World Cup Final – Lionel Messi Leads Argentina to Victory

This was a fantastic tournament on the pitch. Not quite the best tournament of all time, but still very good nonetheless. We should remember it for the football, not who hosted it.

I can remember watching World Cup finals going back to the late 90s, and I have to say that this was the best one I have ever seen. An absolutely thrilling match in every way.

Argentina vs. France

The opening half of this match belonged to the South Americans, full stop. They were better in possession and looked much more threatening in attack. They went up 1-0 on 23 minutes from the penalty spot, after Argie winger Angel Di Maria went down in the French penalty area. The contact on Di Maria from French winger Ousmane Dembélé appeared to be minimal, but Di Maria is a master of making the most out of contact in the box and the referee pointed to the spot. The legendary attacking midfielder and captain Lionel Messi stepped up to the spot, and with the eyes of the entire world on him, he calmly sent French keeper Hugo Lloris the wrong way for the first goal of the match.

La Albiceleste extended their lead on 36 minutes after a very swift and precise counter-attack. They won the ball just outside their own box and after a series of neat passes involving Messi and striker Julián Álvarez, the ball was played to midfielder Alexis Mac Allister in space just outside the French penalty area on the right side. Mac Allister hit a deft diagonal pass back across the face of goal along the ground, where it found Di Maria streaking toward the back post. He redirected his first-time shot back across Lloris and into the right hand corner of the net. He wheeled away in celebration of a beautiful counter-attacking goal. Di Maria has not played much this tournament due to injury and fitness issues, but he still an incredible player and he certainly contributed heavily today. The two goal deficit forced France into tactical substitutions on just 40 minutes, a rarity at this level. At 2-0 though, Argentina went into halftime with one hand on the Jules Rimet trophy.

But it was indeed only one hand. They needed to come out and continue attacking the French, but for whatever reason they did not seem as committed to doing that as they were against Croatia in the semis. This approach was a cause for concern. Yes it was 2-0, but the Argentines have given up two goal leads at this very tournament. Their defense is good, but they have problems holding up to sustained pressure with no outlet. Almost any defense would. They kept France out for about 34 minutes or so, but everything changed on 79 minutes when French striker Randal Kolo Muani was fouled in the box after beating his defender to the ball. Truth be told, if the light contact in the box on Di Maria earlier was a penalty, then this one was definitely a penalty. Muani sold it well, but the contact on the back of his leg was much more significant than the one on Di Maria earlier. Superstar striker Kylian Mbappé stepped up to the spot and planted the ball past a diving Emiliano Martinez in goal to pull one back for Les Bleus. Martinez frustratingly got a hand to the ball, but the shot had so much power on it that he couldn’t keep it out.

This match turned into absolute bedlam just a minute later though, barely after the restart. France won the ball in the Argentina third, and Mbappé played a very neat 1-2 with forward/winger Marcus Thuram on the left side of the Argentine penalty area. Thuram’s neat ball over the top found a sliding Mbappe, who swept home with an impressive finish from about 16 yards that Martinez had no chance at. A truly impressive goal from a very impressive striker. Argentina were shell-shocked and the French were in ecstasy. The Argies had this match won, but they lost their heads for just a moment France punished them. The goals in quick succession late on were also typical of France. They had done largely nothing in this match in terms of creating dangerous chances, until they all of a sudden decided to start playing aggressive roughly 80 minutes in. Argentina brought this on themselves though. A third goal at any point before then would have salted the match away, but they played too conservative and took their foot off the gas. There was chances for both sides after that goal, but after 90 minutes and stoppage time it was still 2-2.

Extra time would be needed to decide this match, and the chaos would continue for another 30 minutes. Argentina had been attacking more since the French goals, and France’s defense was looking shaky at best. Lloris had to spectacularly deny Messi the winner in stoppage time from long distance. They’d always manage to get the final block or clearance in, but Argentina were in the ascendancy for the first half of extra time. They got their reward on 108 minutes from the magical Messi once again. The Argentine front 3 combined well with a series of passes that quickly found substitute striker Lautaro Martinez. Martinez unleashed a wicked shot from about 12 yards out on the right side that Lloris did well to save, but the rebound fell straight to Messi who powered a shot over the line. A French defender cleared the ball out quickly, but he was at least 3 yards inside his own goal and the ball definitively crossed the line before he cleared it. Messi celebrated with his teammates and after a quick VAR check for offside, the goal stood. 3-2!

Argentina supporters had thought they won it. And normally, a goal that late is the winner. But France weren’t done. There would be one more twist of the knife, and it came on 118 minutes when France were awarded a second penalty. A shot from Mbappé towards goal was blocked by Argentina, but it came off the elbow of right back Gonzalo Montiel in the area. I saw this exact same thing happen in a Paris St. Germain match in the Champions League a few seasons ago – a defender jumping and turning in the air to make a block that results in a handball. Defenders are trained to turn their backs to the ball when trying to clear an oncoming shot, but a side effect of jumping into the air is that one’s arms tend to be raised up to one’s sides. Under the old handball rules this kind of deflection likely would not be a penalty as the defender wouldn’t even be looking at the ball, but nowadays if the arm is an “unnatural position” when it contacts the ball, it’s a penalty. What constitutes “unnatural” however is not always clear. It looked harsh on Montiel, but it’s the correct call under the current rules. Mbappé confidently stepped up and dispatched his penalty to complete his hat-trick on the day. He sent Martinez the wrong way, and in doing so became just the second man to score a hat-trick in a World Cup Final. 3-3!

The French got one more gilt-edged chance in stoppage time of extra time when Argentina failed to clear a bouncing ball over the top and it fell to Kolo Muani on the edge of the area. Martinez rushed out and made himself big, and in doing so pulled off one of the biggest saves of the tournament with his left leg. Kolo Muani should have scored and he knew it. The final whistle blew though shortly after that and we were headed to penalties.

Penalties are always a test of nerves, and it was the Argentines who had slightly more nerve. The keeper Martinez is a big man of course but he has an equally big personality, and he is never short on confidence. His aura alone was much more imposing than that of Lloris. Aside from Mbappé, I wasn’t really impressed with any of the French penalty takers. They weren’t willing to take risks with their shots in the same way Argentina was. The French missed one penalty wide, and I think 1-2 more of them were saved by Martinez. When Montiel redeemed himself for the penalty by scoring the winner, Messi sank to his knees in the center circle and yelled with joy while he was mobbed by his teammates. Argentina won 4-2 on penalties!

Leo Messi is the greatest player ever. Hands down, no two ways about it. People talk about Pelé, Diego Maradona, and Cristiano Ronaldo all being the greatest, but it’s Messi. He has the skills, the accolades, and now he has a World Cup to hang his hat on. He has brought Argentina it’s third world cup and it’s first in 36 years, and the reactions from the people in the streets of Buenos Aires was magical. Pure elation and joy. Well done to Messi, all of his teammates, and manager Lionel Scaloni. His tactics in this match almost cost them, but not even a poor 2nd half plan could stop Messi achieving destiny. Watching him raise the trophy with his teammates was amazing to behold. His little kiss on the trophy as he walked past it earlier will be an iconic photo for years to come.

Despite the Herculean efforts of Mbappé, he could not drag his country over the line. France’s injuries finally caught up to them, and truth be told they were lucky to still be in the match despite doing basically nothing for the first 78 minutes. In most scenarios, Argentina wins this handily 2-0 in 90 minutes. It was primarily due to Mbappé that France even made it to penalties. While Messi is done at the World Cup, Mbappé is only just getting started. If France can have better luck with injuries next time, they can still easily win it in 2026.

Individual Awards:

Golden Gloves winner (best keeper) – Emiliano Martinez

Best Young Player – Enzo Fernandez

Golden Boot (top scorer) – Kylian Mbappé (8)

Golden Ball (best player) – Lionel Messi

And with that, the World Cup is over for another four years. I’ve really enjoyed doing these write-ups, and I want to thank everyone who took the time to read. Wish it was a different result for England, but us losing is nothing new. Now it’s time for a few days off before the domestic leagues start again. Manchester United play in the League Cup Round of 16 on Wednesday, Dec. 21! Congrats to Argentine center back Lisandro Martinez on bringing a World Cup winner’s medal back to the red half of Manchester!

