Anyhow, that’s it from this blog for today. But fear not! For anyone at a loose end, we’ve this little thing to distract you, should you fancy. Otherwise, until tomorrow, peace out.
“I can’t make the technical argument for Madueke’s inclusion over others,” begins Pete Mumola, “but Tuchel has been effusive about him in interviews over the months. There are just some players a manager likes for tactics, shape, flexibility or what have you, and I think he’s squarely slotted into something Tuchel ‘needs’ ahead of the rest.”
Yup, I agree, and I’m not saying he’s a bad player, but he’s not even a regular in a club side which struggles to penetrated in open play. I bet, if you asked them, England’s opponents are very happy facing him relative to who they might’ve faced.
“i think the problem with England’s midfield trio of Rice, Bellingham, and Anderson isn’t that they’re not balanced,” says David Wall. “All of them can carry the ball, pass pretty well, and aren’t afraid of making a challenge. And as Bellingham in particular has shown in the past couple of matches, he’s pretty good at wriggling out of tight spaces with the ball, and at arriving in the box at opportune moments. I think the problem has been that Rice is clearly not fit. I don’t think he has been all tournament and that has just escalated since the first game through a combination of the nerve and back problems he carried into the tournament, along with choosing the fish for his in-flight meal on the journey from Mexico to Kansas City. I agree that Mainoo should be first replacement for any of them, but that’s not because he’s got anything that the others don’t have. Rather it’s because he might be fit enough to actually show it compared with Rice in particular (and i write that as a big fan of Mainoo).”
I disagree on Mainoo – he’s a wizard at beating men in tight spaces, which was exactly what England were missing against Ghana and arguably against Norway, especially in the first half. It needn’t be him, except the nature of the squad picked means no one but him can do that and, for what it’s worth, the lack of midfield balance is something I posited as a problem before Rice was injured or ill.
And a little more.
The problem Rashford and United have is there are only a few clubs in the world he’d happily play for and no sign any of them want him or his wages. It also seems unlikely that £30m would be enough to get Summerville.
In non-World Cup news:
“None of these players are wingers and the same profile of player as Madueke and Saka,” says an anonymous correspondent regarding my suggestion that one of Foden, Palmer and Gibbs-White ought to have been preferred to the former. “I think Tuchel likes players who he can swap like-for-like within a match instead of having to rejig his tactics every time he makes a change.”
I agree, the inference that if something goes wrong, it’s the players’ fault, not that of the system. Which to me makes no sense: sometimes, opponents are a good match-up, or work you out, and in a tournament you need variety.
I wrote about this earlier today, so to save anyone interested the grief of seeking it, this is what I said:
So about Tommy T, then. Many of us will have seen his interview after the Norway game and almost all of us will have heard about it: he bristled at a criticism of England’s mentality, groused about them playing poorly, and I have questions:
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Is the mentality required to keep fighting, as England unarguably did, not very different to the mentality required to express themselves creatively in a huge game?
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Is it possible the team played poorly because the manager didn’t give them the basis from which to play well, most particularly proper full-backs, at least one dribbling winger, and a balanced midfield including a pass-first conductor or small-space specialist, rather than three big, samey athletes?
Big picture, I guess what I’m saying is that Tuchel picked a squad to play one way, leaving out mavericks and points of difference in favour of like-for-like changes, effectively saying that system was infallible and the only possible problem was the players.
Football, though, and tournament football in particular, isn’t like that: different games present different challenges and sometimes an opponent works out how to stop you. I guess Tuchel might say he picked a squad to win the bigguns and wanted to get the team grooved by using a method that wasn’t necessarily suited every opponent, so they’d be as ready as possible for tonight and a final if they get there.
But I know I’d want the option of Trent Alexander-Arnold off the bench; Lewis Hall or Luke Shaw at left-back; and still I cannot fathom why, if you had Morgan Gibbs-White, Phil Foden and Cole Palmer available, you’d pick Noni Madueke ahead of them all.
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What might Argentina do tonight? I’d be surprised, especially given what happened yesterday, if as canny a coach as Lionel Scaloni goes into the game with a 4-4-2 – that’ll certainly be what England want him to do, their idea to run over, around and through opponents in midfield. I’d take out Rodrigo De Paul and bring in Lautaro Martínez to have a tight three in midfield and three up front. with the wingers asked to track back and help. That’d give Argentina a chance of exerting some control; without it, they’re hoping one of their attackers does something good, rather than creating conditions that make it likely.
