Manuela Vanegas headed a stoppage-time winner to give Colombia a 2-1 upset victory over Germany just when the twice world champions thought they had saved a point in a thrilling Women’s World Cup clash at Sydney Football Stadium on Sunday.
The defender powered the ball home from a corner eight minutes after German striker Alexandra Popp had converted a penalty to cancel out a stunning strike from Colombian teenager Linda Caicedo.
Caicedo, who gave her team a fright by collapsing in training on Thursday, had delighted the massed ranks of her compatriots in the 40,499 crowd by curling the ball into the top corner in the 52nd minute.
The 27th-ranked Colombians now need only a draw against Morocco in their final Group H match to be certain of reaching the last 16, while Germany are still likely to progress if they beat South Korea in their last fixture.
Norway made it through to the knockouts with a 6-0 win over the Philippines while New Zealand were knocked out after a draw with Switzerland.
