So it’s about time to wrap things up here. That’s because today’s first match, the face-off between Sweden and Switzerland, is just half an hour away. Barry Glendenning has already started on the MBM, so hotfoot it over there for the latest news from St Petersburg.
Meanwhile the last word on this blog goes to Ben Simmons: “I think it might be time for a rant. I’ve been following this Go Kane story, and honestly the British people’s fixation on Colombian cocaine comes as no surprise. Living here in Bogotá, with many friends in the ESL community, I can tell you that the level of cocaine consumption among expats is enough of an embarrassment to warrant its own Sun headline. It’s utterly rife, and far outweighs that of the locals. We seem utterly disconnected from the brutal realities of what drugs wars actually entail, and how they come to pass (consumption!), even when we’re so close to them. According to the Telegraph last year, about 0.7% of the Colombian population actually consumes or has consumed the drug (34th of the 115 countries measured), while 2.25% of the English do so. I wouldn’t hesitate to suggest that its probably about 5x higher for British expats living here. Ever wondered why the Colombians are always so passionate, loud, and bright at the World Cup? They know this is a chance to show the world how they are as a people. They are desperate to change this warped and hypocritical narrative.”
Best of luck to both England and Colombia tonight; may the best team win!
“Valderrama literally jangled.” Ahead of tonight’s big game, Graeme Le Saux recalls the last time England met Colombia at the World Cup.
Millions of photos will be taken at this World Cup. Here’s how the expert snappers go about their business. A brilliant piece illustrated by some gorgeous pictures, plus the revelation that Cristiano Ronaldo enjoys posing for photos more than Lionel Messi.
Some of the entries in that Word Cup run by the Cambridge University Press (12.57pm) are quite revealing. Ben Stokes notes that “it’s coming home” forms a significant part of England’s word map. Max from Stockholm reports that “a big bold ORGANISED” is in the middle of Sweden’s. And finally Devin John Doyle points out that Aussie fans have clearly been expressing themselves: the three biggest words for the Socceroos are “galahs”, “sheilas” and “drongos”. It may be worth coming back to this online resource tomorrow, should things not go perfectly for England.
If you were being particularly unkind, you could say we’ve been talking balls all morning. So we might as well quiz you on them too. Do you know your Telstars from your Jabulanis?
There was another nose-bothering headline in the Mail, as referenced in today’s World Cup Fiver. Though that one read “10 tips to help you beat hayfever misery”. Probably best to click the link for context, really.
The Sun crosses a (white) line. Colombia’s ambassador to the UK has complained after the paper made light of the country’s links to the drugs trade ahead of tonight’s big game. Go Kane, you see. “It’s rather sad that they use such a festive and friendly environment as the World Cup to target a country and continue to stigmatise it with a completely unrelated issue.”
Some breaking news: If anyone’s earned the right to have another crack at a big tournament, it’s him.
How do you like them apples? Great news for England on ITV’s flagship investigative current affairs show This Morning, as Mystic Marcus the Defecating Psychic Pig plumped for some tasty treats with England flags in them. That means ... well, you know how this nonsense works by now. Marcus tucked into his tasty treat after delivering his critical verdict on England’s performance against Belgium in smouldering pellet form. Lulu the elephant would have been so proud.
Mexico fell at the last-16 hurdle yesterday for the seventh World Cup in succession. That is some record. To be fair, their battle to reach the elusive “fifth game” has usually been an uphill one: they faced Germany in 1998, Argentina in 2006 and 2010, the Netherlands four years ago, and now Brazil. Only against Bulgaria in 1994 and the USA in 2002 were they favourites to advance. Their boss Juan Carlos Osorio is determined to eke out some positives from the latest second-round defeat ... though it’s hard. “The fact that we could play on equal terms against a team like Brazil speaks very well of our attitude, but we lacked efficiency and that extra quality they have in the last third of the field. You have to remember where Gabriel Jesus plays, where Willian and Philippe Coutinho play. Mexican football needs to export more players and they need to compete each weekend with the best, they need to train each week with the best, and then the team will take that jump in quality.”