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“I’ll weigh in on the corporate box conversation,” writes Ben Mimmack. “I went to four games at Dallas stadium and the atmosphere was great for every one which I was pleasantly surprised by. But what was amazing was the number of dark and empty corporate boxes. Jerry World has two levels of boxes and it looked like 75% were unoccupied for each of the games I went to. I don’t think it really detracted from the atmosphere, but it was weird to see so many empty seats in an otherwise packed stadium.”
I think organisations should be fined for empty seats and boxes. If there are no takers, they should be going round local schools and youth clubs (remember them?) giving them away to kids and parents.
And tangentially, on the topic of Jerry Jones, the Cowboys series on Netflix – it’s called America’s Team: The Gambler and His Cowboys ... – is really, really good. If you’ve not seen it, it’s worth your time, I promise.
England and Argentina will play each other tonight for the sixth time at a World Cup finals. Their first meeting came in 1962 in Chile, England winning the group match 3-1, with goals coming from Ron Flowers (penalty), Bobby Charlton and Jimmy Greaves, and a late consolation for Argentina, as reported in the Guardian.
The victory helped England progress to the quarter-finals, but that is where their tournament ended, as they lost 3-1 to Brazil. Two of Brazil’s goals came from Garrincha, widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time. Brazil won the tournament, beating Czechoslovakia 3-1 in the final, lifting the Jules Rimet trophy for the second time.
Finally, in attack, who flanks Harry Kane? On the right, I’d take a chance on Bukayo Saka’s fitness, on the basis he’s a completely different level of player to Noni Madueke – who I can’t believe is in the squad, given Foden, Palmer and Gibbs-White are at home. Madueke’s pace, and directness is, I think, of most use against tiring legs, so I’d keep him for then.
On the left, Anthony Gordon has done enough to keep that spot – and Marcus Rashford is a fine sub.
So if Rice is available, he’ll play – though I’d think about using him at right-back to get a more technical player in. If he isn’t, i imagine it’ll be James, with Ezri Konsa taking his spot at the back.
In midfield, we know Tuchel wants to pick Declan Rice, Elliot Anderson and Jude Bellingham. As I keep saying – and as I think England’s unconvincing performances prove – that’s not balanced. The three I mentioned are terrific players, but as a trio, they lack craft, touch, guile and small-space expertise, with no pass-first profile.
Adam Wharton is a player I’d like to see feed England’s attackers, except he’s at home, and I also think Kobbie Mainoo would make them better, but given Tuchel sent on Jordan Henderson ahead of him against Panama, there’s clearly no intention to use him.
Now that you don’t ask, at left-back, I’d be playing a player not in the squad, either Lewis Hall or Luke Shaw. But given I can’t, I’d go for Djed Spence over Nico O’Reilly, as I want a natural and experienced defender to deal with Messi when he drifts that way. At right-back, I’m going for Reece James, with Marc Guéhi and John Stones in the middle.
What team do we think Thomas Tuchel will pick tonight; what team do we think he should pick?
“Just to add to discussion about the box,” says John Brennan. “it’s a trend now that new stadiums in the US will have a lower capacity than what they are replacing in order to create more room for boxes like the one you posted. Also, the scarcity drives up prices for a regular ticket as well.”
I guess I’m not totally shocked given the people allowed to make these decisions, but I was surprised BBC felt it something to be celebrated. It freaks my nut, though, that people see the limbs you get when something great happens and don’t think get me in the middle of that, rather nah, none of that, looks rubbish, how can I curate the opposite for my little self.
As regards the subhead on this, I was in my 30s, at least, before I twigged that the Immaculate Collection – Madonna’s greatest hits album – was a play on words.
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“That corporate box is American culture in a nutshell,” reckons Matthew Lysaght. “Pay lots of money for not much and believe it to be exclusive even though another 70,000 are watching along in the same building. It’s the pay $400 for a mid season NHL game in Madison Square Garden, it’s the training of the camera on some celebrity or other watching from on high during South Africa v South Korea, it’s getting to wear a lanyard and drink from a plastic flute instead of a plastic cup while thinking you’re very important, it’s thinking you’re privileged by paying through the nose to stare at players through one way glass in the tunnel. Guarantee Man City and (probably) Spurs will have this by 2027-28.”
