Hello and welcome to Sports Mole's live news coverage from day 17 of the World Cup.
Following a rest day in Brazil, the second round gets underway this evening with the hosts taking on Chile and the Netherlands facing Mexico.
We will be bringing you all of the build-up ahead of those two matches as well as other news and gossip coming out of the tournament.
Hello and welcome to Sports Mole's live news coverage from day 17 of the World Cup in Brazil. The action gets back underway today with Brazil taking on Chile and the Netherlands facing Mexico the second round, but let's start things off by taking a look at some of the headlines from overnight...
Teofilo Gutierrez: 'Uruguay will be tough to beat'
Rodrigo Paiva: 'Brazil don't rely on referees for help'
Jorge Sampaoli: 'Chile will play a fast game'
Wesley Sneijder has claimed that the Netherlands are confident of beating Mexico and reaching the quarter-finals of the World Cup. The Dutch return to action tomorrow having finished at the top of Group B with three wins from three matches.
Former Chile striker Ivan Zamorano has praised the current squad for showing a winning mentality at the World Cup. The South Americans continue their campaign this evening when they face hosts Brazil for a place in the quarter-finals.
Chile coach Jorge Sampaoli has confirmed that Arturo Vidal is ready to face Brazil in the second round tonight. The midfielder missed his country's final group game against the Netherlands due to a persistent knee problem.
Former France forward Youri Djorkaeff has warned the current team not to get carried away by their strong start to the tournament. Les Bleus will face Nigeria in the last 16 on Monday after finishing at the top of Group E with two wins and a draw from their three matches.
Chile forward Alexis Sanchez has claimed that his side's second-round clash with Brazil will be a gruelling affair. The Chileans head into the match having been knocked out of three previous World Cups by their South-American rivals down the years.
More from the Chile camp now with striker Mauricio Pinilla claiming that he and his teammates are "not remotely afraid of Brazil" ahead of their encounter this evening. Strong words indeed...
Speaking of tonight's matches, you can brush up on what's what by checking out our previews below:
Mexico goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa has warned his teammates that they must not just focus on Arjen Robben when they face the Netherlands in the second round of the World Cup. Robben has been one of the standout stars for the Dutch so far at the tournament, scoring three goals in three games.
Colombia coach Jose Pekerman has warned his players that the World Cup is only going to get harder for them after reaching the second round. The Colombians face fellow South Americans Uruguay tonight with a place in the quarter-finals awaiting the winners.
Germany coach Joachim Low has praised Thomas Muller following his impressive start to the World Cup in Brazil. The forward is currently at the top of the Golden Boot standings with four goals alongside Argentina's Lionel Messi and Brazil's Neymar.
We've been trawling through all of the group stage goals at the World Cup this morning, trying to pick out the top five. It was pretty difficult considering how many incredible strikes there have been at the tournament, but we've just about been able to come up with a list. Check out this link to see what goals we've chosen...
Porto striker Jackson Martinez has revealed that he will not think about his future until Colombia's World Cup campaign is over. The 27-year-old has been linked with a host of clubs across Europe after scoring two goals in two games for his country during the group stage of the tournament.
A bit more from Martinez now, who believes that Colombia are better than Uruguay and should make it through to the quarter-finals of the tournament. The Uruguayans might have a thing or two to say about that when they meet in Rio de Janeiro tonight...
More build-up ahead of Uruguay's encounter with Colombia with Uruguayan forward Christian Stuani admitting that his team faces a tough challenge against their fellow South Americans this evening.
That's all from me for today, but I'm pleased to say that Simon Sinclair will be with you for the next three hours to take you through all of the latest news and gossip coming out of Brazil. Enjoy!
Thanks Jack. Good afternoon everyone I'm Simon Sinclair and I'll be taking you through this afternoon with all latest news from the World Cup and the build-up to the first match of the second round when Brazil take on Chile.
Germany keeper Manuel Neuer believes that his side's potential success at the World Cup hinges on the availability of Thomas Muller. The 24-year-old has scored four goals in his first three matches at the tournament.
A blow for Belgium as defender Anthony Vanden Borre will miss the rest of the World Cup. The 26-year-old sustained a broken ankle in his side's win over South Korea in their final Group G game after covering for the rested Toby Alderweireld.
Argentina legend Diego Maradona believes that Brazil have been too reliant on the goals of Neymar at the World Cup. The 22-year-old has scored four of his side's seven goals at the tournament.
Maradona wrote in the Times of India: "A lot will obviously depend on Neymar. He will be heavily marked and how he handles that will go a long way in deciding the outcome of this match. He has been the Messi of this side but over-reliance isn't a good sign."