World Cup Semifinals: Fr*nce Play Spoiler to History

FIFA is a corrupt cartel and Qatar’s government is built on repression.

France vs. Morocco

Argentina booked their place in the final decisively yesterday, and today it was all about determining who would be joining them there for a chance at history. France were the heavy favorites due to their superior talent in attack, but interestingly it appeared that Morocco’s defense may be better than France’s. Most in the stadium and those watching on TV and online were probably supporting Morocco as well, or they were if they liked rooting for the underdog. It’s been a real-life fairy tale for Morocco at this tournament. The first African side to reach the semis, and they have claimed the scalps of Belgium, Spain, and Portugal already. Very impressive from a team that not many gave a chance to.

But in this match, things were bad for Morocco almost from the off. The first goal was always going to be vital in this match, and it was the Frogs that struck first a scant five minutes into the match. A deflected and bouncing cross from the right side fell directly to left back Theo Hernandez, who was unmarked at the back post. He displayed quite a bit of athleticism to get his left foot to the ball, which had bounced up rather high on him. He struck it sweetly though and beat Moroccan keeper Yassine “Bono” Bounou at his near post. It wasn’t really Bono’s fault though, as Hernandez never should have been given that much space. It was the first time I had seen the Moroccans completely lose a man in the box this whole tournament, and they were punished for it.

I was worried how Morocco would respond as they had not been behind in this tournament up until that point, and it must be said they answered fairly well. They began getting the ball out to their wide men more effectively, and they were asking questions of Hernandez and his full back counter-part Jules Kounde. Forward/winger Hakim Ziyech was in particularly industrious form, seeming to pop up everywhere on the ball. The Moroccans were struggling to seriously test Les Bleus keeper Hugo Lloris though. He made a series of routine saves throughout the course of the first half, but I don’t think he was ever seriously worried. The French center backs Raphael Varane and Ibrahima Konaté were somehow always on hand to make the vital final tackle, with defensive midfielder Aurélien Tchouaméni helping to cover as well. The Moroccans hit the post on 45 minutes but try as they might, they just couldn’t find a way through and the first half ended at 1-0.

France were happy to have the lead of course, but everyone in the stadium was aware that the lead was an incredibly narrow one. Aside from the goal scored by France, Morocco had largely been the better team in the first half. That trend did continue for the most part in the opening stages of the second half as well. They kept running directly at the French defense, and if not again for those vital clearances at the last minute, Morocco could have exposed their back line. The French however started to find their attack again as the second half wore on. Winger/midfielder Antoine Griezmann was a monster in this match for them, particularly in the second half. His ball carrying and ability to win fouls were indispensable for his team today.

The match was put to bed on 79 minutes when France got their second, and maddeningly it was only their second real attack of the match. They worked the ball around the edge of the area well after Morocco gave the ball away in midfield. It eventually found the feet of striker Kylian Mbappe, who dribbled neatly into the area to get a shot away. A tackle came in at the last second though, which caused his shot to skid at an odd angle along the ground and straight into the path of substitute striker Randal Kolo Muani. Kolo Muani had been on the pitch for all of about 40 seconds before being presented with the greatest gift a striker can receive; the ball directly in front of him two yards from goal with keeper beaten. Bono had been trying to cover his near post to account for Mbappe, but the deflection took him completely out of the play. Well done to Kolo Muani for being in the right place at the right time and credit to France manager Didier Deschamps for the substitution as well, but it was a truly unlucky goal to concede from Morocco’s point of view.

Although the north Africans were visibly deflated after the second goal went in, they kept fighting nevertheless. They won a series of free kicks and corners that would have worried French fans, but nothing direct ever really came of them. Their best chance of the match came in stoppage time when a shot from close range was cleared off the line by Kounde with Lloris stranded. It was just not Morocco’s day today, and that happens sometimes in this sport. You can do everything right, but the ball just doesn’t want to go in. France were the more clinical side despite being less attacking-inclined, and they won 2-0. They are the first team with a chance to win successive World Cups in close to 60 years.

For Morocco, that early France goal really did them in. They are not a team built to chase games. They should be proud though. No matter the result today, just getting to the semifinals was a massive achievement for them. They did ever so well in this tournament and will be a nation to reckon with for years to come. Defensive midfielder Sofyan Amrabat needs to be in the team of the tournament, along with one or two of their back line. Defenders the world over can take lessons from the discipline and tackling shown by Morocco at this World Cup.

World Cup Final – France vs. Argentina – Sunday, December 18th 11 AM PST (there’s also the third place match on Saturday between Croatia and Morocco but I am decidedly unenthusiastic about third place)

World Cup Quarterfinals – Morocco Make History, France and Their Referee Progress

This post is dedicated to American soccer journalist Grant Wahl and Qatari photojournalist Khalid Al-Misslam. Both of them died in Qatar recently and very suddenly. Wahl was (rightfully) a vocal critic of Qatar’s government and a very well-respected sports journalist. The causes of death for each of these gentlemen are unknown, but any time a journalist dies in a repressive country like Qatar, the death needs to be fully investigated. It’s unknown if foul play was involved or not as their causes of death have not been released, but there is always that suspicion when a public critic of a country unexpectedly dies while in that country. Also, whatever Qatar or FIFA says about his death should probably be met with a high degree of scrutiny.

Portugal vs. Morocco

Morocco made history last Saturday when they beat Portugal 1-0 and became the first African team to progress to the semifinals of the World Cup! Huge result for them, and it cannot be understated just how important that victory is for African football. Their style of play is not pretty and it has attracted plenty of criticism, although most of that is coming from the players of teams they have already beaten. It doesn’t matter what tactics a team uses to win though, so long as they’re legal. And of course, there’s nothing improper about parking the bus!

Striker Yousseff En-Nesyri got the only goal on 42 minutes, after he got his head to a lovely cross from left back Yahia Attiat-Allah. He beat Portuguese keeper Diogo Costa to the ball, and his downward header bounced over the line and back up into the roof of the net. The fans in the stadium were overwhelmingly in support of Morocco, and the crowd erupted into pandemonium once the ball went in. The Moroccan defense, marshalled by defensive midfielder Sofyan Amrabat, then did their now-customary job of holding firm while waves of Portuguese attacks crashed against their defense for the entirety of the second half.

Despite going down to 10 men in stoppage time, the Moroccans held firm and were the winners at the final whistle. Well done to them all. They’ve now scalped Belgium, Spain, and Portugal. The Iberians for their part were not direct enough in this match. They had all the possession of course, but that possession was not purposeful enough. It’s going to take something special to breach this incredibly stout Moroccan defense, and Portugal lacked the creativity to find a goal. The north Africans shut down in-form striker Gonçalo Ramos, and striker Cristiano Ronaldo was once again ineffective. Ronaldo has not officially retired from Portugal now that his team is out, but this was surely his last chance to win it. I would almost be sad if he wasn’t so egotistical.

Well done Morocco! All of Africa, the Middle East, and this author will be supporting you going forward!

England vs. France

Alright, let’s get this post-mortem examination over with. England were the better team for the majority of the match. Simple as. France had a good spell to open the game, but England grew into possession and were the more dangerous team as the match went on.

France’s opening goal was a quality strike from distance by defensive midfielder Aurélien Tchouaméni, but the goal is tainted by the fact that Brazilian referee Wilton Sampaio missed an obvious foul on England winger Bukayo Saka in the build-up to the goal. France wouldn’t have been on the ball in the first place had the foul been properly called! Not making excuses for England’s defending after the missed foul and it was indeed a wonder strike from Tchouaméni, but it never should have counted in the first place. Simple as.

England got back into the match just after halftime when Saka was fouled (again) in the box by Tchouaméni, and this time Sampaio remembered he had a whistle. He blew for an obvious penalty, and striker Harry Kane stepped up to the spot. After a long-ish delay he dispatched the penalty with authority by sending France keeper Hugo Lloris the wrong way. Kane is now tied with Wayne Rooney as England’s all-time leading scorer!

