Cedric Bakambu in dreamland as the DR Congo seal World Cup place

Former England under-21 international Axel Tuanzebe scored the vital goal in the 100th minute at the Akron Stadium to seal the country's first World Cup appearance in 52 years.

The DR Congo last played at the 1974 tournament but grabbed the second-last available slot at this year's tournament to take their place in Group K alongside Portugal, Uzbekistan and Colombia.

Speaking after the game, an ecstatic Bakambu said on BBC: "We're happy, we're really delighted.

"Right now, I don't think we fully realise it yet, but when we â‹get back to Kinshasa, it's going to be crazy. Congratulations to my teammates and to all Congolese âŒpeople around the world."

"It's very frustrating to lose like that, very frustrating," said Jamaica striker Ephron Mason-Clark. It's tournament football, we're just lacking a goal, that's all. Right now, it's difficult to take any positives from ⁠this experience."

Elsewhere on Tuesday, Iraq booked their World Cup spot with defeat of Bolivia as Italy sensationally missed out on a third successive World Cup after losing a penalty shoot-out to Bosnia.

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