Uruguay striker Luis Suarez has revealed that he did not intend to bite Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini in their clash earlier this week. The 27-year-old has insisted that he fell into the Juventus man and injured his cheek and teeth in the process.
He wrote in a letter to FIFA, according to the AP: "In no way it happened how you have described, as a bite or intent to bite. After the impact ... I lost my balance, making my body unstable and falling on top of my opponent."
FIFA president Sepp Blatter is adamant that Uruguay striker Luis Suarez's bite on Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini was not fair play.
He told reporters: "I am fighting for fair play on the field of play and fair play off the field of play, but especially on the field of play and this is not fair, what he has done. It's definitely not fair."
Netherlands midfielder Wesley Sneijder has claimed that his side are more than capable of winning the World Cup and going one better from their performance in South African four years ago.
TEAM NEWS: Brazil vs. Chile
BRAZIL STARTING XI: Julio Cesar, Dani Alves, Thiago Silva, David Luiz, Fernandinho, Marcelo, Hulk, Fred, Neymar, Oscar, Luiz Gustavo.
CHILE STARTING XI: Bravo, Mena, Isla, Silva, Sanchez, Vidal, Vargas, Medel, Jara, Aranguiz, Dias.
You can follow all the action from the clash between Brazil and Chile with Matt Law in Sports Mole's minute-by-minute commentary here.
For a comprehensive roundup of all the team news from Belo Horizonte, click here for our team news article as both managers make one change each for the last-16 clash.
Mexico midfielder Andres Guardado feels that his side can accomplish a lot more at the World Cup after reaching the second round of the competition.
Miguel Herrera's side take on the Netherlands in their last-16 clash on Sunday.
Just over 10 minutes to kickoff in Belo Horizonte and you can keep up-to-date with all the action as it happens with our live commentary which can be found here.
Wesley Sneijder believes that the Netherlands proved their doubters wrong by winning Group B comfortably after some predicted that Louis van Gaal's men would struggle at the World Cup.
Sneijder told FIFA.com: "When you win, the atmosphere is always fantastic. We were in a very tough group and before the tournament a lot of people were saying that we didn't stand much of a chance of progressing."
Right that's it from me, I'll now hand you over to Pascal Lemesre who will take you through all this evening's action and news.
Evening folks! What a game it should be in Belo Horizonte. After two amazing national anthems, the South American duo are underway in the sunshine. A reminder that our live text coverage can be found ➜ here.
Thirteen minutes in and Brazil want a penalty as Hulk bursts into the area and falls over under a Chilean challenge. Howard Webb says no, and I agree with that call. The fan park in Rio is jam-packed, look at this photo:
Brazil have taken the lead in Belo Horizonte through David Luiz. The PSG defender managed to bundle the ball home at the back post from a corner. It may have been a Gonzalo Jara own goal, but FIFA have given the goal to Luiz - his first for his country.
It's now all square in the first last-16 match as Alexis Sanchez rolls the ball into the corner after Brazil gave possession away cheaply deep in their own half.
HALF TIME in Belo Horizonte and it's all square after a pulsating half of football. Read all about it in our half-time report here.
The two sides are back out for the second half. A reminder that you can follow the match in detail ➜ here.
Brazil think they've retaken the lead, but Hulk's finish is ruled out as he appeared to control the ball with his right bicep. Very close to his chest, but that ball would have got away from him if it hadn't hit his arm. Here's Neymar trying to make his mark:
It remains all square in Belo Horizonte with around 10 minutes of normal time remaining. After the high-octane first half, energy levels for both teams seem to have dipped and at the moment we're heading for extra time.
Extra time it is in Belo Horizonte!
After an extended break at the end of 90 minutes, we're back underway in Belo Horizonte. Both sides have one change left to make.
No goals in the opening 15 minutes of extra time. As I've mentioned before, the all-action first half appears to have drained both teams and penalties really do look on the cards at the moment.
Here's a great shot of Neymar receiving treatment ahead of the extra-time period. Brazil now on top with around five minutes until penalties.
Our reporter Matt Law says on the live blog: "In truth, extra-time has been a non-event, with neither side really doing enough to deserve to claim the victory. Penalties are just around the corner and it will be the harshiest of exits for one of these sides."
But, hang on, Chile hit the crossbar! Mauricio Pinilla with a late chance and he thunders it back off the crossbar!
PENALTIES in Belo Horizonte! Follow every single one on our live commentary page here.
Brazil win the shootout 3-2 after a miss at the crucial time by Gonzalo Jara. Here's our full match report.
That's my time here on the blog done. What a thriller! Christopher Dodd is now taking over to guide you through Colombia-Uruguay and more!