The match continued in back and forth fashion, with Sampaio missing fouls on England players left and right. England were trying to play the game, while France was content just to foul our lads every time they got close. Sampaio was enabling this tactic by not calling fouls. He called yellow-card worthy fouls on occasion, but then failed to apply the appropriate punishment. He was mostly awful for England the whole match.

The Frogs forged themselves ahead again on 76 minutes unfortunately, and it was from a strong header by striker Olivier Giroud. The big man was allowed to steal into a good position by the England defense, and he headed home from close range. England keeper Jordan Pickford had no chance to get to it. England’s defense let them down on this goal, but it was the only legitimate goal France scored in this match. Giroud is damn near unplayable in the box sometimes, so every effort must be made to stop the cross from coming in the first place.

England had a golden chance to go level again in the 80th minute or so when substitute midfielder Mason Mount won England yet another penalty. He was ran into by French fullback Theo Hernandez while attempting to get on the end of a cross. Sampaio didn’t indicate a penalty right away though. VAR had to intervene and send him over to the monitor to check again. He did award the penalty after VAR got involved, but he wouldn’t have otherwise. It was as clear a penalty as the first one he awarded, so where’s the consistency?

Unfortunately, Kane skied the penalty over the bar and he joins the numerous ranks of England players who have missed key penalties at the World Cup. I was devastated for him. He had done so well in this match and England overall had played well, but it was still a missed pen. Kane doesn’t need me to tell him he has to put those away. He knows. England did not get another chance as good as that one, despite forward Marcus Rashford blazing just over the bar from a free kick in the dying seconds. The final whistle blew and all twelve (lol) French players on the pitch were elated.

Whenever England go out of a major tournament, there’s always a grand inquiry as to why. Was it the players? Manager Gareth Southgate? Some other crappy reason? Well, this time it’s especially maddening to try and figure that out because England didn’t do a whole lot wrong in this game. France were good in spells, but their defense is suspect and really only scored one valid goal in the whole match. Now it’s true that Kane needs to be burying his penalties and there’s no getting around that, but aside from that there isn’t much more England could have done here. Maybe Southgate should have gotten midfielder/winger Jack Grealish on earlier, but on the other hand his substitute Mount had won the penalty earlier. Can’t really blame England were attacking, playing with purpose, frustrating star forward Kylian Mbappe, and they almost nicked a result despite being hacked to death by the French. Southgate had them doing what every England fan wanted them to do!

The wait for another World Cup goes on. It’ll be 60 years without one come 2026. It is insanely difficult to be an optimist about this team, but we will still be very good in four years. We have a lot of players in their early 20s who got experience at this World Cup, and most of them will be at Euro 2024 as well. I didn’t expect to be saying this pre-tournament, but I want Southgate to stick around as well. What he may lack in tactical prowess he makes up for in facilitating team chemistry and a positive environment. He understands that the players’ collective mentality is of vital importance at a major tournament, and he has created an environment where England players look forward to playing for their country instead of worrying about being vilified. More relaxed players equals better football, as it were.

Speaking of, very happy to see a majority of England fans not vilifying Kane after he missed his penalty. Our lads took a beating from “fans” on social media after Euro 2021, but I am happy that has not been repeated. You can’t expect our most talented players to want to play for the national side if they’re going to be roasted and lampooned by the traditional media and social media should they lose. We have to support them, and when they play as well as they did, it’s a lot easier to do so. I do hope though that Sampaio stubs his toe rather hard in the coming weeks and that it hurts him way longer than it should.

Three Lions on the Shirts!

Semifinals – Morocco vs. France – Wednesday December 14th at 11 AM PST

World Cup Round of 16 – France and England Clinical

The government of Qatar is repressive and fascist. FIFA is corrupt and hypocritical. Simple as.

Neither match was a close one in the end today, but we have ourselves a serious showdown set in the quarterfinals here.

France vs. Poland

This was the early match of the day and defending champions France won fairly comfortably in the end 3-1, but there were undoubtedly a few moments of panic for them before and after they scored the opening goal on 43 minutes via Olivier Giroud. The Polish defense gave him far too much space and he was able to redirect a shot back across goal. Giroud actually hit the ball into the ground a bit first, which caused it to bounce over the hand of Polish keeper Wojciech Szczęsny and in for 1-0. It could be argued though that Poland should have already been ahead, and would have been if not for some goal line clearances by the French defense around the 35 minute mark. Szczęsny had been brilliant up until then, but his defense really let him down.

France were the better team on the day, as they were frequently the ones pressing the Polish and winning the ball high up the pitch to create chances. When the opposition’s front four contains Giroud, Kylian Mbappe, Ousmane Dembele, and Antoine Griezmann, giving the ball away to them is suicidal. The Polish were lucky to hold the French out for the first 40 minutes, and they were also fortunate to keep it at 1-0 until the 76 minute mark.

It was then that Mbappe decided to take over the game, and he did so by scoring two goals in quick succession, each of them powerful and precise finishes over Szczęsny that gave him absolutely no chance. Mbappe is one of, if not the, best players in the world right now and he showed why with those two goals. Everyone knows he’s a world-class sprinter, but he showed a real striker’s instinct and technique today too. Mbappe is the current top scorer at this World Cup with 5 goals.

Polish striker Robert Lewandowski got a goal back for his side from the penalty spot in the dying seconds of the match, and while it fooled French keeper Hugo Lloris it was nothing more than a consolation goal. Even Lewandowski knew it was just going to be one for the statistics, and of no other real significance.

France decisively move on to the quarterfinals. They look incredibly strong right now, even if it took them a while to score today. I was concerned about their injuries and team spirit coming into this tournament, but so far those worries have been unfounded. It helps that Mbappe is in absolutely scintillating form right now. Poland will be sad to be going home, but they lost to an extremely good team today.

England vs. Senegal

My stomach was turning itself inside out in anticipation of this match. England were favored coming in, probably in part due to the unavailability of Senegalese all-world winger Sadio Mané (injury) and industrious midfielder Idrissa Gueye (suspension). But the team known as the Lions of Teranga were not to be underestimated, as they are the reigning African champions.

And indeed, it was the Senegalese who were on the front foot almost from the off. They were using their pacey forwards to press England’s defense high up the pitch, knowing that England like to play the ball out from the back. This tactic employed by manager Aliou Cissé worked quite well for a bit, and they almost caught England out several times. Their best chance came around half an hour into the match, when forward Boulaye Dia found some space in the box and lashed a powerful shot towards goal that required a rather magnificent save from England keeper Jordan Pickford. He stuck out his left arm and held it firm to deny Dia, and England cleared.

England had a lot of possession in the opening 35 minutes or so, but they weren’t really doing anything with it. The middle of the park was devoid of England shirts, so there was nowhere for the center backs to pass it to. However, England finally got a meaningful attack going down the left wing on 39 minutes, and it resulted in the first goal from midfielder Jordan Henderson. A neat backheel fell to striker Harry Kane, who spotted the run of midfielder Jude Bellingham ahead of him. His weighted pass made it through the defense, and Bellingham latched onto the ball just outside the box. He ran into the box as his marker was level with him, but his cutback cross found Henderson in space. Henderson hit it first time along the ground, and it rolled into the goal just past the reach of keeper Edouard Mendy. A massive relief for England and very much against the run of play, but we’ll take it! Henderson is the 8th different English player to score at this tournament.

Senegal pushed forward to try and find an equalizer, but it was England who got an important second goal on the very stroke of halftime. England won the ball back via Bellingham after a deflected cross fell into his path, and he carried the ball forward while riding challenges from the opposition. He found winger/forward Phil Foden ahead of him to his left in a one-on-one with a defender. Foden hit a return pass into the path of Kane, who was running forward in support and unmarked. The ball deflected off a defender before falling to Kane, who took a touch and then buried a powerful shot into the net from about 12 yards out, just to the right of the penalty spot. Mendy had no chance, and Kane is now just one goal behind Wayne Rooney’s all-time England scoring record. Kane has been a wonderful facilitator of play so far this tournament, but getting him on the scoresheet today was very important. He showed his striker’s instincts with that finish, and England will need those instincts going forward.

