After each matchday of the 2018 FIFA World Cup, Sportsnet.ca’s World Cup Daily blog will recap the day’s events, and look ahead to the next day’s slate of games.
Here’s what happened on Saturday, in case you missed it…
THE RESULTS
France 4, Argentina 3 in Kazan: Match report || match stats
Uruguay 2, Portugal 1 in Sochi: Match report || match stats
MAIN TALKING POINTS
Ronaldo, Messi still among greatest of all time
You’ll forgive me for not giving Uruguay its proper due for such a marvellous display against Portugal to advance to the quarterfinals. But I don’t feel too bad about it, as I have previously professed my genuine admiration for them in a previous column. I’m still impressed and enamoured with the South Americans, it’s just that there are bigger fish to fry at the moment.
I don’t know if Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo will be around in 2022 in Qatar. Messi will be 34, Ronaldo 37. Maybe the lure of playing in one last Word Cup will be enough for them to continue to play for their countries for another four years. I doubt it, as they both look spent, but you never know. Stranger things have happened. But if they don’t carry on, if they take a pass on Qatar, if they decide tomorrow that they’re done and call time on their international careers, if they never play another World Cup match in their glorious careers, they will still rank among the greatest of all time, taking their rightful place in the soccer pantheon next to Pele, Diego Maradona and so many others.
That runs contrary to the popular narrative making the rounds on social media and amongst soccer pundits and fans that you need to win a World Cup to be considered among the sport’s all-time greats. The argument is that if a player is great, truly among the best that ever lived, he should be able to single-handedly carry his team, no matter how bad it is, on his back and guide them to a World Cup crown. The thing is, it’s a team sport, and no one player has ever won World Cups on their own. Can they win a game? Maybe. But an entire World Cup tournament? No. Pele (in 1970), Maradona (in 1986) and Zinedine Zidane (in 1998) did not win World Cups all by themselves. To be sure, they did a lot of the heavy lifting, but they also had strong supporting casts. Pele had Carlos Alberto in Mexico, Maradona had Jorge Valdano 16 years later, and Zidane had Didier Deschamps and several others on home soil. They didn’t do it on their own. They simply didn’t.
Messi and Ronaldo, God bless ‘em, simply didn’t have a strong enough team surrounding them in Russia to win it all. They carried the bulk of the weight, but the burden on their shoulders was too much that they collapsed. Really, is it Messi’s fault that Argentina’s defence was shambolic, or that Willy Caballero committed that howler against Croatia? Can Ronaldo be blamed for Portugal’s one-dimensional attack? Look at the example Uruguay has set in Russia: a talented side, with a solid spine down the middle of the pitch, a balanced roster and a clear tactical identity. They have superstars in Edinson Cavani and Luis Suarez, but it’s about the collective – that’s what has seen them through to the quarterfinals as one of the best teams at this World Cup. Messi and Ronaldo have both played in four World Cups, and both have failed to score in a knockout round game. They’ll likely never win a World Cup, but that’s an indictment of the teams they played on, not of them as individual players.
The World Cup only comes around four years, and players only get one or two cracks at it in their careers. Some don’t. Alfredo Di Stefano, George Best and George Weah never played on the game’s biggest stage. Should we hold that against them? Is it right to overlook the genius of players the calibre of Michel Platini, Johan Cruyff and Eusebio, and deny them their rightful place among the greatest of all time because they never won the World Cup?
Messi and Ronaldo have consistently dominated this sport at club level both in La Liga and the UEFA Champions League – which, let’s be honest, boasts a higher standard of play than the international game – for over a decade. Their goal-scoring records, achieved at the very highest level of competition, speaks volumes about the kind of careers they have enjoyed. They are once in a generation superstars, among the very best the sport has ever known. Failing to win the World Cup doesn’t change that fact.
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Mbappe channels Pele circa 1958
The 1958 World Cup in Sweden marked a new era in the tournament. Although the festivities in Switzerland four years earlier were televised, the 1958 competition was the first to receive international television coverage. For the first time, people from all corners of the globe had the opportunity to watch soccer’s brightest stars compete in the game’s showcase event. International television and the World Cup combined to create the perfect stage from which the career of the most recognized athlete of the 20th century and the greatest soccer player of all time was launched: Edson Arantes do Nascimento, more famously known as Pele.
Pele, only 17 at the time, sat out Brazil’s first two matches because of injury and didn’t play until Brazil’s final group game against the Soviet Union. It wasn’t until the quarterfinals, against Wales, that he scored his first goal, before netting a hat trick in the semifinals versus France. He added a brace in the final to take his tally to six and help Brazil win the first of five World Cups. The world had been introduced to the mercurial talents of Pele, and soccer was never the same again.
Kylian Mbappe didn’t introduce himself to the world on Saturday like Pele did 60 years ago. Everybody in the global soccer community knows who the French teenager is – his exploits in Ligue 1 and the UEFA Champions League for Paris Saint-Germain and AS Monaco have been transmitted all around the world thanks to modern technology.
