The ultimate World Cup 2018 players trivia quiz

Sorry Garrincha. That’s a llama, not a goat. Composite: Frank Hulley-Jones

1. Which Argentina star made headlines in 2008 for "defiling himself for strangers" on his webcam then being run over by his own car having left the handbrake off at a petrol station?

   1. Willy Caballero

   2. Lucas Biglia

   3. Éver Banega

2. What did Russia’s Fyodor Kudryashov call match officials after breaking down a locker room door last spring?

   1. "Stupid fish"

   2. "Dumb lizards"

   3. "Idiot mice"

3. In 2016, with which animal did Swiss keeper Yann Sommer pose for a photoshoot?

   1. A marmot

   2. A llama

   3. A goat

4. Which current Premier League manager was Russia’s Artem Dzyuba insulting in 2012 when he called him "Trenerishka" ("coachkin"/"coachlet")?

   1. Claude Puel

   2. Marco Silva

   3. Unai Emery

5. Saudi Arabia’s Salem Al-Dawsari was fined and banned for trying to do what to Scottish referee John Beaton In May 2015?

   1. Cuddle him

   2. Headbutt him

   3. Wedgie him

6. 

   Portugal defender José Fonte left West Ham for Dalian Yifang in January. What was the score on his debut in China?

   1. 0-7

   2. 0-8

   3. 0-9

7. Who did Porto sign for €1,000 in 2011 and sell for €38m last summer?

   1. André Silva

   2. João Mário

   3. Gelson Martins

8. Who released a tease for his debut rap track in May, titled SR4?

   1. Sebastian Rudy

   2. Sergio Ramos

   3. Saúl

9. Eden Hazard calls him “the rat”, Michael Ballack says he’s “like an annoying fly”. Who is he?

   1. Jamie Vardy

   2. N'Golo Kanté

   3. Luis Suárez

10. What sort of bird did Australia keeper Danny Vukovic rescue during a cup final after it was hit by the ball – petting it then handing it to security staff?

    1. A duck

    2. A seagull

    3. A galah

11. 

    Which children's TV character was France striker Olivier Giroud talking about in 2016 when he said: “I was so scared of him. He was so ugly. My brothers used to say: 'Be careful, he is going to get you tonight.' They went too far”?

    1. The Cookie Monster

    2. Mr Noseybonk

    3. Alf

12. Which winger’s nicknames include “Cube of Power” and “Magic Dwarf”?

    1. Hirving Lozano

    2. Xherdan Shaqiri

    3. Cristian Pavón

13. Who did Peru’s Christian Ramos do an impression of after scoring in the qualifier against New Zealand last year, explaining later: "My boy really loves him"?

    1. Spongebob

    2. Scooby Doo

    3. Spiderman

14. Denmark’s Mathias “Zanka” Jorgensen gets his nickname from which famous sporting movie?

    1. Caddyshack

    2. Hoosiers

    3. Cool Runnings

15. 

    Who could become the fourth player after Pelé, Uwe Seeler and Miroslav Klose to score in four World Cups?

    1. Tim Cahill

    2. Mario Mandžukić

    3. Lionel Messi

16. What was Argentina’s Franco Armani made to wear by sponsors after winning man of the match in the Supercopa Argentina in March?

    1. A nacho hat

    2. A Burger King crown

    3. A KFC bucket

17. Which forward was nicknamed "Square R2" by Paul Pogba because: “That’s the key combination you press on PlayStation to do a turn and shot. He always scores like that"?

    1. Kylian Mbappé

    2. Romelu Lukaku

    3. Paulo Dybala

18. Australia forward Andrew Nabbout’s father is a former bodybuilder who achieved the honour of being named Mr what?

    1. Universe

    2. Tasmania

    3. Lebanon

19. Whose hit track Don’t Fall In Love With Me includes the observation: “I’ll get you naked and I’ll do it in a thousand ways – even up against the wall”?

    1. Juan Fernando Quintero

    2. Paulinho

    3. Mesut Özil

20. Which former Premier League star gave a £36,000 diamond-encrusted watch as a tip to a waiter in a Mayfair restaurant in 2011?

    1. Ángel Di María

    2. Luka Modric

    3. Vedran Corluka

21. Who starred in the first big row of the World Cup when Panini were forced to deny they had Photoshopped his head onto Gabriel Jesus’s body?