The England fans in the stadium and around the world went from anxious to buoyant in the span of about 8 minutes! Cissé was forced into making three changes at halftime, but they failed to make much of an impact as England got the next goal on 57 minutes from winger/forward Bukayo Saka. This time it was Senegal giving the ball away in a dangerous area, with it being brought forward by Kane. Kane was tackled though and the loose ball fell to Foden, who beat a defender on the left wing before spotting the diagonal run of Saka across his man. The cross from Foden was inch-perfect, and Saka deftly lifted it over Mendy with his first touch for 3-0. England were running rampant and well on their way to the quarterfinals.

The tempo of the game slowed down a bit from there, as both managers made changes. England boss Gareth Southgate was keen to get some of his key players off to save them for the next match, while letting the talents of the bench players shine as well. Although no more goals were scored, England were closer to finding a fourth than Senegal was to finding a first. In the end it was a very satisfactory day for the Three Lions, if a bit nervy to start off.

Credit to Southgate for sticking to his guns and going with the team he felt was right. I was surprised at the omission of forward Marcus Rashford and the inclusion of Henderson in the starting line-up today, but both of those worries were without merit. It turns out that Southgate might just know what he’s doing, although I certainly could do without the slow starts in the future. In the first half hour I feared this game would go the way the one against the Americans did, with it ending 0-0 and England generally looking lackluster. But once England moved the ball up the levels of the pitch with pace and purpose, there was little Senegal could do about it. The first goal today was a product of Southgate’s system, make no mistake about it. The players’ positioning on the wings and playing the ball out from the back led to the opening for Kane to find Bellingham. The system does not always work of course, but today it did.

A special shoutout to Bellingham, who was Man of the Match (among many fine candidates) for me today. The 19 year-old Borussia Dortmund midfielder showed a range of skills today I have not seen from an Englishman since maybe…ever? He can pass, he can dribble, he can head the ball, he can tackle, he has positional awareness, and while he did not score today he did so against Iran in the first match. This lad can do it all, and he can do it all at an extremely high level. If he keeps going like this, he can develop into the best midfielder in the world. Not being hyperbolic.

CAM ON INGERLAND!!!

Quarterfinals – England vs. France – Saturday, December 10th at 11 AM PST

Victory at Old Trafford Over Tottenham

Manchester United hosted Tottenham Hotspur at Old Trafford today in their 10th match of the Premier League season. Tottenham, sometimes known as Spurs, travelled north in good form thanks to players like England striker Harry Kane and South Korean winger Son Heung-Min. They also have a trophy-winning manager with a ton of experience in Antonio Conte, so it’s not much of a mystery as to why they started the match tonight in 3rd place. The Red Devils meanwhile were primarily looking to get some goals scored, as that has been a struggle for the past 2-3 matches under Erik ten Hag. United were definitely the better side against Newcastle at the weekend, but they couldn’t find the back of the net.

Encouragingly, United were on the front-foot from the off. Far too often this season they have started slow, and it’s been to their disadvantage. But the opening 25 minutes or so was all Red Devils in this match. They had all of the possession and were creating all the scoring chances. Winger Antony dos Santos, striker Marcus Rashford, and midfielder Bruno Fernandes all had good efforts saved by Spurs keeper Hugo Lloris in that span of time. The style of play was encouraging, and even though the first half ended goalless, you felt that a goal was coming. Spurs had deployed a back-5 when out of possession, and that can make it difficult to break them down. But breaking them down and creating space for a shot wasn’t the issue in the first half for United. The issue was the insanely good form from Lloris and wasted chances. I’m very impressed with the first half display from a midfield and defensive point of view, though. Spurs couldn’t get on the ball for any sustained period of pressure and were constantly losing possession thanks to the tenacity of the press from United.

The breakthrough eventually came for United early on in the second half. Center back Lisandro Martinez won a header inside the center circle, which he played forward in the air towards Bruno. Bruno ran forward instantly and was quickly joined in attack. He spotted Antony in space out to his right and played him the ball, after which Antony cross the ball along the edge of the 18 yards box to fellow winger Jadon Sancho. Sancho took a touch and then laid it off for the onrushing Fred, who swept the ball towards the goal from just outside the edge of the area. His right-footed shot took a big deflection Spurs center back Ben Davies, which wrong-footed Lloris who was powerless to do anything except watch the ball roll into the left corner of the goal. A bit fortuitous to be sure, but credit to Fred for having the temerity to try the shot despite the fact that he’s not known as a goal-scorer. United were good value for the goal as well, having been the far more dominant side.

I thought Tottenham would step their intensity having gone down, but it must be said that they really didn’t provide much of a response. Indeed, it was United who got the next goal on 69 minutes (nice), and it was a real beauty from Bruno. Antony cut inside in the final third and played the ball toward Bruno, who was running towards the Spurs penalty area. One of their defenders met the ball first, but cleared it off Bruno’s shins which kept the chance alive. Fred attempted to take the ball around another Spurs defender with a touch, but they got a tackle in that fell straight to Bruno. Bruno then hit a curler from just inside the edge of the area that a diving Lloris couldn’t get to, and the ball flew into the right hand corner. A small amount luck was involved in this goal as well in terms of it falling directly to Bruno, but take nothing away from the strike. Pure class from the Portuguese attacking midfielder.

With a 2-0 lead and Spurs offering nothing going forward, the match felt won. Spurs were able to generate a little more possession thanks to subs from Conte and an overall higher level of urgency, but United keeper David De Gea was never severely tested. Most of the time Spurs would lose possession in midfield thanks to the press, but even if they managed to play around it, the back-4 were on hand to clear away any danger. United had a third goal questionably ruled out for offside late on, but there were no additional big chances and United won 2-0.

I’m not being hyperbolic when I say that this was the best match for United under ETH, and our best match overall in the past two years or so. The tactical plan was perfect and the players executed it to near-perfection. Big performances from Fred, Bruno, Martinez, Casemiro, Raphael Varane, Diogo Dalot, and Luke Shaw. Rashford had some poor finishing again but he continues to do everything else right. We’ve beaten big clubs before of course, but the manner in which it was done today is why the performance was so good. Kane and Son are fantastic players, but neither of them so much as got a sniff of the goal. Kane was harassed by midfielders as soon as he got on the ball every single time, and that prevented him from being the playmaker in the center of the park that he likes to be. To keep those two as quiet as they were today is an impressive feet. It wasn’t just a clean sheet and a win, it was a clean sheet and win with a bit of authority to it. Now that they have shown they are capable of producing such a result, the key is going to be to replicate it going forward.

United remain 5th in the Premier League table with this win, but they are two points closer to 4th as Chelsea dropped points today after a draw. Speaking of, the Blues are next up on the fixture list. United travel to west London on Saturday for a match with them at Stamford Bridge. It’s a tough place to play, but United will be in a confident mood after today’s win.

Glory Glory Man United!

Cristiano Ronaldo Hat Trick Rescues United

Manchester United played host to Tottenham Hotspur today at Old Trafford in the Premier League. Both sides needed a win to boost their top 4 qualification hopes. Tottenham came into the match as the very definition of inconsistency, having alternated wins and losses for the last seven matches. United were coming off what was arguably their worst loss of the season against Manchester City last weekend, so both sides were hoping for three points today to get back on track.

Somewhat surprisingly, it was the Red Devils in front first on 12 minutes thanks to an absolutely spectacular shot from Cristiano Ronaldo. The Portuguese had been under a microscope all week due to his absence in the Manchester Derby, and the media speculation about his future has been rampant. However, Ronaldo was all business today and he showed that at 37 he is still one of the best goal-scorers of all time. Brazilian midfielder Fred was on the ball in an advanced position, a few yards from the Tottenham penalty area. With his back to the goal, he deftly flicked the ball to his right and found Ronaldo in a bit of a space. He took two touches toward the goal before unleashing a powerful shot with his right foot. The velocity and placement of the shot was perfect, and Tottenham keeper Hugo Lloris could not get over in time to cover the shot. Ronaldo wheeled away to celebrate with his trademarked “SIUUUUUUU” yell. It was the best goal he’s scored all season for us, in terms of difficulty.