Still, there was something romantic about Mbappe’s display in Kazan, the French teenager putting in a man-of-the-match performance and outshining Lionel Messi in what was, perhaps, the Argentine’s last World Cup appearance. At 19 years and six months, he is the second-youngest player to score at least two goals in a World Cup game, behind only Pele (at 17 years and eight months). His marvellous 70-yard run to glory, starting in his half and ending with him earning a penalty that led to France’s opening goal, was pure athleticism and speed, with a dash of confidence thrown in. It was also a heads-up play, as the teenager saw daylight in front of him and knew he could exploit the open space left to him by Argentina.
And then he bagged a second-half brace, the first goal coming as he displayed great skill and precision while crowded out by Argentina players inside the box. A lovely first touch, a quick turn and then ruthlessness in firing past goalkeeper Franco Armani. For someone so young, Mbappe plays with such fearlessness and a maturity level beyond his relative inexperience. His soccer IQ is also high, as he instantly recognized situations when Argentina was vulnerable, and acted with decisiveness. In a France side that has flattered to deceive so far in Russia, the PSG star has undoubtedly been the star of the show, and he’s a big reason why Les Bleus are off to the quarterfinals.
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BEST GOAL
In the 57th minute, France’s Lucas Hernandez played a cross to the far corner of the box. It was there that fullback Benjamin Pavard hit a thunderous half-volley shot that nestled into the far upper corner of the net. Honourable mention to Argentina’s Angel Di Maria for his long-range strike versus France, and to Uruguay’s Edinson Cavani for his brilliant side-footed finish against Portugal.
BEST SAVE
In the 22nd minute, Uruguay’s Luis Suarez fired a cheeky free under Portugal’s leaping defensive wall, but goalkeeper Rui Patricio dived to his left to knockout the ball out of danger.
BEST MOMENT
The lengthy run made by Kylian Mbappe to earn France a penalty kick, leaving Argentina’s Javier Mascherano and Marcos Rojo for dead. What a sight to behold, a young player displaying such great confidence and athleticism on the ball in the biggest games of his career.
THE GAME WITHIN THE GAME
Why did Portugal look like it ran out of ideas in the final third of the pitch and barely tested Uruguay goalkeeper Fernando Muslera in the first half? Here’s one reason:
BEST TWEET
BEST QUOTE
“People remember more the World Cup victory than the year I was born. It is normal it was the time we were World Cup winners, so that is obviously what they remember.” – Kylian Mbappe, who was born a few months after France won the 1998 World Cup at home.
SIX PACK OF STATS
• Manager Jorge Sampaoli has not used the same starting lineup in any of his 15 games in charge of Argentina.
• France is undefeated in the 19 games in which Antoine Griezmann has scored a goal, with 17 wins.
• Lionel Messi is the only player to earn an assist in each of the last four World Cups.
• Since 1966, only Grzegorz Lato and Andrzej Szarmach (five for Poland) and Michael Ballack and Miroslav Klose (five for Germany) have combined for more World Cup goals than Edinson Cavani and Luis Suarez (four for Uruguay).
• 10 goals were scored on Saturday, the most on one day of knockout soccer at the World Cup since 1970, when the two semifinals produced a total of 11 goals.
• Pepe’s goal for Portugal ended Uruguay’s run of 597 minutes without conceding a single goal in international play, a streak that dated back to November 2017 versus Austria.
Stats courtesy of Opta
THREE STARS
1) Kylian Mbappe, France: The teenager scored two goals, including the match winner, and used his speed and acceleration to rip Argentina’s defence to shreds.
2) Edinson Cavani, Uruguay: Mbappe’s PSG teammate also bagged a brace, upstaging teammate Luis Suarez and Cristiano Ronaldo, and putting in a solid defensive shift.
3) Olivier Giroud, France: Proved to be the perfect foil for Mbappe, exhibiting selflessness, expert hold-up play and the ability to make a simple yet killer pass.
LOOKING AHEAD TO SUNDAY
Round of 16: Spain vs. Russia in Moscow (10:00 a.m. ET) – The host nation came crashing down to earth in a 3-0 loss to Uruguay in its final group stage game. Spain flattered to deceive in the opening round, but they have more than enough quality in their starting 11 to dispose of Russia without too much trouble. But then again, the Russians do have home-field advantage. The winner advances to the quarterfinals and will meet either Croatia or Denmark.
Round of 16: Croatia vs. Denmark in Nizhny (2:00 p.m. ET) – Croatia enters the Round of 16 riding a wave of momentum on the back of three wins. Denmark booked their spot in the knockout round following a dire draw against France. It should be an interesting battle in the middle of the park, as two of the top midfielders in the world – Croatia’s Luka Modric and Denmark’s Christian Eriksen – square off.
ELSEWHERE ON THE WEB
It’s from a few days ago, but Edinson Cavani’s letter to his nine-year-old self in The Players’ Tribune is well worth your time:
As a kid, you live life with an intensity and a passion that is impossible as an adult. We try to hold on to that feeling as we get older, but it slips out of our grasp. There are too many responsibilities. Too much pressure. Too much life lived inside. Do you know what most of your life is now, at 31? You go from a hotel to a bus to a training ground. Then from a training ground to a bus to a plane. Then from a plane to another bus. Then from a bus to a stadium. In many ways, you are living a dream. And in many ways, you are a prisoner of that dream. You can’t just go outside and feel the sun. You can’t take your shoes off and play in the dirt. Things will happen that will make your life very complicated. It’s inevitable.