A stoppage time penalty from Giorgos Samaras gave Greece a dramatic 2-1 victory over Ivory Coast in their final Group C match on Tuesday and took them through to the knock-out stages of the World Cup for the first time.
Samaras stroked home a controversial 93rd minute penalty after he was judged to have been tripped in the box by Giovanni Sio as the Greeks poured forward in search of a winner.
Replays showed that Samaras caught his foot on Sio’s calf, tripped and fell, but Ecuadorian referee Carlos Vera pointed to the spot and Samaras cooly converted the kick. Greece’s win left them second in the group on four points, one ahead of Ivory Coast.
The Ivorians kept plugging away after the break and equalized on 74 minutes, substitute striker Wilfried Bony connecting with a low cross from Gervinho.
That would have been enough to take the Africans through until Samaras’s late strike turned the tie on its head once more and sent the Ivorians home at the group stage for the third consecutive World Cup.