This match was not going to be an easy victory lap for Ronaldo though. Despite United being given a confidence boost by the goal, it was Tottenham who got an equalizer. They were very adept at getting men forward quickly, thanks to the playmaking abilities of striker Harry Kane and pacey forward Son Heung-Min. Tactically, United erred by not pressuring the man in the middle when the ball was brought forward. Too many times, Kane was given space to turn and find a pass. That’s a recipe for disaster. Tottenham played a cross into the box that was adjudged by referee John Moss to have been handled by United left back Alex Telles, and they were awarded a penalty. Telles probably did have his arms extended away from his body a bit, but for the umpteenth time this season there was a lack of consistency in the application of the handball rule from Moss. Before the Ronaldo opener, there was a shout for United to have a penalty for the same reason – a handball in the penalty area by Tottenham’s Eric Dier. He had his arms extended behind him when the ball hit his hand, while Telles had his arm out in front of him. If Telles’s handball was a penalty then ok – but if that’s the case then Dier’s handball was a penalty too!

Kane stepped up and smashed the penalty low and into the corner, with no chance for United keeper David De Gea to save it. Kane is a goal scoring machine himself, and it must be said that Spurs probably deserved a goal anyway with all the pressure they were putting on. Yes the penalty was somewhat dubious, but you felt a goal was coming from them one way or another.

Ronaldo then decided to get involved again, and United were ahead 2-1 just three minutes later. A long ball was played over the top by midfielder Nemanja Matic onto the run of Jadon Sancho down the left wing. Sancho’s run allowed him to get in behind the Tottenham back line, with Ronaldo streaking through the middle. Sancho centered the ball along the ground with his first touch, straight into Ronaldo’s path. Ronaldo also hit the ball first time, just to the left of Lloris from almost point-blank range and into the net. A tap-in thanks to the work from Sancho, and this one is what we call a poacher’s goal. A poacher knows where to be at the exact right time, and Ronaldo showed that those instincts have not dulled with age. There was a question of offside in the buildup, but VAR replays showed that Sancho was just onside when the ball was hit over the top. A very quick response to the Kane penalty, and United were up 2-1 at halftime.

I thought the goal fest would continue into the second half, but it must be said there was a noticeable drop in quality from both sides after the break. Tottenham were probably just a little bit better, but neither side covered themselves in glory in the final third. Lots of misplaced passes from promising positions. Tottenham did get another equalizer though on 72 minutes thanks to a calamitous error by United center back Harry Maguire. Tottenham passed the ball around the edge of the area very well, with Son eventually finding left back Sergio Reguilon. Reguilon played a low and powerful pass around the corner towards midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur, only for the ball to hit Maguire’s outstretched leg first. The ball flew past De Gea and Maguire could only hold his head in shame. Maguire had been having a decent match up until that point, but it was definitely a massive error. To make matters worse, there’s a strong chance Betancur would have been called offside had the ball reached him. While that particular effort at covering was poor from Maguire, the goal had once again been coming. United collectively kept inviting Tottenham to attack, and they were happy to do so.

But Tottenham were again undone 9 minutes later, and it was That Boy Ronaldo who worked his magic again. United won a corner on 81 minutes, with Telles playing in an absolute peach of a cross into a dangerous area in a sea of bodies. Ronaldo outmuscled his marker Christian Romero and got across him, making contact with his head. The ball flew into the upper right corner of the goal, with Lloris rooted to the spot. Old Trafford erupted in ecstasy as they sang Ronaldo’s name at full volume. Never count him out. He was promptly subbed off for more defensive stability, and the fans gave him the ovation he rightly deserved today. United then held on for the final 15 or minutes, repelling attack after attack from Tottenham. Spurs never really created another good chance after that though, and United walked away with all three points at the final whistle.

Ronaldo was easily the Man of the Match, and with his goals today he is undisputedly the greatest goal scorer in football history. FIFA, football’s governing body, has given him an official tally of 807 goals scored for club and country in his 20 year professional career, the most all-time. The man breaks records every time he steps on the pitch. Yes he is 37 and its clear his best days are behind him, but there’s no doubt that he still plays at an incredibly high level and you’d be a fool to not take his game seriously. He scored three very different goals today too; a long range worldie, a tap-in, and a strong header. Just a testament to his all-around abilities. Questions remain as to whether or not Ronaldo truly fits into manager Ralf Rangnick’s system, but its clear that his pros outweighs his cons. When you have a world class player and footballing legend, figure out a way to get him into the team!

Also a very good match from Fred, Sancho, and Telles. Fred arguably had his best match in a United shirt, and would be MOTM himself if not for Ronaldo. It seems that he plays best when he has a true defensive midfielder in behind him. It allows him to get forward and provide key link-up passes when United are trapped in their own half. He played us out of many tight spaces today and deserves recognition for his work rate on and off the ball.

Perhaps Ronaldo was in special form today because there was another GOAT in attendance at Old Trafford today – recently retired NFL quarterback Tom Brady. Brady seems to be a fan of both Kane and Ronaldo, and he was part of the standing ovation Ronaldo received after his third goal. Photos of those two meeting up on the pitch after the match made for some great social media content! Really enjoyed the Buccaneers/United crossover today. GOAT recognize GOAT!

United now turn their attention to Tuesday night at Old Trafford, when they play the second leg of their Champions League tie with Atletico Madrid. United are in a good position to get a result. If Ronaldo is feeling his game like he was today, Atletico will be very concerned indeed. United temporarily move into 4th place again with this win, but Arsenal has a whopping 4 games in hand on us. The top-4 is more open than it was last week, but United are still probably on the outside looking in.

Glory Glory Man United! Viva Ronaldo!

“Lads, it’s Tottenham…”

The above quote was first uttered about 20-25 years ago by former Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson, and it was directed at his squad during a pre-game speech. United legend Roy Keane often tells the story of how the above quote was all Ferguson needed to say to let the players know what he expected them to do against Tottenham Hotspur. Yes they are/were well-organized and have lots of neat and tidy passing, but in the end the Red Devils knew they could go and get a result.

Tottenham hasn’t changed much over the past two decades either, which is why the above quote is so often repeated in online forums and on social media even today. They are a talented side no doubt, but their current tactical system under manager Nuno Espirito Santo leaves a lot to be desired. Players such as Harry Kane and Son Heung-min are not being utilized to their maximum potential, and Spurs appear to be a side unwilling to take major risks with the ball.

Of course, both United and manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer were under massive pressure today to deliver a positive result of their own, coming off the embarrassing home defeat to Liverpool last weekend. If OGS did not win today, he knew he likely would be sacked in the morning. Given this situation, OGS decided to switch up the team and tactics a bit. A tactical shake-up was indeed needed, with the normal 4-2-3-1 being scrapped in favor of the fairly-unused 3-4-3/5-2-3. United were happy to have center-back Raphael Varane back from injury, and he was the main central defender today in the back 3.

As soon as the match kicked off at Tottenham’s shiny new stadium, it was clear United were content to sit back and let Tottenham have the ball. I was immediately apprehensive about this strategy, because it’s the exact reason we lost to Liverpool and Leicester City before that. When we aren’t aggressive on the ball, talented teams have the ability to play it around us and create chances.

In the opening 30 minutes or so the match was very defensive though and it looked like Tottenham were struggling to break us down when in possession. Outside of the occasional set-piece, they were really struggling to create good chances. They had a goal correctly ruled out for offside, and before that Son should have done better from close range after the ball was worked around from a cleared free kick. United hadn’t really looked great going forward either, but the defense appeared to be much-improved from last week. Varane, plus the midfield duo of Fred and Scott McTominay in the 3-4-3, really helped with that.

Fred stung the palms of Tottenham keeper Hugo Lloris from long range on 32 minutes, and at that point you could sense United growing into the game from an attacking perspective. The opener came on 38 minutes via a pass over the top from Bruno Fernandes in midfield, who found the run of Cristiano Ronaldo towards the right hand post of the goal. Ronaldo sublimely hit the ball on a one-touch volley back across Lloris low and with power, and the technique he used to hit it was simply stunning. For any other player its a career highlight, but for Ronaldo its just another amazingly athletic goal on a laundry list of many. Despite things looking a little tentative at times, United had the lead. Great vision and pass from Bruno, and a world-class finish from Ronaldo. United went into halftime 1-0 ahead and feeling much better than they did this time last week.