“With dignity I accept a wave of criticism: sometimes malicious, sometimes substantive.” Let us hope Gareth Southgate doesn’t have to resort to similar statements this evening, delightfully worded though it is. This particular mea culpa has been uttered by the aforementioned Adam Nawalka (12.09pm) who is leaving his post as Poland manager in the wake of the biało-czerwoni’s awful performance in Russia. “I am very sorry but I am optimistic about the future of Polish football and my coaching as a coach. Of course, I feel responsible that at the championships we have not met expectations and ambitions, our own and fans. I take full responsibility because it’s always the role of a trainer and I do not run away from it.”
The 2018 Word Cup. The good folk at the Cambridge University Press are researching the language used to describe different football teams. During the last World Cup, Argentina were synonymous with “flair”, England were “inexperienced”, Germany “focussed”. Is that likely to be the case four years on? Go to cambridge.org/word-cup, click on any country, and enter three words that best describe that team. Once you’re done, you’ll be taken to a page that updates in real time with the answers so far. And it’s all for a good cause: United Through Sport, a charity dedicated to transforming children’s lives through the power of sport.
Of course, if Kane really wants to go for the kingpin, he’ll need another nine goals in these finals to topple Just Fontaine. The French legend scored 13 times at the 1958 World Cup ... and he wasn’t even wearing his own boots! The ever-brilliant Rob Smyth tells the story.
Harry Kane is looking to extend his lead at the top of the Golden Boot standings. A couple more goals tonight, and you’d think he’ll be a shoo-in to join the following select list of players who have top-scored at a World Cup:
Guillermo Stabile, Oldrich Nejedly, Leonidas, Ademir, Sandor Kocsis, Just Fontaine, Florian Albert, Valentin Ivanov, Garrincha, Vava, Drazan Jerkovic, Leonel Sanchez, Eusebio, Gerd Muller, Grzegorz Lato, Mario Kempes, Paolo Rossi, Gary Lineker, Salvatore Schillaci, Oleg Salenko, Hristo Stoichkov, Davor Suker, Ronaldo, Miroslav Klose, Thomas Muller and James Rodriguez.
Hmm, when you write it down like that, it doesn’t look so select, does it. But that’s 84 years of football for you.
Updated
Thanks to John. Back just in time for a brief musical interlude, courtesy of the late, great Kirsty MacColl.
Bit worrying that the sports news channel with the yellow ticker have a penalties package on heavy rotation. Talk about the fatalism of a nation...all set up for Harry Maguire to balloon one into (ряд Z before fellow Sheffield lad Kyle Walker offers a shoulder to cry on.
Updated
As I am reminded on Twitter...and the transfer window closes on July 9.
I believe most premier league clubs returned to pre season training yesterday @johnbrewin_ it never goes away.....
— Richard Morris (@richardmorrisuk) July 3, 2018
Updated
Back to real football, and the thrilling news for all Arsenal fans around the world that Calum Chambers has signed an extended contract.
Oh...but what’s this...looks like Riyad Mahrez is off to Manchester City.
(There’s only ten games of the World Cup left before football news becomes like this for the next two years.)
Updated
Don’t take away our breakaways. After Nacer Chadli’s goal last night, Alex Hess has got his time machine on the go.
Updated
The World Cup sack race continues, after Spain started it before the start of the tournament. Poland coach Adam Nawalka will not have his contract extended after failing to advance from the group phase.
Zbigniew Boniek, head of the Polish FA, said Nawalka will stay in the job only until July 30. He has coached Poland since November 2013 and at Euro 2016 had looked to have the beginnings of a decent side.
The England team have arrived at their hotel. As they walk in, their phones and headphones are seeing heavy use, aside from Jordan Pickford, who strolled in, bold as brass, not even on his phone or listening to the hit parade or the “In Our Time” podcast, though perhaps he was thinking of not wanting to be the next Joe Hart/Rob Green/Peter Bonetti etc etc.