Thanks, Pascal. Wow, that was really something else - wasn't it? If only Pinilla's shot had crept under the bar... We've got other important matters to attend to now as Colombia prepare to face Uruguay at 9pm in their last-16 clash. Uruguay will obviously be without Luis Suarez, with Diego Forlan coming into the team to add some attacking intent. We'll keep you up-to-date with the team news, as well as how things develop throughout the game.
Colombia are preparing to face Uruguay tonight using the same levels of respect paid out to the teams they faced in their group. Centre-back Mario Yepes has been speaking about his side's mindset ahead of the game this evening.
We've just got underway at the Estadio Maracana, where the winner of tonight's fixture will face Brazil in the next round. Chile midfielder Arturo Vidal has been speaking about his side's exit this afternoon. You can read what he's had to say here.
Colombia have just taken the lead after 28 minutes and it has come courtesy of a superb solo volley from James Rodriguez. I think we'll be seeing that strike for some time to come.
It's half time in our final last-16 offering tonight, with Colombia holding a 1-0 lead over Uruguay. There hasn't been too much to choose between the two sides, apart from James Roridguez's standout volley. We've also been hearing of some reaction from Chile manager Jorge Sampaoli, who has been speaking of his pride despite his side's exit from the tournament earlier.
Colombia appear on the brink of setting up a quarter-final clash with Brazil, as Roridguez has just put them 2-0 ahead. It was a fine team goal, but credit will also go to the midfielder for an adroit finish.
Brazil's star centre-back David Luiz has been talking about the pain he felt as he stepped up to take a vital penalty against Chile this afternoon. Not only did he net the spot-kick under pressure, but he was also responsible for Brazil's opener through a finish at the back post earlier in the game.
There we have it, then: Colombia beat Uruguay 2-0 to knock Oscar Tabarez and his men out of the World Cup. James Rodriguez grabbed a brace in the encounter and will be totally deserving of the amount of praise that is set to come his way after a match-winning performance. The Colombians will now play their first-ever quarter final in a World Cup, which will come against South American rivals and tournament hosts Brazil.
That's it from me tonight, folks. I'll be handing you over to Mark Langshaw, who'll be taking you through all of the fall out from today's encounters.
Thanks, Christopher. What an evening it's been in Brazil. We've had a bold performance from Chile, a dramatic penalty shootout, and what was arguable the goal of the tournament from James Rodriguez. Still to come on Sports Mole tonight is reaction from both matches and analysis from Colombia's win over Uruguay.
In case you have just joined us, Colombia have just booked their place in the quarter-finals with a comprehensive 2-0 win over a Suarezless Uruguay. You can read our match report for that game here. Earlier today, hosts Brazil knocked out Chile in a penalty shootout following a 1-1 draw. Our match report on that one can be found here.
Brazil goalkeeper Julio Cesar cried tears of joy following his side's penalty shootout win over Chile. The QPR man was part of the Brazil side that were knocked out of the 2010 World Cup by Holland, so it was the flipside of the same coin for him this evening. You can find some of his post-match comments
Looking ahead to one of the other last-16 fixtures we have coming up, Belgium coach Marc Wilmots has likened his side's clash with the USA to a war. You can check out his comments here.
You wouldn't like him when he's angry. Hulk has expressed his frustration at having what he claims was a perfectly legitimate goal disallowed against Chile. You can read more about what he had to say here.
Fallout from Colombia's 2-0 win over Uruguay is on the way, but in the meantime you can check out our analysis of the match here.
Colombia's two-goal hero James Rodriguez has opened up about his team's feat of reaching the quarter-finals for the first time in their history, putting it down to teamwork. You can read more about what he had to say here. Player ratings from that match can be found here.
Nobody can accuse Uruguay manager Oscar Tabarez of being a sore loser. He has insisted that he is proud of his players despite their defeat to Colombia and wished their fellow South Americans well in the next round. You can read his post-match comments in full here.
James Rodriguez's goalscoring exploits at this summer's World Cup has sparked speculation about his future, and the Monaco man has stoked these fires by expressing his desire to one day play in Spain's La Liga. You can check out his comments in full here.
Although James Rodriguez has just dumped his team out of the tournament, Uruguay boss Oscar Tabarez is in awe of the striker, hailing him as "the best player at the World Cup". Find out what else he had to say here.
Right, it's time to look ahead to tomorrow's matches. The Netherlands take on Mexico in the 5pm kickoff and the tournament's giant killers Costa Rica are up against Greece at 9pm. You can find Sports Mole's previews of those games here and here.
That's all we have time for tonight, but be sure to join us tomorrow for live coverage of both last-16 ties, as well as news, results, reaction, analysis and more. Goodnight, folks, and thanks for joining us!