United continued to grow into the game as the second half got underway, and Ronaldo thought he had his 2nd on the day after a fine run and finish into the top corner. The linesman raised his flag though and the goal was ruled out for offside. It probably was the correct decision, but it was a shame to take such a strong finish off the books. The warning signs were there for Tottenham though – their back line had all kinds of problems tracking our runners in behind them. The movement of Ronaldo and fellow striker Edinson Cavani wreaked havoc on their marking.

And it was Bruno, Ronaldo, and Cavani that all combined for United’s second goal on 63 minutes. Bruno won the ball high up the pitch and played it into the path of Ronaldo. Ronaldo positioned himself like he was going to run at his defender, but instead he cut it back inside and played a smart pass onto a lurking Cavani to his left. Cavani took a touch on the ball to get it around the on-rushing Lloris, and he then chipped it over the Tottenham keeper for 2-0. A great pass and finish, but it was all started by Bruno knowing when to press and effectively doing it. Given Tottenham’s lack of creativity, the match was now very much in United’s hands.

A few minutes later, Marcus Rashford was subbed on for Ronaldo so that he could begin his recovery and prepare for the Champions League match in midweek. United’s defense took over again at that point, and it became clear that Tottenham would not be scoring in this match. Attack after attack was cleared by the United back line, and Tottenham were shooting themselves in the foot a bit with poor finishing and even-poorer decision making. Cavani gave the ball away badly to Kane at one point, but Kane waffled on the ball and was unsure if to pass it or shoot it. The United defense capitalized on his indecision and cleared the ball quickly. It’s obvious that Kane is mentally a bit off right now, because on most days he makes the opposition pay in a situation like that.

United got a 3rd via Rashford next, and it was a fairly similar goal to the second one. United had the ball in midfield and fellow substitute Nemanja Matic played a ball through the Tottenham backline and on to the run of Rashford. The Spurs defenders couldn’t cope with the movement of Ronaldo and Cavani all day, so they had no chance at catching Rashford when he was fresh off the bench. Rashford pushed the ball straight at the left side of the goal before opening up his body and slotting it home past Lloris at the far post. A good pass and finish, but the Tottenham defense was fairly poor. Still, take nothing away from Rashford. Since his return from injury, he has scored 3 goals in 3 matches. After that it was job done and points sealed. United also managed to secure their first clean sheet in quite awhile, so credit to David De Gea for that achievement on what was a fairly lowkey day for him.

The biggest takeaway from today is that for the first time in several matches it looked like United had a cohesive plan and a clear vision of how they wanted to play this game. We sat back and let them have the ball, and when they couldn’t break us down we punished them with a quick counter-attack or by winning the ball off them high up the pitch. Against Liverpool it looked like we had no idea how to press, but against Tottenham we look like the best pressing team in the Premier League. Credit to OGS and his staff for getting the tactics right, while also making the correct substitutions.

It must be said that Tottenham were very poor today. They are certainly not playing to the level they are capable of, and Nuno will now begin to feel his own managerial seat warming up as well. They look like they don’t know how to score goals, and their back line was undone today by two forwards who are 36 and 34 years old respectively. They have some of their own soul-searching to do if they want to have some success this season. The transfer saga of Kane needs to be put to rest, for a start. Is he staying? Is he not? All that conjecture and speculation about a team’s best player can be a huge distraction for other players.

Three goals and a clean sheet in a Premier League match is always worth a celebration, but OGS’s job is still far from secure. The next two matches will likely decide his tenure – away to Atalanta in the Champions League in midweek and then the Manchester Derby next weekend. If we win both of those, I think OGS stays for the season. If we lose them both or put in some otherwise-lackluster performances, I think OGS will be on his way out. The rumor mill this past week has had a ton of managers linked to us, and it seems like Antonio Conte and Brendan Rodgers are the frontrunners. I’d much prefer Conte if that is indeed the scenario, but only time will tell what happens.

United now sit 5th in the Premier League, 8 points behind league leaders Chelsea. Man of the Match today is Bruno, but you could also argue for Ronaldo or Varane. Glory glory Man United!

Euro 2020(1) Round of 16, Day 3 – What a Thriller!

Two very appetizing matches happened on the penultimate day of the Round of 16. Spain took on Croatia in Copenhagen, Denmark before France and Switzerland travelled to Bucharest, Romania for their match. What resulted from today was probably the single best day of international football I have perhaps ever seen.

Spain vs. Croatia

This match was so good and so entertaining it almost deserves its own post, but I shall try to summarize effectively. I unfortunately did not get to watch this match due to a work engagement and I’m rather perturbed about that, because this was probably the most entertaining game of the tournament so far.

Most pundits and fans probably would have picked Spain to win this match, but only a fool would have written off Croatia and the result was far from certain. Spain hit 5 goals in their last group match, but before that they were having trouble breaking down more defensive-minded teams. Croatia were runners-up at the 2018 World Cup and still sport some incredibly talented – if old – players. Whenever your team has Luka Modric in it, you have a chance to win.

What transpired was everything a neutral fan could dream for – world class talent, rookie mistakes, and 8 goals scored. Spain made all the early runs and had the better chances in the first 20 minutes, but they found themselves down 1-0 after a fairly routine back pass from the Spanish defense bounced over Spain keeper Unai Simon’s right foot and rolled into the goal. Huge error, and you normally don’t see such a massive kerfuffle at this level. It was clear that Simon took his eye off the ball as it rolled back to him and he just…missed it. I’ve been a goalkeeper at the very amateur level, and I can tell you that there’s no worse feeling in the world than letting an easy one in. Elation for the Croats, though.

That elation didn’t last too long, as Spain were soon equal via midfielder Pablo Sarabia. The ball broke kindly for him in the box and he did well to ride a challenge and lash the ball past Croatian keeper Dominik Livakovic. It was probably the fair outcome, given that Spain had dominated the game since going behind and at halftime it was 1-1.

Spain got two more later in the second half via defender Cesar Azpilicueta, and then the other came in the 76th minute from striker Ferran Torres. I bring them both up simultaneously because both goals were scored after some bad defensive errors by Croatia. Azpilicueta was unmarked for his headed goal and couldn’t miss from so close, while Torres went around his defender like he wasn’t there for his goal. At 3-1 no one would blame you for assuming that the game was over for Croatia, given their defensive issues and lack of chances created.

But assumptions are not facts, and Croatia proved they have plenty of fighting spirit. Substitute winger Mislav Orsic put the cat amongst the pigeons by getting a second for Croatia in the 85th minute, and the goal galvanized his team. Croatia suddenly had a lot more energy, and Spain were holding on for dear life in the last 5-7 minutes. They couldn’t quite completely hold on though, as fellow substitute and midfielder Mario Pasalic headed home a cross from close range in the 92nd minute to send the Croatian fans into delirium. It was a stunning sequence of events and it meant that extra time would be necessary. In all honesty, striker Andrej Kramaric was unlucky not to put Croatia ahead 4-3 when his shot was blocked off the line by a defender. Spain were inches from losing this match!

But Spain once again were the stronger side to start the final 30 minutes, and this time their dominance paid dividends. The much-maligned Alvaro Morata put them ahead on 100 minutes, after he smartly controlled a high cross into the box and was able to volley it past Livakovic for number 4. I was happy for Morata, as he has been the target of a lot of criticism from the Spanish press and social media. He had missed a few of his easier chances, but converted the most difficult one at the most pivotal time. Usually when a team goes ahead in extra time they play more conservative, but Spain did not. Attacking midfielder Mikel Oyarzabal but the tie beyond all doubt when he slotted home from close range after another dangerous cross in from the right side. Croatia created some half-chances after that to keep things interesting, but Spain held on until the final whistle.

I hope I covered it all, but no written words can capture the drama and tension of this match. Just a classic, all around. Spain do seem to have defensive issues at times but 10 goals in two matches should make them feel much better about their attacking abilities. Up next, Spain will play the winner of France and Switzerland on Friday in the quarterfinals.

France vs. Switzerland

I didn’t think that this match would come anywhere close to the level of drama in the Spain match, but I was happy to be proven wrong. We got two high-scoring thrillers today, and two such games are great advertisements for this sport.