I shudder to think what nonsense will infect New Trafford, once Big Uncle Sir Jim has finished. And in similar vein, I didn’t much enjoy the new trend at Wimbledon, in which a player’s post-match interview now features him or her incited to marvel at the celebrities or royals enjoying freebies in their syoots.
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Also going on:
When you’re photographing someone famous, they never give you enough time – you just keep going until they’ve had enough. Jairzinho seemed fine, so I carried on for a few more minutes, until I was sure I had the frame.
Interviews are the same: you keep going until you really, really haver to stop, and if it’s for film, you never, ever turn the camera off as you never know what you’ll miss.
This is really cool.
Genuinely, I do not get this: unless you’ve a condition, live sport, like live music, is about a community; about having your personal space invaded by strangers who might hug you. Taking all this space for the super-rich, rather than your average punter, is vulgar at best, and I’ve not a clue why BBC think it something to be relished.
Let’s begin with this abomination:
Thanks Taha and hi again everyone. Just four hours and 26 minutes to go…
That’s all from me – time for Daniel Harris to take over.
England and Argentina have already played in Atlanta this World Cup. Both games produced comeback victories: there was the Harry Kane show against DR Congo and the astonishing Egypt encounter.
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Edward Ricketts writes in:
To add to your observation concerning Rodri, if he is on the winning side on Sunday then he will also ‘complete’ a full team of players who have won the European Cup/Champions League, World Cup and European Footballer of the Year/Ballon d’Or.
Since you ask, the 10 players who have achieved this to date are: Sir Bobby Charlton, Franz Beckenbauer, Gerd Mueller, Paolo Rossi, Zinedine Zidane, Kaka, Ronaldinho, Rivaldo, Messi and Ousmane Dembélé.
A decent team, even if Der Kaiser would have to marshal the defence on his own.
Who’s tracking back in that side? Over in the women’s game, Alexia Putellas and Aitana Bonmatí have completed the treble.
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I’m not sure if this’ll cheer up France supporters or be a miserable reminder of last night: today’s the eighth anniversary of their second World Cup triumph.
When the decisive blows arrived the entire squad piled on top of one another in the victory scrum. Hugo Lloris, the goalkeeper, had run the entire length of the pitch to join in the celebrations. All the substitutes were throwing themselves into this heap of arms and legs. There were even members of the backroom staff contemplating joining in, and who could blame them? France were on their way to winning the World Cup and a party was under way behind the goal where the tricolours were fluttering.
John Parry writes in after reading this:
I was expecting a different article about people not supporting their nation state team, because I thought my experience was more common.
Born in England in an Anglo/Irish household, I made the fairly common switch from England to Ireland in my teens. But since then, I think I decided that supporting teams based on patches of land was boring and ultimately nationalistic. Depending on travel and residency I’ve supported Australia, Japan, Romania, Greece, Czechia, Cameroon and Argentina. Underdogs always get the temporary vote. Throughout this campaign, Spain have been the choice, with a nod to Messi, pretty much on his own. Consequently tonight and Sunday are going to be fun! More people should try it.
Aston Villa have a deal in place to sign the former Everton goalkeeper Emily Ramsey on a free transfer, the Guardian can reveal.
The 25-year-old received a call-up by England in 2023 – as part of the squad that won that year’s invitational Arnold Clark Cup – and 2021 for a training camp, although is yet to earn a senior cap.
I’ve been thinking a lot about Rodri over the last 24 hours – as one does, of course. He’s won everything domestically in England and scored the winner in a Champions League final. He’s won the Euros with Spain when he was the player of the tournament, and taken home the Ballon D’Or as well. If he wins the World Cup he’s basically completed the game at 30. Tidy.
There have been incidents in the past, particularly during the 2004 Euros. At work everybody put a team flag on their computer. I had a France flag and everybody was laughing. France played England in an early game and England were winning 1-0 in the 90th minute, but France won 2-1. The next day, my manager took me aside and said: ‘We’re just sorting out your workstation’. Someone had absolutely demolished it. I wasn’t that bothered.”
I think I’d be a little less chill if a colleague wiped out my desk.
To those over in North America, we’d love to hear from you.
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Hello, hello, hello. I echo these sentiments.
The World Cup is fundamentally about, and in fact structured around, political tribes and the nation state. It is the very magic of the tournament that each team becomes a projection of a country. For better or for worse, states are how we are organised and socialised. But the beauty of it all was in the ability to micro-dose the politics, and not become engulfed by it.