After that shocking revelation from Mikel John Obi, perhaps a good time to read back the interview he did with David Hytner ahead of the tournament.
Have a bang on some David Squires.
Wayne Rooney thinks England did the right thing by having a go-slow against Belgium and has played the classic “if anything, we’re too honest card”.
“For me personally, it’s the right decision,” he told ESPN in Washington DC. “The result, in my opinion - I can say it now, I’m not (an England) player - the result was the best result for England. And maybe that’s been a problem we’ve had the last 15, 20 years as a country: we’re too honest. We sit there and say we want to win every game. This is England. This is how we should play. When all the other countries are plotting their way through, I’m sure Gareth would have liked to have kept the momentum going, but sometimes you need to take a step backward to go forward. I believe it was definitely the right decision.”
Morning, all. A breaking story here.
Updated
And with that, I’m going to scuttle off for a break. John Brewin will be your host. Enjoy, enjoy.
Many apologies to Alfredo and Lionel, but Diego Maradona is surely the greatest player in Argentina’s history. The greatest manager they’ve had? Not so much. El Diego coached his country at the 2010 World Cup, where they were spanked out of sight by Germany, 4-0, in the quarters. Now he’s offering to take over from current coach Jorge Sampaoli, who might have a contract until 2022 but isn’t exactly odds-on to see it through. Maradona was asked by Venezuelan TV whether he’d be interested in doing the job again, and he had no hesitation in replying: “Yes, and I would do it for free. I wouldn’t ask for anything in return. People think I am happy but my heart is heavy. I feel really bad that everything we built with so much effort we destroyed so easily.”
Meanwhile the Swiss coach Vladimir Petkovic has cited the cultural diversity within his squad as a major reason for their success so far. Two of Switzerland’s biggest stars, Xherdan Shaqiri and Granit Xhaka, are ethnic Albanians and of Kosovar heritage, and Petkovic says: “We have managed to bring together different cultures, different talents, different ideologies and they help us to play really good football. We have a team where the chemistry is right, that really goes together, and this is a guarantee for success.” He’s also setting his sights further than the quarters. “What you’ve seen throughout the tournament is that we have been playing really well. We can be a surprise to those who underestimate us. We want to win against Sweden but I don’t think that should be our final objective.” Switzerland will be without the suspended Fabian Schar and Stephan Lichtsteiner; Johan Djourou is likely to start in defence. “For our team every missing player is a loss, but at the same time we have a total of 23 in our squad. I can rely on all of them and I’m quite confident that the two who replace them will play just as well.”
If Switzerland win this afternoon, they’ll reach the quarters for the first time since 1954. They hosted the event that year, and looked to have one foot in the semis when they went 3-0 up on Austria by the 18-minute mark, only to eventually lose 7-5. The match became known as the Heat Battle of Lausanne, with Austrian goalkeeper Kurt Schmied and Swiss captain Roger Bocquet both treated for sunstroke at half-time. More on that here ...
But let’s not get too carried away this evening. Whatever happens, it’s only a game, it’s not worth getting stressed and making yourself ill. With this in mind, a popular pet-food company - other dog treats are available - will be streaming action from a puppy football match this evening, in order to help overly excited/tense/irate England fans manage their blood pressure and heart rate. It’s a great idea. Though why has the tiny black-and-white pup in goal been sent off, 17 seconds into this trailer? That’s a disgraceful decision. VAR to blame, no doubt. It’s ruining the game. Gah! GAH!
Tonight’s big game promises to be an event of heightened emotion. In homes across England, anyway. Gareth Southgate wants his players to keep their cool amid the mayhem that is World Cup knockout football, as our award-winning chief football writer Daniel Taylor reports:
Our man Ed Aarons has, like Jim Davidson before him, been up the elephant and round the castle. (References to 1980s Thames TV sitcoms, the internet kids can’t get enough of them.) Anyway, the Elephant and Castle is the centre of a thriving Colombian community, and it’ll be the place to watch tonight’s match if you fancy Jose Pekerman’s side to prevail. “I can see it being a really good game,” says one of the chaps Ed meets. “But if England give them time on the ball, then they are in big trouble.”