Most people expected France to brush aside the Swiss fairly easily. France are the reigning world champions and tons of articles have been written about their talent levels – Paul Pogba, Kylian Mbappe, N’golo Kante, Antoine Griezmann – all world beaters. On top of that, they have players on their bench that would probably start for any other country. Such is their strength in depth. The Swiss have some talent in the likes of Xherdan Shaqiri and Granit Xhaka, but on paper France should be taking this. But no match is played on paper, and France learned that the hard way today.

Much to everyone’s surprise, the first goal came from Switzerland. France looked uncomfortable in the opening 45 minutes; perhaps even unsettled. I would tend to think they weren’t helped by their tactical set-up, though. For some reason, France manager Didier Deschamps decided to employ a back 3 instead of France’s traditional back 4. I think this led to a little bit of passiveness for France. Why make a tough pass forward from the back when you can just square it to the extra center back? They weren’t used to this set up and I think subconsciously expected the Swiss to roll over for them, however they did not. It was some excellent center forward play from Haris Seferovic that earned the Swiss their goal. He is a big, strong striker and he simply outmuscled the Frenchman marking him to get his head on a cross from the left. Sometimes football really is that simple.

It was 1-0 at halftime and France looked a little shell-shocked. You knew it wasn’t over, but they knew they would need to play much better in order to win this match. France got a little bit of luck when the second half resumed when keeper Hugo Lloris saved a penalty from left back Ricardo Rodriguez. There were questions as to why Rodriguez was taking the penalty as he is not traditionally a goal scorer, and indeed it’s somewhat of a mystery as to why Seferovic or another striker didn’t take it. VAR checked the foul and the penalty call was probably correct, but Lloris showed his own class by making the save. That save energized the French a bit and they soon started playing like how most people expected them to.

Striker Karim Benzema brought France level from close range after a slick pass from Mbappe, and he got a second one only two minutes later after he headed in a cross/shot from Griezmann. France were ahead in a matter of mere minutes, and it was during this time that they really showed what they are capable of. They can just flip a switch and all of a sudden you’re losing. Pogba got a third roughly 15 minutes later, hitting an absolutely sublime strike past Swiss keeper Yann Sommer from about 22 yards out. Pogba really can hit some amazing shots; I just wish he would score like that for Manchester United as often as he does for France!

Again, at 3-1 with roughly 10-12 minutes left, no one would blame you for assuming France had it in the bag. They didn’t play well throughout the match, but most felt that 20-30 minute spell of world-class play would probably see them through. But once again, just like Croatia earlier in the day, the Swiss were not done. Seferovic popped up again with 9 minutes to go and headed in a lovely cross from the right side from close range. He found space between the French defenders this time and was able to get good contact on it. Now only down 1, the Swiss pressed on.

Striker Mario Gavranovic was then the hero for Switzerland, doing well to beat the French defense with a dribble before sliding an equalizer past Lloris in the 90th minute. He received an excellent pass through the middle from Xhaka and went around the closest defender like he wasn’t there. As good as France were for that 20-30 minute period, they were pretty bad in the final ten minutes. No concentration, poise, or game management. I do think a bit of hubris got to them today, especially once they were winning. All credit to the Swiss though for sticking to the task and forcing extra time after being down 2.

The extra time in this match was far less eventful than the early game. Both teams were clearly very tired, and some sloppy fouls by both sides really broke up the rhythm of the play. Mbappe probably should have scored after a sublime pass from Pogba through the middle, but he delayed just a fraction too long and blazed into the side netting. France were also required to make several subs due to injury and fatigue, having to take off winger Kingsley Coman, Griezmann, and goal-scorer Benzema. No goals scored in extra time meant that a penalty shootout would decide things.

Some argue that penalties are a lottery and not really a fair way to decide close matches, and while I can understand that argument, penalties were perfectly appropriate for this back-and-forth nature of this match today. The first nine penalties – 5 by the Swiss and 4 by France – were essentially perfect. Lloris came close to saving one but the ball still slipped past him despite contact with it. The hero of the day though was Sommer, who did very well to parry out the 5th French penalty. Mbappe took that last penalty and most expected him of all people to convert it, but he struck the ball rather unconvincingly and Sommer made a good save diving to his right.

World champions and tournament favorites France are OUT! Huge upset for Switzerland, even bigger than what the Czechs did against Netherlands yesterday. Switzerland earned the privilege to take on Spain in the quarterfinals next Friday.

Man of the Match: Granit Xhaka. Got the game-tying assist and was absolutely everywhere for the Swiss today, both in defense and attack.

Tomorrow

England vs. Germany (9 am PDT)

Sweden vs. Ukraine (Noon PDT)

England really need to beat Germany now. The stars are aligning for a deep tournament run if we can just get past the Germans!

If You Watched the Champions League Final On My Recommendation, I’m Sorry

My bad y’all. I honestly thought it was going to be a thrilling match with lots of high-octane football, but I don’t think I could have been more wrong. Several articles I read described the match as “lackluster” and “dull”, and while those terms are partly accurate I also feel like those adjectives are a bit of an understatement, if anything.

The first three minutes were highly entertaining, and there was a bit of action in the final three minutes, but the other 84+ minutes consisted of both teams just trying to string passes together and get some build-up going. Probably the most entertaining thing in the first half after the penalty was the well-endowed female pitch invader who ran into the center circle wearing a bathing suit! Neither team really played all that well for the whole 90 minutes, and it ended up being a case of Liverpool being slightly more fortunate than Tottenham. As I thought, the heat and humidity of Madrid seemed to snap the pace and endurance of players on both teams, causing slow and labored play. Sometimes in a final after a long season and in tough conditions, the level of play won’t be that great. But as long as your team wins the big match, no one will really remember how they won.

The breaks went Liverpool’s way this time, which was a stark contrast to all the bad luck they had in last year’s final when they lost to Real Madrid. The first and biggest piece of luck they got was being awarded a penalty after a mere 23 seconds when Tottenham midfielder Moussa Cissoko was adjudged to have used his arm to block a cross from Liverpool forward Sadio Mane while in the box. Slovenian referee Damir Skomina pointed to the penalty spot with little hesitation, much to everyone’s surprise.

Was it a hand ball? Well, when determining whether something is a hand ball, the referee has to look at several factors. There are objective rules to be analyzed and applied, but each decision comes with a degree of subjectivity, as is the case for refs in all sports. In this case, the ball merely bouncing off the hand of a player is not enough for a hand ball, or at least it’s not supposed to be. The ref also has to consider the actions of the offending player. Where is his hand when the ball hits it? Is it sticking out from his body or is it down at his side? Does it appear that the player is trying to use his hand to block the shot, or does it look more accidental?

I think Cissoko was largely unlucky in this situation. He did have his arm extended out while in the box, which is always risky. However, it appeared he was directing team mates where to go and not really trying to block the cross with his arm. The ball came off his chest first and then bounced into his upper arm/armpit area as well. I realize that I have a ton of bias against Liverpool, but for me I think that’s too close of a call to award a penalty there. I see why the ref did it, and VAR did confirm the penalty, but I am not sure I would have called it in the first place. It’s a very bold decision to award a penalty 23 seconds into a major final, because if the penalty is converted it changes the entire face of the game for the remaining 88 minutes or so.

The misfortune that Spurs experienced however does not excuse how they played for the rest of the match. Mohamed Salah’s penalty was struck with power for sure, but the placement was far too close to keeper Hugo Lloris and the French captain should have done better by at least getting a hand to the shot. It’s hard to blame the keeper when it comes to penalties usually, but this time I think Lloris could have done better.

The phrase “could have done better” describes Tottenham’s entire evening. Once Liverpool got the lead they set up tactically to clog up the midfield, and Tottenham couldn’t find a way to break them down or get balls into the box. Credit to Liverpool’s defense and defensive midfield, especially Dutch center back Virgil Van Dijk. He’s been a rock all season for them, and may very well be the best central defender in the world right now. Brazilian goalkeeper Alisson was also not really troubled in this match, but he made the routine saves when called upon in the second half. You would expect routine saves to be made at this level of football, but given that Liverpool lost last season’s final mainly because of severe goalkeeping errors, it was probably relieving for them to see Alisson handling his business effectively. For his efforts, Alisson was awarded official Man of the Match. MotM for me was Van Dijk due to his effective pocketing of Harry Kane, but I could agree with Alisson taking the prize as well.