Right, I am off. I will be back here tomorrow either very, very happy. Or very much not. Taha Hashim will be with you now as we build up to kick-off!
It does look from the pictures like there was quite the atmosphere building up in Atlanta yesterday.
Bayer Leverkusen CEO Fernando Carro has chucked his two cents into analysis of Germany’s failure at the 2026 World Cup, pointing a finger at structural failures.
AFP quotes him saying:
There needs to be greater investment in youth development, including a better integration of school and sports. A state of the art, modern infrastructure is a key figure as well … projects that improve these conditions are too often slowed down by bureaucracy and lengthy decision-making. The issue goes beyond facilities and structures. There is also a cultural dimension.
Carro said World Cup finalists Spain and semi-finalists France and England succeeded due to “enormous ambition, resilience and collective strength,” adding “There are always things you can learn from other countries and systems”. Those countries, he said, had “invested consistently in modern infrastructure and academies as well as in coaches and player development.”
ITV to broadcast World Cup final half-time show in full
This may give viewers in the UK more of an incentive to watch the big match on one channel or another – ITV has confirmed to PA it will show the performance in full as well as match analysis during the final on Sunday at the New York New Jersey Stadium.
PA understands the BBC will announce plans for Sunday’s broadcast in due course. It had previously indicated it would skip showing it.
Fifa president Gianni Infantino has described the planned performance – which is expected to extend the half-time break in the match to at least 25 minutes – as a “groundbreaking spectacle” that will “celebrate football, music and our shared values, ensuring a legacy that transcends the final whistle”.
The performance will be curated by Coldplay’s Chris Martin and will also feature Venezuelan conductor Gustavo Dudamel, the PS 22 Chorus and characters from Sesame Street and the Muppets. [You can put your own muppets punchline in there]
Incidentally in parliament in London, Will Forster of the Liberal Democrats has asked if there will be a bank holiday if England win the World Cup. Outgoing prime minister Keir Starmer replied that he didn’t want to jinx it, and Forster should ask again at the weekend.
AFP reports that overnight burglars were intercepted trying to break into the Barcelona home of Spain star Lamine Yamal.
Barcelona-based daily La Vanguardia added further detail, saying two people wearing balaclavas climbed on to the house’s wall but were surprised by private security guards and fled. The house in question used to belong to Gerard Pique and his ex-partner Shakira.
Wednesday’s incident occurred early in the morning, moments after Spain completed their victory over France.
Pepito the dog was in Atlanta last night, with his Argentina shirt on, bless him.
I haven’t found any pictures of any dogs in Atlanta supporting England yet, but rest assured if I see one, I will bring it to you.
Tom Garry has been squirreled away to write the latest edition of our Moving the Goalposts newsletter, which asks the question: How are London City Lionesses able to embark on such a transfer spree?
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Sign up for the Moving the Goalposts newsletter: our free women’s football email
Mick Procter has popped an email into my inbox pointing out that earlier he Googled “England World Cup semi final history” and the AI-generated summary that came up already had 2026 down as a defeat for the Three Lions. We might as well all pack up and go home then – generative AI has spoken! I prefer to trust the mystic meerkats myself.
Angelique Chrisafis is in Paris for the Guardian
“Demolished” headlined the print edition of the French sports paper L’Équipe on its match report. France’s World Cup adventure “deserved more than this disaster of a game, this disaster of strategy and emotions,” wrote Vincent Duluc. He said France could not even complain about losing because of the “feeling of barely really having played, and of betraying the magic of this American dream”.
Duluc felt the team had been physically not up to it, that there were technical mistakes and, above all, the players had appeared “mentally sunk by the emotional dimension of the match”.
After the French team had been placed on the highest pedestal for weeks by fans back home, Le Monde’s correspondent Alexandre Lemarié was saddened. “The fall to earth is as brutal as it is painful,” the paper wrote. It was a “cruel disappointment” particularly given the team’s performance up to now. “A collective failure.”
This semi-final would be hard to forget for all the wrong reasons, wrote the correspondent for the regional northern paper, La Voix du Nord, saying it would “remain a nightmare.” Ouest France headlined its front page with “The end of the American dream” over a picture of Mbappé with his head in his hand. “They fell from very, very high,” was written in the Libération.
Our community team are looking to hear from people in the US, Canada and Mexico about their experiences of being in one of the 16 host cities for this World Cup. You can find out how to get in touch with them here.
Jeff Rueter offers up this analysis of Spain’s performance last night, suggesting their control and flawless execution overcame France’s more variable chaos.
