After England broke its penalty curse against Colombia, coach Gareth Southgate and the Three Lions are rejuvenated with a new hope. Though England goes against Sweden on Saturday at the Samara Stadium in Russia, there is a question that begs itself to be echoed in the ears of all who cheer for England:
Yerry Mina was a revelation during the 2018 World Cup. The 23-year-old center back scored three goals in as many matches, and Colombia conceded just once with him on the pitch. Mina's stoppage time header against England was a dramatic final act in his World Cup debut.
Neymar and his diving antics are going home. Belgium is through to the semifinals with a 2-1 win over Brazil on Friday, ensuring the 2018 World Cup champion will be European. And the Brazil vs Belgium highlights will show just how much the Red Devils deserved to advance at the expense of the Seleção.
Neymar, perhaps the highest profile player in danger of missing the semifinals via yellow card suspension, was extremely fortunate to escape punishment for taking a dive in the box during Brazil’s quarterfinal against Belgium.
The forward’s hysterics have been a massive talking point from Russia, and he was given a booking during Brazil’s win over Costa Rica, putting him at risk of missing a potential trip to the semis if he were booked again.
Historians call the Swinging Sixties the decade that shook Britain. England and its commonwealth had only just begun a greater recovery period after a post-WWII world, the nation’s youth was a rejuvenated generation of a high-spirited character and British rock was redefining music in a way never before seen in history.
All the conditions were met for a recently Blitzkrieged nation to thrive once again — and the very same stars were aligned in the world of the beautiful game.
Antoine Griezmann is one of the most charismatic players at the 2018 World Cup. The France forward generally delights fans with his Fortnite-inspired celebrations after goals. But the Fernando Muslera howler that gifted Griezmann his third goal of the tournament was so bad the goal scorer didn’t even celebrate as his team took a 2-0 lead on the way to a victory by the same score line against Uruguay.
France goalkeeper Hugo Lloris had two opponents to deal with in the first half against Uruguay. In addition to keeping La Celeste off the scoreboard, Lloris saved a grasshopper from certain death. Perhaps encouraged by his gallant deed, the Lloris save vs Uruguay near the end of the half was the best stop of the tournament.
Lloris made four saves against Uruguay in the first half, but the most troubling came from the animal kingdom when, in the 17th minute, a large grasshopper crawled into and out of the Tottenham keeper’s mouth.
With eight teams left in the 2018 World Cup, every remaining nation has done something to deserve to be at this point. While the path has been easier for some teams, to reach the quarterfinals is no easy feat. At this juncture, picking a World Cup predicted winner is difficult because every team left could win it.
From the unfancied host Russia to the favored Brazilians, all eight teams are three wins away from lifting the Jules Rimet Trophy in Moscow on July 15.
When Miguel Layún stepped on Neymar’s leg during their Round of 16 matchup, the Brazilian star immediately kicked out at the Mexican offender. Almost as quickly, Neymar pretended to writhe around in immense pain. The reason for this odd little dance on the ground is simple — Neymar is one of the many players on yellows heading into the World Cup quarterfinals.
Including Neymar, there are 32 players on yellows ahead of the quarterfinals. If any of them pick up another card on Friday or Saturday, they will be suspended for the semifinals.
Jordan Pickford is the man of the hour. An incredible save during normal time (that funnily enough was not replayed on the live broadcast) and stopping Carlos Bacca’s penalty helped seal the Three Lions passage into a quarterfinal matchup against Sweden.