Speaking of Kane, it appears Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino was wrong to play him from the start of the match. I understand the desire to start him given his talents and goal scoring ability, but he did not look like he was ready for this game at all. His positioning was terrible throughout the match, and Van Dijk had a relatively easy time making sure Kane never got on the ball. He always seemed to be 2-3 yards behind where he needed to be in a given situation. I think sacrificing Kane for the pacy and in-form Lucas Moura would have been the better decision. Kane should have come off the bench around the 60-65 minute mark to be an impact substitute. Tottenham stood a much better chance of winning with a front 3 of Son Heung-min, Fernando Llorente, and Moura. Of course it may not have mattered anyway, given the poor play of other Tottenham stars Dele Alli and Christian Eriksen. Spurs best player on the day was probably Son, as he seemed to be the only player willing to run at defenders and take shots on. He was the only player in white that I saw consistently making Alisson work hard to keep the ball out.

Interestingly, you could make the same criticisms about Jurgen Klopp’s decision to start Brazilian forward Roberto Firmino up front as well. Similar to Kane, he’s been injured for awhile and also looked overwhelmed by the match. Of course it mattered less to Liverpool, since they had the lead from the 3rd minute onward and didn’t need to score again. Tottenham did, and Kane’s anonymity stood out as a result.

The game was mostly over by the 85th minute, but once substitute Divock Origi slotted home from the left side of the box in the 87th minute, it was well and truly over. You thought that Tottenham had a chance of maybe getting one goal, but needing two with only 5-7 minutes left would be virtually impossible. They kept trying to a certain extent, but the match was already lost. They couldn’t sustain any real attacking pressure, and as a result they were beaten by a more disciplined and experienced team.

As much as it pains me to write this, Liverpool were the slightly better team on the night and probably deserved the victory. It just sucks from the perspective of a United fan to see Liverpool hoisting the European Cup. It’s like watching your girlfriend make out with your arch nemesis!

And with that folks, it’s end the of the club season in Europe! No more matches left for anyone until late July. Many players will now go (or already have gone) on summer holiday with friends and family. Rest is important now so they can recover and come back next season. England next play on Thursday June 6, in the semifinals of the inaugural Nations League. I probably won’t do a preview for that match, but I will do a recap once its over. I question the wisdom of scheduling a semifinal so close to the CL final, but UEFA seem to be beyond reproach when it comes to scheduling matches.

There is also the not-so-small matter of the Women’s World Cup this summer, which starts June 7th in France. I will likely provide some coverage of that when appropriate. Keep your eyes peeled for the Man United season review, and I will do a meta-blog at some point before club football returns as well!

Tomorrow, I am A Tottenham Hotspur Supporter and You Should Be Too

For those who don’t know or don’t usually pay attention, tomorrow is Europe’s version of the Super Bowl; the Champions League final. Given that Europe has all of the world’s best clubs and players, when the two best teams in Europe play each other you can expect to see an exhibition of world class football. I feel that tomorrow’s match up from Wanda Metropolitano Stadium in Madrid will be no exception.

Liverpool will take on the above mentioned Tottenham for a chance at European glory. It is only the second time in the history of the European Cup that both clubs are from England, with the first time being Chelsea – Manchester United back in 2008. As I have mentioned in a previous post, the Premier League absolutely dominated in Europe this season. The only reason that Manchester City didn’t make it this far is because they had to play Tottenham in the quarterfinals, and they only narrowly lost. Why are two English teams playing in Spain, you may ask? The venue for the final is determined before the season starts by UEFA, and it just so happened this year that it’s two English teams in the final.

Liverpool will be trying to win their 6th European title overall and first since 2005. Tottenham are appearing in their first ever European Cup/CL final and will therefore be trying to win their first one ever. For that reason alone, and given that Tottenham are the underdogs tomorrow, you should cheer for them! I’m definitely biased of course given that I never ever ever want to see Liverpool win a trophy, especially one of the most important ones. I know all of Manchester and the blue half of Liverpool will be cheering for Spurs, that’s for sure. Of course conversely, Chelsea and Arsenal supporters would rather jump into the Thames River than see Tottenham win the trophy!

From a national perspective, it’s great to see so many English players present in both of the squads. Not only that, they are vital pieces to their teams. This tournament is the pinnacle of football in terms of talent and tactics, and only the biggest players play in this match. For those who don’t know, English clubs used to have a bad reputation of relying on foreign talent to win trophies. There was so much money in the league it was easier to just buy a superstar from the continent or South America than to develop a good English player. But things have changed in recent years due to new policies on quotas for “home-grown” players. As a result, it’s good for the national team to see a CL final such as this one. There are 17 English players available for both squads tomorrow, 20+ if you also count Welsh and Scottish players. That would have been unheard of 10 years ago.

But what of the tactics? Who is going to do what? Well, I personally think that this is shaping up to be one epic chess match between Spurs manager Mauricio Pochettino and Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp. Both managers are well known to have attacking and aggressive styles of play, but they are also capable of changing things up if Plan A doesn’t work. Pochettino especially knows how to manage a team during a match and make adjustments on the fly.

I expect both teams coming out of the gates quickly and trying to get an early goal, especially Liverpool given Klopp’s propensity to employ a high-pressing system with his forwards in an effort to win the ball in dangerous areas. Liverpool are also heavily dependent on their full backs (RB, LB) to get forward and create chances. Liverpool love to deploy the fullbacks on overlapping runs when the winger in front of them has the ball, after which they provide whipping and dangerous cross into their forwards in the box. Trent Alexander-Arnold is especially adept at doing this. If Tottenham are pinned back and Liverpool’s fullbacks can consistently get forward, it’s going to be a very long day for Spurs. Their defense is definitely breach-able, despite having two strong center backs and a top-10 in the world goalkeeper in Hugo Lloris. World-class forwards Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane will definitely have their shooting boots on. Salah will also be highly motivated, given that he missed a good chunk of Liverpool’s CL final last season due to injury.

I think what Tottenham will do tactically largely depends on what Pochettino decides to do with striker (and Draco Malfoy look-alike) Harry Kane. He’s presented with a difficult choice there. Kane is coming off an ankle injury but claims to be fit and ready, despite not having played in any real games in weeks. Generally speaking, it’s not a good idea to have your first game back after a long injury be a big one this like this one. He is arguably their best player though, so it’s a head-scratcher for sure. Further complicating matters, forwards Son Heung-Min and Lucas Moura have both been playing exceptionally well without him. Those two seem to excel the most when they have a big target striker knocking down the ball for them in the box, which is exactly what Fernando Llorente did in the match against Ajax. I suspect Kane will be on the bench with a front three of Son-Llorente-Moura. Pochettino will likely deploy Kane as a substitute for Llorente as the match wears on. If Tottenham get one last-ditch chance in this game, they would want it to fall to Kane instead of Llorente. Christian Eriksen will be an absolutely vital player as well, as the Danish midfielder will need to serve as a link between the forwards and defensive midfield. When Eriksen plays well, Tottenham rarely lose.

One thing that I have noticed to be absent from all the analysis and chatter about this match is any mention of the weather conditions in Madrid. Sure it’ll be a warm night and likely windless, but that’s the problem! I’ve been to Madrid in June and I can personally tell you that it is an absolute sweat box, even after sunset. The temperature is expected to be in the high 80s at kick off, with humidity in the 30-40% range. Some of the players will be accustomed to that, but not the British and northern European guys! Fatigue will be a factor both teams in this match. It’s the last match of a very long season, and some of these players have featured in 55+ matches this season. If the match is close in the 85th minute or later, it’s very possible you will see a mental error that leads to a late goal. If it’s tied after 90 minutes, 30 minutes of additional time will be played, and that’s when fatigue REALLY becomes a factor.

Match is at 12 noon California time, 3 pm in New York. Pull yourself up a comfy chair and watch! It’s going to be a great match for neutrals and people who don’t normally watch football/soccer. In the USA, you can find the match on TNT. I am not sure why it’s on TNT of all channels, but there you have it.

Come on You Spurs!