevitable in hindsight but improbable on paper. The Socceroos dismantled Turkiye 2-0 at BC Place in Vancouver, extending a quietly remarkable pattern: every nation that failed to reach the World Cup knockout rounds has now fallen to Australia in this tournament.
The result lands like a sledgehammer for Turkiye, whose return to the World Cup after a 24-year absence, their first appearance since that magical 2002 run, has now taken a very dark turn.
Irankunda announces himself on the biggest stage
The story of the match was Nestory Irankunda. The 20-year-old opened the scoring in the 27th minute with the kind of goal that makes neutral fans pick a side.
For nearly 50 minutes after that, Turkiye pushed forward looking for an equalizer. They never found it. Instead, Connor Metcalfe killed the contest in the 75th minute, converting on a counterattack that had been the tactical blueprint all evening.