As Louise Taylor reported yesterday, Thomas Meunier is heading to Sunderland. Here’s the full story.
Well, well, well, there I was completely convinced that nobody but France could win this World Cup, and here we all are. Mind you, I’ve got Spain in the office sweepstake, so I’m not that upset.
Otherwise, though, that’s it from me for the now, so here’s Martin Belam to coax you through the next bit.
If you’re unfamiliar with Marcela, make sure it doesn’t stay that way.
I once asked her if she wrote about stuff other than football. Her response? “What else is there?”
Something giving me joy during this World Cup: how much the Argentina players want to win it for Messi. Hearing them speak about him reminds me of hearing Manchester United players explain how they felt playing for Matt Busby and Alex Ferguson, and though the shamanic qualities are different, it is not easy to exert that kind of influence of grizzled, cynical footballers – a point illustrated by how different things seem with Ronaldo and Portugal.
“So, if you were to look at the midfield choices France had on the bench last night - Koné, Akilouche, and Kanté - only one of them could have sat in front of the back four, and even then only for an hour at best,” reckons Matthew Lysaght. “That was the main problem against a high-functioning midfield of Olmo, Rodri, and Fabián Ruiz - there simply wasn’t anyone to do the donkey work necessary. That’s on Deschamps and his squad selection. Rabiot definitely isn’t that guy, despite what his mother might think and neither is Tchouaméni.
The odd thing is that they adapted against Paraguay without going to their depths of shithousery and didn’t have to adapt against the Swedes - a team who just rolled over in fear. When it was time to adapt again, they either didn’t want to, or couldn’t due to the midfield make up.”
I’d have left out Barcola or Dembélé to play Koné, and it’s probably the case that Kanté would’ve been more useful than Rabiot. But even with the same team, the approach was wrong – France had no idea how to create the space they needed to attack.
I wonder if Messi will pull wide against England, looking to escape the three midfield brutes. I also wonder if Tuchel will play Djed Spence at left-back for that reason – I’m not sure I’d leave Nico O’Reilly, a midfielder by trade, to defend so terrifying a threat.
Big picture, I guess what I’m saying is that Tuchel picked a squad to play one way, leaving out mavericks and points of difference in favour of like-for-like changes, effectively saying that system was infallible and the only possible problem was the players.
Football, though, and tournament football in particular, isn’t like that: different games present different challenges and sometimes an opponent works out how to stop you. I guess Tuchel might say he picked a squad to win the bigguns and wanted to get the team grooved by using a method that wasn’t necessarily suited every opponent, so they’d be as ready as possible for tonight and a final if they get there.
But I know I’d want the option of Trent Alexander-Arnold off the bench; Lewis Hall or Luke Shaw at left-back; and still I cannot fathom why, if you had Morgan Gibbs-White, Phil Foden and Cole Palmer available, you’d pick Noni Madueke ahead of them all.
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So about Tommy T, then. Many of us will have seen his interview after the Norway game and almost all of us will have heard about it: he bristled at a criticism of England’s mentality, groused about them playing poorly, and I have questions:
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Is the mentality required to keep fighting, as England unarguably did, not very different to the mentality required to express themselves creatively in a huge game?
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Is it possible the team played poorly because the manager didn’t give them the basis from which to play well, most particularly proper full-backs, at least one dribbling winger, and a balanced midfield including a pass-first conductor or small-space specialist, rather than three big, samey athletes?
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Ah, when discussing Pedro Porro a few minutes ago, I ought to have linked to Sid Lowe’s piece on him:
“Lamine is no doubt incredible and deserves all the hype, but how about Cubarsi?” wonders Anil Tejani. “Another teenager who might be just as brilliant, just in a position that doesn’t get as much attention.”
Yes, he’s very good – and, weird though this sounds, I was wondering if he’d have found things harder against Olivier Giroud or even J-P Mateta, who might’ve been able to bully him physically.
The way fans have mixed, in the grounds and cities, has been very nice. Let’s hope that continues.
“Zidane hasn’t started with France yet, but you are already dismissing him as a manager of any ability?’ writes Cathal Chu. “He won three consecutive Champions Leagues as a manager. Yes it was with Real Madrid, but if that’s so easy, why hasn’t any other Madrid manager done it before or since? He’d had Ronaldo up front for him? So did Mourinho, how many Champions Leagues did Jose win there?”
