Nicolas Pépé struck twice as Ivory Coast secured a historic first-ever qualification for the knockout stages of the FIFA World Cup with a comfortable 2-0 victory over debutants Curaçao.
The Elephants needed just a point to advance from Group E but produced a professional performance at Philadelphia Stadium to finish second and set up a round-of-32 clash.
Pépé opened the scoring in the seventh minute, tapping home after Curaçao’s defence was caught out, with Yan Diomande providing the assist. He sealed the win in the 64th minute with a clinical left-footed finish into the top corner, assisted by Ibrahim Sangaré.
The win marks a breakthrough for Ivory Coast, who had exited at the group stage in their previous three World Cup appearances in 2006, 2010 and 2014.
Curaçao, the smallest nation by population to compete at a men’s World Cup, bowed out after earning one point from their three matches, including a draw against Ecuador. They created chances, notably when Juninho Bacuna fired wide shortly before half-time.
Attendance at the match was 68,324. Ivory Coast will face either France or Norway in the round of 32 on June 30.
