Only hours before highly anticipated first semi-final match, Argentina-Croatia, let’s have a look on how the four finalists made it through semi-finals.
Brazil vs. Croatia
One of the first games of the quarter finals, this matchup saw previous World Cup final finalists Croatia come against one of the current top-rated international teams in the world, a nation with around 210 million more people than the Croat side.
The first half began with Brazil attacking as much as they could, though despite the many shots and near opportunities, Brazil either failed to score or break through the almost indestructible Croatian defense and midfield. The Croatians also occasionally created great chances in the forms of counter-attacks and crosses, although the European side had far fewer chances than the Brazil side, who should have easily scored if it was not for the lightning fast reflexes of the Croatian goal-keeper.
The 2nd half saw a similar scenario emerge: Countless intense attacks by the Brazilian side which were so, so very close to resulting in a goal, but somehow just about failing to find the back of the net! Croatia managed to find an occasional chance, but not yet succeeding in scoring any goals. In the first half of extra time, Neymar Jr finally managed to score, with an incredible run on goal past the Croatian defense, with the Brazilian almost dancing past the defense.
Nothing could prepare Brazil for what was to happen next, in the dying 117th minute of the 2nd half of extra time, Croatia managed to execute a perfect counter-attack against Brazil, with a cross into Petkovic who volleyed the ball into the back of the net. The heartbreak on the faces of the Brazilian players and fans was obvious, as they would now have to win a penalty shoot-out.
The penalty shoot-out didn’t seem to be bringing much luck to the Brazil side, with their first penalty taker Rodrygo having his attempt saved by the incredible Livakovic. To make matters worse Croatia had managed to score their first and second penalty after Rodrygo’s miss. Brazil scored their next 2 penalties after Rodrygo’s miss, but when it came to their 4th penalty Marquinhos hit the goal-post, meaning the Brazilian giants would be knocked out 4–2 by the Croatian legends.
Argentina vs. Netherlands
This game surprisingly turned out to resemble a WWE brawl more than an actual football game, with the match breaking the FIFA record for total yellow cards with a total of 18 yellow cards issued by the end of the long match!
As for the football, the first half was a fierce struggle for domination, which resulted in Argentina outplaying their opponents and scoring a 35th minute goal from the feet of Nahuel Molina. The goal was assisted with the help of a physics defying through ball from Messi, who didn’t even have to look before launching the ball through to the legs of Molina for a great goal.
The 2nd half saw the Netherlands gradually improve as the Argentinian’s began to tire out, yet Argentina was still able to win a penalty kick in the 73rd minute from an arguably soft Dutch challenge where the Dutch defender barely seemed to have touched the hysteric player. Messi stepped up to the penalty kick and seemed to easily secure Argentina’s 2–0 lead.
The Dutch managed to make a slight comeback in the last remaining minutes of the game, with the lately-subbed Wout Werghorst scoring an excellent header in the 83rd minute. Just minutes later, Paredes made a bad challenge on Ake before immediately booting the ball at the benched Dutch players. The huge Van Dijk ran into the Argentine, almost sending him tumbling back to Buenos Aires, before a large fight and confrontation broke out between the entirety of both teams.
The game was given a total of 10 minutes extra time, with the Netherlands scoring an additional last-minute goal from a free kick in the 11th dying minute of extra time. The match went to extra time, with some more incredible saves dragging the game out to a penalty shoot-out. Up first for The Netherlands was Van Dijk, who despite hitting the ball on target had his penalty saved. Sadly the Dutch had their 2nd penalty saved too, although Hernandez missed his shot, the Dutch missed their 5th, meaning Argentina were through 4–3 on penalties!
England vs. France
This quarter-final match up saw the reigning World Champions face up against an increasingly fierce and talented England side. Yet the question remained as to whether England could break the ‘curse’ of always failing to succeed when it mattered the most.
The first half saw a tight battle with both sides frequently attacking, before Tchouameni gave France a 1–0 lead with an amazing outside-the-box shot that slipped past the English defense and goalkeeper. The rest of the first half saw some additional close chances for the England side, as well as some very questionable challenges on the English attacking players that resulted in no fouls being called.
The 2nd half saw the England side improve their attacking and playing, with the French defense increasingly being challenged and exposed for its growing weakness. This eventually led to Tchouameni tripping over Saka in the box, which led to England being awarded its first penalty. England captain Harry Kane took the penalty kick, successfully scoring against Tottenham team mate Lloris in the 54th minute of the 2nd half.
Following the equalizer, both sides saw some very close chances at gaining a goal, yet in the 78th minute Griezmann launched an excellent cross which was headed into the goal by France’s all-time top goal-scorer Olivier Giroud. In the meanwhile, Southgate made some very questionable changes by replacing in-form Saka and Henderson for the poorly performing Mason Mount and Raheem Sterling, players who had made little to no positive impact on the England side at all in the tournament. To make matters worse, some of England’s best players such as Maddison, Rashford and Grealish saw little to no game time in the important match, prompting fans to question whether the manager should be sacked for wasting the golden generation he had at his disposal.
In the 85th minute another penalty was awarded to England after a poor foul on Mason Mount. Harry Kane once again stepped up to take the shot, yet this time decided to let his entire country down with an awful effort which went flying over the goal-posts. This failure really leads England fans to question why on earth Kane was left on the playing field for so long when in-form Rashford could have performed a far superior job. Despite 8 minutes of extra time, England still failed to score any additional chances, which included an extremely close free kick by the talented Rashford.
England fans once again get to taste the humiliation of disappointment, made even worse by the fact that we have one of the most talented, young group of players we have ever had in international football. Prior to managing England, Southgate’s only previous achievement in management was getting Middlesbrough relegated, and now he has once again turned our ‘golden generation’ into an embarrassment on the world stage. If England had a manager like Jose Mourinho or Tuchel we would almost certainly be lifting trophy after trophy on the international stage, but instead our talent is mismanaged poorly.
FIFA World Cup 2022: The race for the Golden Ball
At the FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar, the Golden Ball trophy will be given to the best football player of the competition. Luka Modric, Kylian Mbappe, Lionel Messi, and a few other players are potential winners.
Lionel Messi
Wouldn’t it make for a fantastical story? One of, if not the best player to ever play on the international stage, leaving international football with his career’s most significant trophy. The one that every player hopes to achieve, even an experienced player. And Lionel Messi, a crucial player in Argentina’s progress to the semifinals, has demonstrated just how much he wants this with his performances in Qatar.
Luka Modric
It is safe to assume that Luka Modric, who is 37 years old, defies his age.
He is a rock in the middle of the park for both club and country; whether he is helping the attack or the defense hold down the fort, he is always present.
When Croatia competed in the World Cup in Russia four years ago, they defied expectations and advanced to the final. Modric was a major member of that team. At the conclusion of 90 minutes, France would have won the championship with a 4–2 defeat, but the Real Madrid midfielder would go on to win Player of the Tournament honours and the Golden Ball.
Kylian Mbappe
We continue to witness Kylian Mbappe’s excellence as his career develops. We ponder the prospect that we are seeing a player who, in the future, will be regarded as one of the greatest to have ever played the game every time he enters the field.
It has been fascinating to see the young Frenchman in Qatar as he has consistently spoken up for his nation when it matters most, though he is not the only one to do so. Both Olivier Giroud and Antoine Griezmann were crucial to France’s victory over England in the quarterfinals on Saturday, which has become a defining moment in their attempt to retain their title.
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