I didn’t say he has no ability as a manager, but I didn’t watch his Madrid side and think these are well coached – did you? I just saw an midfield and forward line that was brilliant in a cup competition but less so in the league – and when they won, it felt like force of talent and mentality rather than anything systemic. But I’d be glad to to be shown to the contrary.
Oh man, I cannot wait for this game. As I mentioned on Monday, Mexico 86 was my debut World Cup – I was seven – and I’ve still never seen anything like the deeds performed by Diego Armando Maradona.
So to England v Argentina…
I love that these two, competing for the same spot in the team, have been boys since they were kids. What a buzz it must be to be competing at this level with an old mate.
“I think you are spot on regarding the tactical setup and the coaching done by Deschamps as the main reason France didn’t get going,” writes Thomas Krantz. “I thought the most interesting thing beforehand would be if France were going to deploy a low block or try to go toe-to-toe with Spain and use a high press with the wingers (Barcola/Dembélé) trying to limit Spain and they chose ... neither?
It’s as if France told themselves “‘e are going to play our normal game and they will have to adapt because we are sooo good’ and forgot that this doesn’t work against elite teams. They were never going to enjoy the same spaces they have had against lesser opposition earlier in the tournament and they looked lost the entire match.
Spain adapted, severely limiting Mbappé (he had three defenders on him as soon as he got near the ball) yet France allowed Yamal to go one on one with Lucas Digne. Digne was never gonna come out of that looking good.”
It wouldn’t be the first timer a team believed their own hype. And it reminds us of the truism that those playing the best stuff in the early stages are rarely those dancing about with a shiny pot at the end.
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Here’s Nick Ames’ match report.
Pedro Porro played well, didn’t he? I’m excited to see how he does next season under Roberto De Zerbi, who I think will enjoy his attacking flair.
“I can accept that Spain are a technically gifted team who executed their gameplan to perfection last night,” says Niall Sheerin. “I can also acknowledge that France, though also wonderfully talented, weren’t able to demonstrate any coherent strategy. What I cannot accept, however, is the lack of analysis of the supreme cynicism of the Spanish gameplan and how it was deliberately designed to prevent France from finding their groove and exploiting the spinelessness of a weak, star struck ref out of his depth and unable to exert authority.
How often did Spain players play the man not the ball to con the ref into giving them a free? How many tugs or trips did they apply to prevent France from turning the ball and finding a bit of rhythm? Enough to disrupt the game repeatedly, but each just marginally below the yellow card threshold. How many fouls did Lamine Yamal get away with? When he wasn’t fouling (the horrific studs down the calf of Mbappé towards the end was the worst of many) he was diving about like he was at the swimming pool not on a football pitch. He should not have seen out the 90 ... but then that would’ve obliged Infantino to find another excuse to suspend the effect of a red card. Oh beautiful game, where have thou gone?”
Hmmm, I didn’t think this was a performance which stood out as more cynical than others I’ve seen, and I definitely didn’t see anything I’ve not been seeing for years. I know Deschamps tried to blame the ref, but I didn’t see it that way.
I’ve just learnt that Fabián Ruiz has played for Spain 49 times, and never been beaten. That is absurd behaviour and again emphasises the point that there is no brand of football harder to defeat.
We know where France are going from here – Zinedine Zidane is coming in – but how might that work? We weren’t in his Real Madrid dressing room, but I can’t say I’m not suspicious of how profound his impact was. He had Casemiro, Modric and Kroos running games for him, Sergio Ramos behind them and the BBC up front. I doubt there was much tactical work going on.
For the best part of three weeks, Michael Olise and Kylian Mbappé have performed like they’re the best players in the world. But is it, in fact, Lamine Yamal? Before the tournament I’d have said yes, and though I don’t think he has Olise’s variety – I’m not sure he can play in the middle, nor slow the game down in the same way – I’d still go with him. And at 19, he’s got lots of improving still to do.
Deschamps leaves the job having won a World Cup and reached another final and semi-final. He reached a Euros final and a semi-final. To get to the last four of five major tournaments over a 14-year stretch sounds like a remarkable achievement and in some ways it is. But Deschamps has been blessed with generation after generation of extraordinary players; one trophy with those players is perhaps only par. And there is an argument, voiced most vociferously by those grown weary of his football labeur, that Deschamps, for all his apparent success, held France back.
Relive the action as it happened with Scott Murray’s MBM.
