This World Cup is special for Lionel Messi — not only because he wants glory, not only because it's probably his last one, but also because his three kids are old enough to watch him play.
"From the very beginning, from kick-off to the final whistle, I'm thinking of my children," confessed the Argentine star after defeating Australia and qualifying for the quarterfinals against the Netherlands.
South Korea secured a spot in the Round of 16 of the World Cup on Friday with an incredible last-minute goal against Portugal to win 2-1. The South Korean victory paired with Uruguay defeating Ghana 2-0 meant that the Asian underdogs advanced due to the tiebreaker of having more goals scored than Uruguay.
Germany is out of the World Cup after an extremely controversial Japan goal vs Spain on Thursday. Germany defeated Costa Rica 4-2 but were eliminated due to having a lower goal difference than Spain.
Unpredictability is inherent in soccer, and major international tournaments seem to always throw up a heaping of craziness. The gulf between reality and previous perceptions reminds anyone who claims to know soccer that they don’t, and if we were truly as smart as we claim to be, we’d stop trying to predict results. Just embrace the unpredictability and the chaos and enjoy these moments.
After advancing from the group stage in seven-straight World Cups, Mexico crashed out of Group C on Wednesday. El Tri defeated Saudi Arabia 2-1, tied Poland on points but fell one short on goal difference in heartbreaking fashion.
A Ecuador se le acabó la gasolina y tras caer 2-1 ante Senegal se despidió del Mundial de Catar.
Luego de vencer a la selección anfitriona en el debut y de robarle un empate a los Países Bajos, La Tri solo necesitaba de un empate ante los campeones africanos para sellar su paso a la segunda fase.
AL WAKRAH — Australia beat Tunisia 1-0 at the Al Janoub Stadium on Saturday to register their first World Cup victory in 12 years as they provisionally moved up to second in Group D behind reigning champions France.
Striker Mitchell Duke scored midway through the first half with a glancing header past keeper Aymen Dahmen to give Australia the lead, while Tunisia's best chance came when skipper Youssef Msakni shot just wide.
AUSTRALIA BREAKS THROUGH
Soccer players love tattoos and Uruguayan goalkeeper Sebastián Sosa probably has the best ink work at the 2022 World Cup.
Sosa didn't play in the 0-0 draw against South Korea, but his design didn't go unnoticed among photographers covering the game.
A nivel de clubes es común ver a futbolistas evitando festejar goles contra un ex club. Sin embargo, la escena es rarísima en partidos de selección y casi inédita en una Copa del Mundo. Al menos hasta hoy, cuando el delantero Breel Embolo marcó el gol de la victoria de Suiza ante Camerún.
El delantero del AS Monaco aprovechó un centro de Xherdan Shaqiri y desde el punto penal remató de primera para decretar el triunfo 1-0 de La Nati sobre los Leones Indomables.
There’s an unwritten rule in soccer where players don’t celebrate goals they score against former club teams. Instead of celebrating the player will typically put their hands up in the air (like if a police officer told you to put your hands up).
This kind of thing happens all the time during club play. It’s extremely rare to see on the international level, especially at a World Cup.