    1. Fred

    2. Philippe Coutinho

    3. Roberto Firmino

22. Who is the only player in action at this World Cup who has been bitten in-play by Luis Suárez?

    1. Branislav Ivanovic

    2. Otman Bakkal

    3. Giorgio Chiellini

23. 

    Brazil star Marcelo’s young son went viral in May after playing what in Real’s dressing room?

    1. Head tennis

    2. Keepy-uppy

    3. Swing-ball

24. Russia's Yuri Zhirkov announced plans in 2015 to open what in an old German bunker in Kaliningrad?

    1. A shooting range

    2. A war museum

    3. A cat cafe

25. Sweden midfielder Oscar Hiljemark used to go to school on what?

    1. A horse

    2. A unicycle

    3. A tandem

26. How many kidneys does Poland midfielder Slawomir Peszko have?

    1. One

    2. Three

    3. Four

27. Germany’s Marvin Plattenhardt says he keeps two pets who “always create a good mood in the living room. One is pale blue, one is more purple”. What are they?

    1. Budgies

    2. Siamese fighting fish

    3. Lorikeets

28. 

    Who says he learned English by watching Shawshank Redemption 30 times, along with “Dirty Harry and TV series like 24 and Prison Break… You learn a lot of words that way”?

    1. Gabriel Jesus

    2. Felipe Luís

    3. Pedro Geromel

29. Belgium right-back and art lover Thomas Meunier has the painting “The Persistence of Memory” as his phone screensaver. Who painted it?

    1. Salvador Dali

    2. René Magritte

    3. Max Ernst

30. Manuel Neuer won €500,000 for charity in 2011 on the German version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, choosing to take the money rather than answer the following €1m question: “To Nuremberg’s Martin Behaim, we owe the oldest surviving what? a) Compass; b) Slide rule; c) Globe; d) Magnetic compass?” What is the answer?

    1. Compass

    2. Slide

    3. Globe

    4. Magnetic compass

Solutions

1:C, 2:B, 3:B - A six-year-old llama called Iquitos, 4:C, 5:B, 6:B, 7:A, 8:B, 9:B, 10:B, 11:C, 12:B, 13:C, 14:C, 15:A, 16:B, 17:C, 18:C, 19:A, 20:C, 21:C, 22:A, 23:A, 24:B, 25:B, 26:C, 27:A, 28:B, 29:A, 30:C

Scores

1. 4 and above.

   Oh dear.

2. 5 and above.

   Oh dear.

3. 6 and above.

   We'd like to say that is a good score but it's not

4. 7 and above.

   We'd like to say that is a good score but it's not

5. 8 and above.

   We'd like to say that is a good score but it's not

6. 9 and above.

   We'd like to say that is a good score but it's not

7. 10 and above.

   We'd like to say that is a good score but it's not

8. 11 and above.

   Meh

9. 12 and above.

   Meh

10. 13 and above.

    Meh

11. 14 and above.

    Meh

12. 15 and above.

    Not bad at all. Enjoy the World Cup

13. 16 and above.

    Not bad at all. Enjoy the World Cup

14. 17 and above.

    Well played. Enjoy the World Cup

15. 18 and above.

    Well played. Enjoy the World Cup

16. 19 and above.

    Well played. Enjoy the World Cup

17. 20 and above.

    An impressive performance. Enjoy the World Cup

18. 21 and above.

    An impressive performance. Enjoy the World Cup

19. 22 and above.

    An impressive performance. Enjoy the World Cup

20. 23 and above.

    An impressive performance. Enjoy the World Cup

21. 24 and above.

    An impressive performance. Enjoy the World Cup

22. 25 and above.

    You know your stuff. Enjoy the World Cup

23. 26 and above.

    You know your stuff. Enjoy the World Cup

24. 27 and above.

    You know your stuff. Enjoy the World Cup

25. 28 and above.

    You know your stuff. Enjoy the World Cup

26. 29 and above.

    You know your stuff. Enjoy the World Cup

27. 30 and above.

    You know your stuff. Enjoy the World Cup

28. 1 and above.

    Oh dear.

29. 2 and above.

    Oh dear.

30. 3 and above.

    Oh dear.

31. 0 and above.

    Oh dear.