Hot admin news! Our brilliant guide to all the players at this World Cup has been updated with your ratings for yesterday’s games. That’s good news for Willian and Guillermo Ochoa, who were both awarded a shapely 8 for their performances yesterday. An 8 for Neymar too! Sending some love the way of Brazil’s talisman, there, when others are accusing him of all sorts. Pat yourselves on the back, you’re lovely people.
South Korea may have put the reigning world champions Germany out, but their performance wasn’t enough to get out of the groups ... and it wasn’t enough to spare the players a humiliating welcome back home. Upon landing in Incheon yesterday, they were pelted by eggs as they lined up for a photo. But the Korean FA have decided not to pursue charges, a local bobby explaining: “Throwing eggs is considered an assault, but it’s also an offence which can’t be prosecuted without the victim’s objection.” Thank goodness they at least registered that win over the Germans, because last time round they finished bottom of their group, and upon returning home from Brazil were pelted with toffees, the most heinous of insults in Korea.
But it’s not all bad news for South Korean sport ...
The result of today’s match between Sweden and Switzerland is already in. Sort of. Achilles, a deaf cat who normally prowls around the St Petersburg Hermitage museum in the insouciant style, has predicted a Swiss victory. He’s done this by chowing down on a plate of food with the Switzerland national flag stuck in it. But do we trust this Achilles? Is he a chancer? What’s his backstory? Well, he’s already predicted two victories for Russia, Iran’s win against Morocco, and Brazil’s triumph over Costa Rica. The only one he’s got wrong is his choice of Nigeria over Argentina, but the Albiceleste were useless, so you can hardly blame him for calling it the way he did. He’s got form, then. Worried Swedish fans can console themselves with the fact that the banner pictured is not square, and is therefore the civil ensign of Switzerland and not the national flag. Maybe that invalidates the whole process. We can’t take it seriously now.
In defence of Neymar. Here with it is John Ashdown (not our one):
I had the misfortune of watching xXx: Return of Xander Cage in theatres and thus remember well the bit of acting by Neymar. The scene ends with him and Samuel L. Jackson being blown to bits by an incoming missile, which I suppose will please most of your readers:
But I offer this: every team needs a lightning rod like him, a player that attracts all the media flak and controversy (Ronaldo does this very well for Portugal, for instance).
By being the centre of attention, Neymar deflects criticism from his teammates and manager. Our conversation about Brazil might have been that they’ve been a bit sluggish; that they have a dubious pair of centre-backs; that Tité’s tactics are not versatile; that his bench is inexplicably shallow (Geromel? Renato Augusto?!?). Instead, it’s all Neymar all the time.
Speaking of which, as a Welshman I fully support that this live blog discusses Neymar and the Switzerland-Sweden game and absolutely nothing else today. Thank you.
One last, poetic word on brave, broken Japan. And it comes courtesy of Swastik Basu.
I absolutely love the subplots peppered throughout the World Cup. In the final group game against Poland, Japan stopped playing as the result in the Colombia-Senegal match was going in their favour and they didn’t want to risk conceding goals/yellow cards which would lead to elimination. Ironically they went through on Fair Play points!
The Japan manager was ashamed, he stated publicly that he regretted his own tactics, and promised to make up for it in the round of 16. The shadow of the ethical transgression was clearly looming large as Japan decided to attack Belgium even as they were 2-0 up. Many would call it tactical naivety. I would call it redemption.
They took something away from football in that last group game. They gave something back yesterday.
Belgium, by contrast, can now look forward to an exciting quarter-final tie with favourites Brazil. Well, sort of. Here’s what their coach Roberto Martinez has been saying. It’s expectation management straight out of the Roy Hodgson playbook.
When you play against Brazil, you need to understand they are the best team in the competition. We can enjoy it from the first minute. I don’t think anyone expects us to go through to the semi-finals.
Stirring rhetoric. Say what you like about Alf Ramsey, he knew the power of positive thinking. “Gentlemen, most certainly we will win the World Cup.” It’s not a bad way to work.
Japan’s veteran coach Akira Nishino insists he should be blamed for their heartbreaking defeat. The 63-year-old didn’t park the bus when his side went two up; then he sent his men up for a corner deep into stoppage time, an aggressive decision that had huge consequences.
I don’t think the players were to blame, I think it was me who might have lost control of the game. When the goal was conceded, I blamed myself, and I question my tactics. As for the result I am very disappointed. I am devastated. When we were 2-0 up, and I didn’t change my players, I really wanted to score another goal and we did have opportunities.
Perhaps when it all comes down, the poor chap will console himself with the knowledge that Japan have made an indelible impression on a World Cup at last. They contributed to an all-time classic in style. Nobody will forget these Samurai Blue in a hurry.
Belgium’s spectacular win over Japan was certainly a performance for the ages. It was the first time a team had come from two goals down in a knockout match since Mexico 70, when West Germany avenged 1966 by beating Alf’s England in the quarter-final. That was a story told expertly by Simon Burnton in our World Cup Stunning Moments series. Apologies to anyone old enough to remember the pain of that particular defeat ... but otherwise, enjoy!
It’s just as well Gareth rolled the dice, though. Because had England won Group G, we’d never have witnessed last night’s instant World Cup classic between a desperate Belgium team and a Japan side in full banzai mode. Stuart James was at the Rostov Arena to witness history.
But should England be playing Colombia at all? Had they sent out a full-strength XI against Belgium, there’s a chance they’d have been paired with Japan last night instead. Here’s Barney Ronay’s expert take on Gareth’s Great Gamble.
It promises to be quite the festival of football in Bermondsey tonight. Folk on the Kirby Estate have decorated the whole place in the cross of St George ... though there is a lone Colombian flag fluttering defiantly in the breeze.
Hats off for that to Jorge Marmolejo (second right) and his family, enjoying some good-natured fun with their friends and neighbours. The World Cup, bringing us all together in peace, love and harmony. Also, any old excuse to post a picture of a cute puppy.
Anyway, England. This evening against Colombia, they’ll be looking for their first win in the knockout stage of a World Cup since 2006. That’s when David Beckham scored the only goal against Ecuador in the last 16, setting up a quarter-final against Portugal, Luiz Felipe Scolari, Cristiano Ronaldo, all that. Here’s Kevin McCarra’s report of that game. Just 24 comments below the line for an England match! More innocent times, eh.
There’s more on Sweden-Switzerland in the latest edition of World Cup Football Daily. Olof Lundh is your go-to guy for that; Max Rushden and Barry Glendenning are on hand, as always, for just about everything else. Enjoy!
Could Sweden win the whole thing? Well, laugh it up if you must, but they’ve already barged their way past Italy and Germany, and they are one of the World Cup’s great over-achievers. For a country with a population of just ten million, their record is nothing short of outstanding. They made the semis in 1938 and 1994, and the final pool in 1950. Best of all, they reached the final itself when hosting the tournament in 1958: here’s how the Guardian reported their eventual 5-2 defeat to Brazil. And this is how a 17-year-old Pele saw it.
Of course, they’re no Uruguay (pop: 3m). But then who is?
Right. We’ll get onto the subject of England at some point, no doubt. But before their big game against Colombia this evening, Sweden take on Switzerland in St Petersburg. Our man Marcus Christenson runs the rule over a collective that has no stars, and may just be all the better for it.
But first things first ... you have been keeping your wallchart up to date, haven’t you? If not, be about your business. Off to the fridge, or wherever you’ve pinned it up, with you. Let’s get up to speed, and then take things from there.
Good morning, everyone. You’ve obviously heard there’s a match on today.
One final email before I hand over to Scott Murray in London. “I think that people aren’t giving Neymar enough credit,” writes Kári Tulinius. “When he riles up opposition defenders they tend to lose their heads, creating opportunities for others. Yesterday’s opening goal was created because the entire Mexican defence was so focused on kicking Neymar that they forgot about Willian. When they panicked Neymar snuck round the back and stuck in Willian’s cross.” And with that thought deposited in your heads, I’ll bid you adieu, until tomorrow when we will have a final eight of the 2018 World Cup!
On the scoresheet from the spot that night in Kiev was one Wayne Rooney (along with Steven Gerrard), who will be watching the Colombia game with interest from his new digs in Washington. When asked if he would be disappointed if England did go on and win it (they won’t), he dismissed the questions as “unfair”. You could label them plenty of other things too, to be fair.
England and penalty shootouts – the unhappiest of bedfellows. The pair seem to be inextricably linked when it comes to the knockout stage of major tournaments, and more often than not, it ends badly for England. Of the eight shootouts England have been involved in, they’ve lost seven and won just one – at Euro 96 against Spain (they’d later go out to Germany on pens). The most recent came in the 2012 Euros quarter-finals against Italy, when Ashleys Cole and Young both missed. In case you needed a refresher:
The good/bad news is that Young has put his hand up again, should it come to it (it will come to it). “Of course I’ll put my name forward,” he said. “I have the confidence in my ability to step up and take one. I’ll definitely be one to put my hand up. We’ve worked on them in practice and I have confidence in my ability to score more.”
After today, the unthinkable – two whole days of no live football while we all prepare ourselves for the quarters, which start with Uruguay v France on Friday. The French seem to be finding le groove just at the right time, with Kylian Mbappé having announced himself on the world stage in the last-16 win over Argentina. But in Uruguay, they will be truly tested for the first time in Russia. More from Eric Devin here:
Óscar Tabárez has more control over his team than Jorge Sampaoli enjoyed and he is also in possession of perhaps the best defence in the tournament. Uruguay are particularly solid at centre-back, where the Atlético Madrid duo Diego Godín and José Gimenez welcome and repel all comers. Against Portugal they had one shot in the second half – from which they scored the winning goal – and just 30% of possession, yet their centre-backs seemed comfortable. If Mbappé can unsettle Godín and Gimenez, he will have truly arrived.
Compare and contrast. The agony and ecstasy of the World Cup in two parts.
Vidyanshu Mishra emails: “Wondering if Spain’s football chief’s decision to sack Julen Lopetegui was a good idea? How far you can expect a team to go if you change the manager just before tournament and appoint someone with far less experience and completely different tactics. For sure it conveyed the message that such unethical and disloyal behaviour by a manager will not be accepted but whether it was more important than performance of the team is a point that should be discussed.”
This, by Sid Lowe, may contain some answers:
From a Swedish dependance to an Australia one – that of outcome dependency. They may be long gone from the tournament, but the Socceroos’ failed campaign is still being dissected. Here, Ante Jukic expresses his fears that, despite the flaws highlighted in Russia, nothing will change once incoming coach Graham Arnold takes over the reins.
So what of today’s second game: Sweden v Switzerland? The Guardian’s football editor Marcus Christensen is pretty well placed to run the rule over Sweden’s chances of reaching the last eight – it’s all about the collective, rather than the individual, in this post-Zlatan world.
“There are no stars (apart from maybe RB Leipzig’s Emil Forsberg) any more. The two forwards are Marcus Berg, who plays for Al Ain in the United Arab Emirates and Ola Toivonen, who doesn’t play for Toulouse. The key midfielder has been Sebastian Larsson, who was relegated with Sunderland in 2017 and spent last season with Hull City in the Championship (although he is suspended for the game against Switzerland).”
Reckon you know who this lot are?
Neymar aside, Brazil are beginning to look ominous as other players around him step up their game. Willian is rapidly becoming their strawberry cream, Philippe Coutinho the toffee penny, and Paulinho the vanilla fudge. Nick Ames started the chocolate analogy:
“From the Seleção, a selection box of treats. While their rivals falter, beset by rusting parts and in some cases complete mechanical failure, Brazil roll on and their claim to a sixth World Cup now looks more persuasive than at any point in the past four years. The strut of champions-elect is returning and, as players and staff piled on after Roberto Firmino’s far-post tap-in, it did not take an outrageous leap to envisage similar scenes unfolding 13 days down the line when this often bewildering summer party finally winds down.”
Sad news from Japan, where the psychic octopus who correctly predicted the nation’s first three World Cup matches has been killed and sent to the market to be sold as food.
The ‘psychic’ octopus that correctly predicted the result of Japan’s first three World Cup matches has been killed and sold for food https://t.co/3OtyZsl1Ny
— Sports Illustrated (@SInow) July 2, 2018
Anyway, enough of the hatchet job on Neymar. He’ll probably have the last laugh when he lifts the trophy in just under two weeks anyway. “That Belgium goal,” kicks off Daniel Stauss. “The breathtaking thing about that Belgium goal was how Lukaku opened up miles of space on the right for Meunier to run into while de Bruyne was bringing the ball upfield. He was a force of nature; the Japanese defender was swept up in his path, the poor guy couldn’t help himself. By the time Lukaku wheeled off into the penalty area, he had completely bamboozled two defenders into closing on him. That run was one of the best off-the-ball offensive moves I’ve seen in a long time, and far and away the highlight of the tournament so far.”
It was one of the best breakaway goals seen at a World Cup, for sure. It’s difficult to think of many better, but how about Salif Diao in Senegal v Denmark in 2002 and Ilie Dumitrescu for Romania against Argentina in 1994 for starters?
Update: This had passed me by, for reasons that are perhaps understandable, but it appears Neymar actually has a real acting career. According to IMDB: “Neymar was born on February 5, 1992 in Mogi das Cruzes, São Paulo, Brazil as Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior. He is an actor and producer, known for xXx: Return of Xander Cage (2017), Above the Noise (2017) and Shakira Feat. Carlinhos Brown: La La La - Brazil 2014 (2014).” Speechless.
Updated
“Morning Mike!” It’s actually mid-afternoon in my part of the world, but good morning to you, David Penney! “Did anyone else notice that Layún also stood on the linesman’s foot just as much as he did Neymar’s? I didn’t see the linesman flopping around like a beached fish. It’s instances like these that make football such a laughing stock to fans of other sports.”
“You can’t even say Neymar is good at acting,” writes dubod22. “He makes Steven Seagal look like Marlon Brando.” The way the ref simply ignored his shenanigans perhaps proved his lack of acting prowess. Indeed, acting and footballers, with a few notable exceptions (Vinny Jones in Lock, Stock and Eric Cantona are two that spring to mind), should never mix.
Juan Carlos Osorio, the Mexico coach, said of Neymar’s attempts to put himself in contention for an Oscar: “I think it’s a shame for football. We wasted a lot of time because of one player. We stopped too often. I think this is a very negative example for the world of football and all the children who are following this game. This is a strong sport, a man’s sport and I think there shouldn’t be so much acting.”
The sentiment is, obviously, spot on, if not quite his assertion about football being a “man’s sport”. One can only assume he hasn’t watched a women’s game, in which there is usually little to any playacting, diving, writhing or rolling at all. If anything, Neymar, and other men of his ilk, should take a leaf out of those women’s books, in my opinion, and get up off the floor and just play football.
OK, it’s time to talk Neymar. On my TV, they’ve just replayed his antics following the “stamp” on his foot, and I can’t keep quiet any more. What on earth was he thinking? Why the need for such playacting? He’s one of, if not the most, skilful player on the planet. He dances around players for fun. Beat teams with your talent, Junior, not some ridiculous B-grade acting.
Of course I might be wrong, and it might have really, really, really hurt. But I’m sure you’ll forgive my scepticism.
“Can we just say a big thank you to the Japanese team.” Yes we can, Jacob Vienna. “No time wasting, no dirty tricks, no fouling to break-up play, no overlong substitutions, no arguing with the ref, no rolling four times over for a fake foul, no clutching the back of the head after being hit in the back (some of these may or may not be based on actual incidents).. Japan played with pure sportsmanship. Thank you Japan.”
Indeed, there has been a sense of serenity to Japan for the most part at this World Cup, both on and off the pitch. Which, rather ironically, couldn’t have been more far removed from the circumstances of their ultimate demise at the hands of Belgium, as Nick Miller writes:
The last time England played Colombia at a World Cup, 20 years ago, Glenn Hoddle’s side prevailed 2-0, thanks to goals from Darren Anderton and David Beckham. Graeme Le Saux was in the lineup that day in Lens and the left-back remembers well coming face to face with the legend that was Carlos Valderama – and his hair.
“The funny thing with Valderrama was he had loads of bracelets on. He literally jangled. Every time he received the ball you could hear him. It was like a sleigh because you could hear all his bangles jiggling about. Then his hair had its own sort of gravitational field, so you could sense him coming either by listening or feeling that his hair was somewhere in your vicinity.”
Gold star for Ben Aitkenhead, who is first to wade into the James Rodríguez debate with both an email and a comment below the line. That’s the kind of coverage Denmark would be proud of. “Hard to overstate how important James is to this match,” Ben writes. “Imagine the angst if Kane was injured and doubtful. James is The Man for Colombia.” Pekerman is playing down his importance, but of course he has to do that, faced with the prospect of not having his star player to call on.
Updated
First up, something from yesterday to warm the cockles of even the coldest of hearts. The World Cup will, on some levels, be a poorer place without them. And their fans, for that matter.
This is the Japanese dressingroom after losing to Belgium in the 94’ minute. Thanked their fans in the stadium, cleaned up everything (bench and dressingroom) and spoke to media. Even left note with ‘thank you’ in Russian. What an example for all teams!! Privilege to work with! pic.twitter.com/eIryTdrlKA
— Priscilla Janssens (@priscillaboca) July 2, 2018
I haven’t had a chance to listen to this yet, but the blurb says: “Max and co discuss Japan’s last-gasp exit, Brazil’s win, classic play-acting, scoring records, Swedish babies and Ricky Martin.”
I have no idea how they get around to Ricky Martin, but such is the joy of the pod. Do yourselves a favour etc...
Preamble
Please, please don’t ever end, you gorgeous thing, 2018 World Cup. After yet more drama – pure, unfiltered, thrilling late drama in the case of Belgium’s game against Japan – we are now just two matches away from a complete quarter-final lineup in what is well on its way to becoming a classic tournament. And the good news is that there is potential for more thrills and spills later today, if you can possibly take any more, with the evenly-matched Sweden and Switzerland vying in Saint Petersburg for a spot in the last eight.
What’s that? Oh yes, England are playing Colombia too. But that’s almost certainly not going to be an incident-filled, heart-wrenching banger of a match, one that definitely won’t end in an agonising penalty shootout defeat for Gareth Southgate’s brave Lions and won’t be swiftly followed by industrial-sized vats of tears, a poor unfortunate pariah and the inevitable period of mourning and soul searching and a national inquest. No siree, nothing much to see at Moscow’s Spartak Stadium later on.
I’m here for the next few hours to help dissect Belgium’s incredible come-from-behind win over Japan and Brazil’s victory against Mexico, which included an eye-catching performance from Neymar – and no small amount of skill from him on the actual pitch. We’ll also have a look ahead to THE BIG ONE later on. And, perhaps, Colombia v England.
3pm BST/5pm MSK/midnight AEST: Sweden v Switzerland, Saint Petersburg
7pm BST/9pm MSK/4am Wednesday AEST: Colombia v England, Moscow
Throughout the course of the day/evening/whatever it is where you are, please do feel free to get in touch on email (mike.hytner@theguardian.com) or Twitter (@mike_hytner) or below the line. Meanwhile, you could do worse than sign up for the World Cup Fiver.
