WC Vibes: A match no team wants to playHeartbreak, redemption and a Golden Boot chase collide as football’s forgotten World Cup fixture takes centre stage.
This is one decisive football World Cup match no team wants to play. It’s the penultimate game before the final and pits the two losing semi-finalists against each other. Tonight, it will be France against England at the Miami Gardens. France were favourites to win the World Cup. England were agonisingly close to ending their 60-year wait for their second World Cup title. Both fell after defeats in the semi-finals and will face each other in a consolation match for third place. “None of us wanted to play in this game for third place,” France defender Ibrahima Konate said Friday. “But we don’t have a choice to play. France and England have a big story together. And yeah, we are looking forward for the game tomorrow, and let’s see what will happen.” Though the match will provide little more than moral victories, it may give Thomas Tuchel a chance to regain favour after the England coach faced widespread criticism about his tactical choices in their loss to Argentina. Also Read: Simon vs Martinez: The battle under the bar “Nobody wants to be, tomorrow, in this game,” Tuchel said on Friday evening. “All of these four teams wanted to be in New York (at the final). But it is an official World Cup game. It’s a chance to have the best result in 60 years for England. Mentality is not something that you switch on and switch off as you like it. It is a moment to show that we are actually made of what we showed through the whole tournament.” France and Real Madrid superstar Kylian Mbappe also has a chance to win the Golden Boot. Mbappe has eight goals, tied with Argentina’s Lionel Messi, though the latter has an edge in the tiebreaker with four assists to Mbappe’s three. England’s Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham are also in the mix with six goals each. France coach Didier Deschamps said Mbappé is available for Saturday’s match. “We do have a match for the third-place playoff, and there’s a duty,” Deschamps said. “We have duties. I have duties, my staff has duties and so do the players. We have a responsibility to wear this jersey for all the French people who are cheering for us.” SCALONI HAILS ‘LEGEND’ MESSI Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni urged fans to make the most of seeing Lionel Messi lead his team out in another World Cup final at the age of 39 as the holders aim to retain the trophy on Monday (IST). Argentina are looking to become the first team to successfully defend the World Cup title since Brazil in 1962. “He has made history. He is a legend,” Scaloni said of Messi, who has already helped Argentina win a World Cup and back-to-back Copa America titles in the last five years.
Messi’s international career has enjoyed a remarkable late renaissance — a decade ago he briefly retired from the Argentina team at the age of 29 after a Copa America final loss to Chile, his fourth defeat in a final for his country. Also Read: Why Argentina never know when they are beaten “It fills me with pride because he is the best player in the history of football,” Scaloni said of Messi, who has scored eight goals at this World Cup, which is his sixth, and is the tournament’s all-time top scorer with 21. “To have been able to get to a final in the way that he has in this moment, at the age of 39, I think it is incredible. That is why I said we should enjoy having him, because look at what happened with Diego (Maradona) and how we ended up missing him. “We still have Leo and we should appreciate that. He is the historic figure and the legend, as are all these players who have given us these marvellous years.” NOW, TRUMP CRITICISES ENGLAND COACH TUCHEL To the long list of critics of England’s tactics in the World Cup semi-final they lost to Argentina can now be added Donald Trump. The US president on Friday took a gentle swipe at coach Thomas Tuchel’s decision to adopt defensive tactics after England took the lead against Argentina on Wednesday.
Speaking at a reception in New York alongside FIFA president Gianni Infantino, Trump mentioned England captain Harry Kane, with whom he shared a round of golf in Florida 18 months ago. “You have a great player in England, who I played golf with, Harry,” Trump said. “They perhaps made a mistake when they made him a defensive player. What do I know about soccer?” Trump added. “They took the lead and they took their best player and they put him on defence. We got to be a little offensive, right? What do I know about coaching?” England coach Thomas Tuchel was heavily criticised for withdrawing two forwards and putting on defenders in the last half hour of the game against Argentina, meaning England had to sit back although Kane stayed on the field. FOOTBALL BEYOND SIGHT As Argentina booked their place in the World Cup final with a victory over England, one of the tournament’s most heart-warming moments came not from the pitch, but from a living room in Borujen, Iran. A video that has touched millions shows young Argentina supporter Alireza Babajani, who is visually impaired, experiencing the game through a handmade tactile board shaped like a football pitch. Sitting beside him, his father, Ardashir, guides his son’s hand across the wooden surface, tracing the movement of the ball while narrating every pass, run and shot in real time.
Argentina’s win over England secured a place in Sunday’s World Cup final against Spain, but for many fans online, the Babajanis’ story became just as memorable as the result itself. Alireza is more than a passionate football fan. He is also an accomplished piano player, with Ardashir frequently sharing videos of his performances on Instagram. Yet it was their World Cup ritual that resonated across social media, drawing admiration from football lovers around the world. The videos have sparked an outpouring of support with many hoping that Alireza will one day get the opportunity to experience a match in person. TODAY’S MATCH Third-place playoff England vs France 2.30am (Sunday IST), Miami
|
0 टिप्पणियाँ: