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Still a European surprise: 4-point gurus Greece thrive on latest upset at World Cup

Associated Press
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A Greek soccer supporter celebrates the win of his team in a World Cup soccer match in front of a Presidential guard outside the Greek Parliament, in central Athens, on Wednesday, June 25, 2014. Greece won Ivory Coast 2-1 to advance to the round of 16 for the first time in their World Cup history. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris) (The Associated Press)

Greece soccer supporters celebrate their team's win in a World Cup soccer match in front of the city's landmark of White Tower, in the northern Greek port of Thessaloniki, on Wednesday, June 25, 2014. Greece won Ivory Coast 2-1 to advance to the round of 16 for the first time in their World Cup history. (AP Photo/Nikolas Giakoumidis) (The Associated Press)

Talk about close.

Greece is through to the last 16 at the World Cup by the slimmest of imaginable margins: Thrashed by Colombia 3-0 in the opener, holding Japan 0-0 with 10 men, and only scoring in its final game.

Georgios Samaras' injury time penalty on Tuesday provided the 2-1 win needed to eliminate Ivory Coast in Group C.

After disappointing in their first two matches, the Greeks came alive against Didier Drogba's favored Africans. Their reshuffled lineup produced a string of scoring chances — hitting the woodwork three times and narrowly missing twice with striker Dimitris Salpingidis.

The secret to Greece's success, Samaras said, was that team members played unselfishly.