On UK TV, they were killing Deschamps for doing nothing as Lucas Digne struggled to contain Lamine Yamal, though Roy Keane made the point that his teammates ought to have seen the problem and helped him out.
I think I’d start a little earlier in the piece: it seemed clear that, for Spain to win, Lamine would have to play well, because without that, they lack edge. So why didn’t Deschamps have a plan to limit his involvement?
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“I thought before yesterday’s game that it would be probably be decided by misfortune or a mistake, and France suffered one of each in a matter of minutes,” says Kári Tulinius. “Either giving up a silly penalty or losing Saliba to injury early on would’ve been enough on its own for Les Bleus to lose, both proved way too much. That said, I think Deschamps overcomplicated his tactics by asking Olise to do double duty as a creator and Rodri’s overcoat, and he did neither well. Deschamps probably should’ve left off Barcola and had Koné on in a three man midfield, but that’s very much hindsight talking.”
I’m afraid it’s Deschamps’ job to realise this stuff in advance, and it’s not a major act of prophesy to think you can’t take on Spain with Tchouameni, Rabiot and an attacker as your midfield. But talk to me about Koné: I see some good attributes, but I don’t see it. I watch him and think perhaps coaching could wring the most from his talent, then I think at 25, he shouldn’t need telling to follow runners in a World Cup semi.
Often, too much emphasis is, I think, placed on the tactical, but that was the start of France’s problems in this game. I’m not sure it’s possible to turn on the kind of high press that might’ve worked – famously, Jürgen Klopp spent hours, days, weeks and months drilling it into his Liverpool team and wouldn’t allow anyone not involved in to watch. It would’ve made more sense for France to sit off and try and generate turnovers with space in behind, or sacrifice an attacker for an extra midfielder.
France simply never got going. Kylian Mbappé lamented a display that appeared listless from the start, suggesting they had deviated from their gameplan. “I don’t think we played the match we wanted to play, whether tactically, technically, or in terms of our overall performance level,” he told the French broadcaster M6.
“When you don’t do what you’re supposed to do in a World Cup semi-final, you don’t win. Our goal was to press them high up the pitch to prevent them from settling into that slow, controlled rhythm, because when it comes to controlling the game they are better than us. We failed to do that.”
Mbappé confirmed what also seemed clear from the sidelines: that France had been outnumbered by three to two in midfield. “Against Spain that’s a real problem,” he admitted. “When you put it all together, the result is a defeat. It’s a huge disappointment.”
By way of example, even I could see Michael Olise would have a problem if played centrally, because he’d be wanting the space occupied by the amazing Rodri. But it took Deschamps 45 minutes to move him wide, and by then the game had been set.
Similarly, a midfield three of Tchouameni, Rabiot, Olise was always going to struggle against Rodri, Fabian Ruiz, Olmo, yet no measure was taken to alter the dynamic. Again, the only tactic seemed to be reliance that attacking class would at some point prevail, and this lack of foresight is, I think, a reason the players were so tamely befuddled: what happened to them seemed to surpriser them, though it’s happened to them and others so many times before.
“Outclassed” is a little harsh, in mine: I wasn’t watching thinking these teams don’t belong on the same pitch. Rather, Spain came with a plan, and France came assuming their attackers would get things sorted at some point. Such is Didier Deschamps and, if you’re asking, part of me is pleased his team lost because I think two World cup wins should be for elite managers only, and actually his return of one plus one final defeat is bare minimum given the players he’s had an opposition he’s faced.
So what happened to France, then? Well, in really basic terms, Spain happened. Never in the history of football has there been a style so hard to beat, and though it’s changed since the days of three consecutive tournament wins in a row, the fundamentals remain the same: control midfield, control the game.
Over the next three hours – and when I’m subbed off thereafter – we’ll reflect on France 0-2 Spain, and look forward to England v Argentina. England v Argentina in the semi-finals of the World Cup, oh my complete and utter daze days.
Greetings one and all. Anyone got any plans for later?
Anyway, time for today’s first baton change. Daniel Harris is here to guide you through the next couple of hours. Enjoy the rest of your day.
Time for today’s missive from friend of the blog Krishna Moorthy:
“Hello Tom, France played Spain like how Morocco played France. This is the shortest match report I can file.”
They weren’t quite as passive as Morocco were in that game, but France’s defeat did look as inevitable as Morocco’s did, for most of the game. And I did have a sense from early on in the tournament that this France side might be destined for Netherlands 74, Brazil 82, Romania 94, Argentina 2006 territory as great non-World Cup winners, but at least all those went out in a bit of a blaze of glory. France’s exit last night looked disjointed and resigned.
