As the World Cup continues and the Round of 16 is played out, Crystal Palace’s involvement in the tournament continues, as it looks evermore likely that a World Cup winner will be returning to South London later this month. 

If Colombia beat Switzerland later tonight, there will be eight Palace players in the Quarter finals, across six of the eight sides competing in the next round. 

That gives the South London club a 75% chance of having a World Cup winner in their squad, but taking into account the quality of the sides it’s more like a 60%-80% chance depending on qualification. 

The second knockout round has claimed one Palace player already, Chris Richards suffering a humbling 4-1 defeat to Belgium after the controversy of the Folarin Balogun case overshadowed the game itself. 

Riad remained out after the knock he collected in the previous round against the Netherlands, but it was a convincing win for Morocco against co-hosts Canada. Riad’s injury caused concern for Palace fans, but Morocco manager Mohamed Ouabhi provided a positive update ahead of their 3-0 RO16 win. 

Morocco will face France in the QFs, in an all Palace affair. 

Facing the Atlas Lions in the next round, France scraped beyond a resolute Paraguay side. Kylian Mbappé scored the decisive goal from the penalty spot, before calling out a member of the Paraguay government for her abhorrent racist comments. 

Neither Lacroix or Mateta featured, as Deschamps made just two substitutes. 

Perhaps the biggest upset of the RO16, Norway defeated five times winners Brazil to reach their first World Cup quarter final in almost 30 years. Strand Larsen has possibly the hardest job in World football in terms of breaking into the side, as dislodging Erling Haaland is borderline impossible. 

The Manchester City striker scored both goals as Norway won 2-1, setting up a quarter final against England. Whilst Strand Larsen has not featured much, it’s been an incredible tournament for the Palace striker, being part of a history making Norway side. 

Jordan Pickford continues to impress for Thomas Tuchel’s side as England beat Mexico 3-2 in an all time classic of a World Cup game. Despite going down to ten men, the Three Lions stood firm and made their way into the quarter finals. 

Whilst Henderson is yet to play, and likely won’t, being part of this England group is a very special thing. 

Another player who has mainly featured as a substitute at this tournament, Pino failed to make it off the bench as his side beat Cristiano Roanldo’s Portugal 1-0, Arsenal’s Mikel Merino scoring the winner in the 91st minute. 

Spain will face Belgium as the European Champions, and Pino, hope to continue their push for glory. 

Colombia face Switzerland later this evening as Lerma and Muñoz aim to steer their side into a World Cup quarter final. Colombia has had a really strong tournament, and gone under the radar for a lot of people. Muñoz has scored twice, and Lerma has played in every single game of the tournament. 

If they win, they’ll face Argentina in an all South American tie, after Lionel Messi inspired his nation to a dramatic turnaround against Egypt.