DOHA, Qatar -- Xherdan Shaqiri took off as soon as the ball hit the back of the net.
It was no surprise where he was headed after scoring the first goal in Switzerland's 3-2 win over Serbia on Friday, a result that put his team into the round of 16 at the World Cup for the third tournament in a row.
Born in Kosovo, which declared independence from Serbia in 2008, Shaqiri ran straight to the opposing fans to celebrate -- putting his finger to his lips after having been previously taunted by that section of the crowd.
The game was only 20 minutes old and the tension was palpable.
"You can hear by listening to my voice, it's hoarse, that it was a game with a lot of emotions," Switzerland midfielder Granit Xhaka said. "It is part of football. The game was fair enough. We wanted to focus on football. We did this and we took this first step and are now into the round of 16. We are proud."
Most importantly for Switzerland, it went through to the knockout round after finishing second in Group G and will next face Portugal and Cristiano Ronaldo on Tuesday at Lusail Stadium.
But the tensions surrounding this particular match-up always threatened to explode.
The countries met in the group stage at the last World Cup in 2018, resulting in a Swiss victory, but Shaqiri and Xhaka were fined for celebrating with hand gestures representing Albania's national eagle symbol.
Xhaka and Shaqiri have Albanian heritage linked to Kosovo.
Serbia was also fined and warned by FIFA about the "display of discriminatory banners and messages" by supporters.
An announcement was made at Stadium 974 during Friday's match that appeared to be in relation to chanting from the Serbian fans. FIFA wouldn't say what the announcement was after the match.
"I didn't hear it. Honestly, I didn't hear," Serbia Coach Dragan Stojkovic said of the chants. "I was focusing on the game."
There was enough happening on the field, including Remo Freuler's winning goal just after halftime and several flare ups between the players.
"First of all, I want to enjoy the moment," Switzerland Coach Murat Yakin said after being asked about the behavior of his players during a ill-tempered match. "It cost us a lot of energy and emotions. We went through a lot."
A number of Serbia's substitutes burst onto the field in the second half when Aleksandar Mitrovic had a penalty appeal denied. Xhaka was at the heart of a heated melee late in the game.
"Sometimes, you know, tensions come and maybe bad words create uncomfortable behavior," Stojkovic said. "But it is nothing special. It is normal for this kind of game."
CAMEROON 1,
BRAZIL 0
LUSAIL, Qatar -- Vincent Aboubakar's powerful header was historic for Cameroon and Africa at the World Cup.
The stoppage-time goal didn't help Cameroon reach the round of 16 despite the team's win over Brazil's reserves. But it handed the five-time champions their first group-stage loss in 24 years, and gave Africa its first win against the Seleçao at the tournament.
Aboubakar was sent off after a second booking for taking off his shirt during his celebration, leading him to miss the final minutes of his team's big victory.
"I didn't even realize that this was such a historic victory," Cameroon Coach Rigobert Song said. "We are one of the African countries that played the most World Cups, and now we've beaten Brazil."
Brazil had won its previous seven matches against African opponents at the World Cup.
"We can be proud of what we've done tonight," Cameroon goalkeeper Devis Epassy said. "We worked very hard. Unfortunately, though, we didn't qualify, and that's why are are not too happy."
Brazil, which had already reached the knockout stage after victories over Serbia and Switzerland, still finished first in Group H. It ended with six points, the same as Switzerland, but the South Americans had a better goal difference. Cameroon ended with four points and Serbia had one.
SOUTH KOREA 2,
PORTUGAL 1
AL RAYYAN, Qatar -- South Korea advanced to the round of 16 at the World Cup on the tiebreaker of goals scored after beating Portugal following a stoppage-time strike from Hwang Hee-chan.
South Korea was heading out of the tournament until Son Heung-min led a length-of-the-field breakaway in the first minute of added time and slipped a pass through to Hwang, who converted a low finish.
Son and his teammates then formed a huddle in the middle of the field after the final whistle and watched coverage of the end of the other Group H match between Uruguay and Ghana on a cell phone. South Korea's team's fans were in tears, and some were praying.
When that game finished 2-0 to Uruguay and South Korea was sure of its second-place finish, the players erupted in joy.
South Korea finished even with Uruguay with four points and both had a goal difference of zero, but the Asian team scored four goals compared to Uruguay's two.
URUGUAY 2,
GHANA 0
AL WAKRAH, Qatar -- Uruguay and Luis Suarez were eliminated from the World Cup despite a win over Ghana.
The result also put Ghana out of the competition.
Suarez played a key role in both first-half goals for Uruguay scored by Giorgian De Arrascaeta.
Uruguay was in a position to go through until South Korea's late goal gave it a 2-1 win over Portugal in the other Group H game. That meant Uruguay needed to score one more goal in the dying minutes of its game to qualify.
It didn't and Suarez was distraught on the sidelines and covered his face with his shirt having been substituted in what was likely his last World Cup appearance.
Serbian soccer fans rejoice as they watch their team's Group G World Cup match against Switzerland, played in Qatar, on a big screen in Belgrade, Serbia, Friday, Dec. 2, 2022. (AP Photo/Marko Drobnjakovic)
Switzerland's Ricardo Rodriguez attempts a goal during the World Cup group G soccer match between Serbia and Switzerland, at the Stadium 974 in Doha, Qatar, Friday, Dec. 2, 2022. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)
Switzerland's Remo Freuler scores his side's third goal during the World Cup group G soccer match between Serbia and Switzerland, at the Stadium 974 in Doha, Qatar, Friday, Dec. 2, 2022. (AP Photo/Ricardo Mazalan)
Switzerland's Xherdan Shaqiri celebrates after scoring his side's first goal during the World Cup group G soccer match between Serbia and Switzerland, in Doha, Qatar, Qatar, Friday Dec. 2, 2022. (AP Photo/Ricardo Mazalan)
Switzerland's Xherdan Shaqiri, right, celebrates with teammate Breel Embolo after scoring his side's first goal during the World Cup group G soccer match between Serbia and Switzerland, in Doha, Qatar, Qatar, Friday Dec. 2, 2022. (AP Photo/Ricardo Mazalan)
Serbia's Aleksandar Mitrovic celebrates after scoring his side's first goal during the World Cup group G soccer match between Serbia and Switzerland, in Doha, Qatar, Qatar, Friday Dec. 2, 2022. (AP Photo/Ricardo Mazalan)
Serbia's Aleksandar Mitrovic celebrates after scoring his side's first goal during the World Cup group G soccer match between Serbia and Switzerland, in Doha, Qatar, Qatar, Friday Dec. 2, 2022. (AP Photo/Ricardo Mazalan)
Switzerland's Xherdan Shaqiri controls the ball during the World Cup group G soccer match between Serbia and Switzerland, at the Stadium 974 in Doha, Qatar, Friday, Dec. 2, 2022. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)
Serbia's Dusan Vlahovic celebrates after scoring his side's second goal during the World Cup group G soccer match between Serbia and Switzerland, at the Stadium 974 in Doha, Qatar, Friday, Dec. 2, 2022. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)Gallery: World Cup in Qatar, 12-2-2022.