But we shouldn’t let it detract from the near-perfection of Spain’s performance.
What have been the goal of the tournament contenders? I’ve not noticed the UK TV channels running this staple yet, but it’s always worth a chinwag. Plucking five off the top of my head. I’m thinking Sidny Cabral for Cape Verde v Argentina, Alvarez’s similar effort against Switzerland, Isidor for Haiti against Morocco, Maeda for Japan v Sweden (a sumptuous team goal in a tournament that’s not had that many of them) and Mbappé v Morocco.
Thomas Tuchel says he channels his inner child to help him deal with the stresses and strains of the job. This from AP:
How does England coach Thomas Tuchel handle the pressure of a run to the semifinals of the World Cup ?
Simple. A bike, a parking lot and an ice cream.
Tuchel said ahead of England’s World Cup semifinal against Lionel Messi’s Argentina that he relaxes by reconnecting with his inner child.
“Sometimes you just go on a bike and then you just need a big parking lot, an ice cream in your hand for 15 minutes on a bike and then you feel like you’re 15 years old,” Tuchel said Tuesday. “You enjoy your evening on a warm, summer evening for 15 minutes with the ice cream and you reconnect to the beauty of that feeling that we all have inside of us and that’s sometimes all it needs.”
Our data expert Andrew Beasley on why England should still be wary of 39-year-old Leo Messi’s sprinting ability:
And when Messi hits top speed, he can still go at a decent pace. Data on Sofascore shows his top sprint at this World Cup was 30.9 km/h. That is faster than any run Lautaro Martínez (30.5) or Alexis Mac Allister (30.2) has made for Argentina, despite their being more than a decade younger. It is not far behind the best Kane (31.4) or Jude Bellingham (31.1) have offered either.
And Barney Ronay’s scene-setter:
There are shared qualities here. Both nations belong to that list of places where football occupies a position of overblown prominence in the national sense of wellbeing. And on the pitch these are two well matched teams; or rather, not really teams, but excitingly wonky collections of parts dragged to this point by star players and wild-eyed comebacks, emotion as opposed to process.
Whatever happens in Atlanta, it is unlikely to be rational, cold or free from further episodes of whiplash. England have been on the edge in their past two matches. Argentina have at least half a team’s worth of players with a thirst for confrontation. High-stakes VAR screen debacle anyone? A third-minute 50/50 with Cristian Romero? Emi Martínez in a penalty shootout against England? Never mind shithousery. Expect a shitmansion, a shitpalace.
Updated
World Cup Daily has dropped, and I’m listening to it as I type. Get your ears round it now. Lots to chew on, including Philippe Auclair claiming that for the first time ever most of the world is backing England in a match against Argentina, which may rouse readers in Glasgow, Dublin, Cardiff etc.
Half-time of final to last 30 minutes – reports
Fans at the final will get the chance to yam down an extra pint on the concourse, while their kids can successfully pester them for another tub of popcorn, for it’s been reported that half-time will last half an hour, Fifa has confirmed. This will create sufficient time for the much-vaunted Super Bowl-esque half-time show at which the likes of Shakira, Justin Bieber and Madonna will play the hits. Or maybe they won’t play the hits – perhaps they’ll go rogue and try out some experimental unreleased session tracks. We can but hope.
Updated
Preamble
Greetings everyone, and welcome to a massive World Cup day. We’ll be covering all the buildup to the England v Argentina semi-final throughout the day, but we need to talk about last night first don’t we? Yes, Spain are in the final after producing, if not a shock, then at least an unscripted moment, in a World Cup that’s sometimes felt as if it has had too many scripted ones. The billing for last night didn’t have France simply not showing up as among the plot twists.
But Spain were masterful, on and off the ball (and it was mostly the former such is their mesmeric knack for keeping possession), underpinned by flawless midfield performances from Fabián Ruiz and Rodri. The whole team didn’t put a foot wrong, and Pedro Porro, scorer of the second goal, is turning into an unlikely Spanish hero.
It all means that we have the possibility of a Spain v England major tournament final for the fourth summer in a row, following on from the women’s World Cup in 2023, men’s Euros in 2024 and women’s Euros last year. But England have considerable work to do first.
Anyway, here’s your essential reading from the game in Dallas:
