Hard question: what should be the legacy of the latest World Cup, the 2022 Qatar competition? It is a serious debate, and it cannot be resumed in a couple of words, so this is why I have waited for some time to pass to assess and order my thoughts as better as I could to deliver a quite objective and clear resume of the tournament that many saw as creme de la creme. Was it the case? Well, yes and no. To better underline its ups and downs, I will start from the top to the bottom, from the final to the opening match, not the other way around, as many would have done it. Why? Because, in the end, the peak is the one that interest all people and if you can attract them to read after the final stages, then you have done your job.
Kolo Muani, the real hero of the World Cup 2022 final
Argentina deserved to win the trophy, but not because of Lionel Messi, but because of its fans. Maybe they don’t understand football as they should, but seeing them traveling, cheering and celebrate in Qatar and Argentina provides another proof that Messi, Mbappe and all other football players’ salaries are paid by ordinary people. Not because those are rich, but because they are many and they are willing to sacrifice everything for their passion. And no one did it better than Argentinians at this World Cup. It is the people’s victory and their power. I am not hiding I would like France to win a second title in a row, but I couldn’t be upset when Kolo Muani missed the 4-3 ball in the 120+3 minute, because I realized that football is played for fans, for supporters so, the passion around Argentina brought this trophy.
Lionel Messi, pushed from behind to lift the World Cup trophy!
Not Messi, though, and I will explain even if you counter-attack and say he scored seven goals and provided X goal passes. OK, Messi did score seven goals, more than in the previous World Cups all together, but four of them were from penalty kicks, and actually Argentina received a total of five. The support for Messi to win the World Cup was unbelievable and not acceptable, if we want to be correct. But it happened. Now, it happened also to surpass exactly on the country that was the most pasionate for the game, but that doesn’t mean that Messi obtained a World Cup like obtained at least three of his Golden Balls: because he is pictured like a nice humble guy. Well, what a reason to be a World Champion… 🙂 Don’t get me wrong, Lionel Messi had an outstanding career, but the big question is… why he couldn’t stand up at any of the other four World Cups he played at, when his form was far better?
The winner is the real loser…
Obviously why… Because he was not the guy to perform at such a competition. Now, being the leader of the nation that deserved the most to win the trophy in the end was a happy coincidence for him, while he received also the Player of the Tournament award… I mean this is the biggest clue that, in the eyes of FIFA he was the loser. This is because, from 1994 onward, the best FIFA World Cup player was not chosen from the winner side, I mean… the last guy was Romario, from Brazil. After… Ronaldo, Kahn, Zidane, Forlan, … Messi!, Modric. Neither deserved then, of course. Maybe the one exception has been Zidane, but apart from it… Messi got it this time, even though his team was humiliated in a few seconds in a World Cup final, which is not acceptable.
France could have done it, but after Argentina should have 5-0!
Why is that? Because Argentina was humiliated by France, a team that looked in the final, until the 80th minute like Concordia Chiajna, a poor side, with severe lack of football knowledge. Argentina could have made it 5-0 if they would have wanted to actually play football and this should have been Messi’s call, to be determined to guide his side to the clearest victory in the World Cup final. Because France looked like they could receive tons of goals. Refusing to play football, proved to be in the end the wrong decision and Mbappe scored twice in only 90 seconds and the teams were level. Now, a team that has only one and a half players – well… maybe two and two halves, I am referring to Mbappe and the others, half, Coman and Kolo Muani, pushed Argentina into their strings.
Lionel Messi’s goal that should not be allowed
Of course, France could have won in 90 minutes if they didn’t take their foot of the pedal… And if the referee didn’t refuse to leave the play when Coman entered the box to pass for a certain goal. Nobody wanted France to win, neither did France. Because if they would like it, then they would have scored in 90 minutes one or two more goals, because Argentina was groggy, literally. Into the extra time, the same scenario. One goal from Messi – finally not from the spot!!! – which should have been disallowed, by the way, because two Argentinian substitutes were on the field and another penalty kick transformed by Mbappe. France, again, refused to step on the gas and with Muani’s late miss, both sides headed for penalties, where Argentina was more clear-minded.
Photo: lemonde.fr
Yes, Argentina, deserves the World Cup title!
Frankly speaking, Argentina fought the best, always, including against France, even though France was, probably, the worst ever version qualified in a World Cup semifinal and upwards. Argentina maintains its composure and manage to regain again and again, like they did against The Netherlands and even after the first game, lost shamefully, in front of Saudi Arabia, 1-2, in the opening group stage. Because of this spirit, of their determination, mentality and because of their supporters, Argentina deserves the trophy 100%. But it is a shame people speak more about Messi then about the nation. Because, apart from an interesting goal with Mexico and two great passes, one against The Netherlands and one against Croatia – at 2-0 already – Messi didn’t shone at all. It is too little, though, for a guy that has seven Ballon D’Or’s. If he has been great at this World Cup, what can we say about Mbappe whom, practically, at least in the final, played all alone…
Mbappe, the rising all time star of the World Cup
Not important anymore, Mbappe has 12 goals, four in the finals and two finals played by age of 24 years, things that Messi couldn’t dream at when he was 24. Now… let’s break down a bit and see what was before the final. Sure, we sprinkled a bit above regarding some matches, but we didn’t develop the topic based on other teams as well. The main focus, for the time being should fall on Morocco, the first ever nation from Africa that made it through the semifinals and finished fourth. Their game was not the prettiest, but when you manage to knock out the likes of Belgium, Spain and Portugal, eventually to be stopped only by France, says it all. And Morocco played decent, I mean as decent as you can at this World Cup and in these times. The quarter final against Portugal, ironically and maliciously officiated by an Argentine, was the pinnacle of a pretty story, ended in the 3rd place final by the mighty Croatia.
Cristiano Ronaldo, “humiliated” by Goncalo Ramos’s performance!
Until getting to Modric & co., I’ll focus a bit on Cristiano Ronaldo, the other so called great, apart from Messi that played at the World Cup 2022 and everybody, initially, wanted in the final. Cristiano Ronaldo might have played there if we could put out Morocco and after, much harder, France. In the end, though, his interview before the competition, about I have written here and which was not, indeed, a great thing, back-fired to his feng-shuy and the form of Cristiano Ronaldo looked similar to the one of Vojtus from Rapid Bucharest. He scored in the first game, against Ghana, from a not-existing penalty kick, becoming the first ever player to score at five World Cups, but that was it. Ironically, Portugal played the best football maybe from the whole tournament when CR7 was not around. I am referring to the win from the last 16, against Switzerland, 6-1. When, Goncalo Ramos, Ronaldo’s replacement, scored… a hat-trick! The only one from the World Cup, apart from Mbappe’s from the final.
Photo: slbenfica.pt
Croatia, 0 wins in 90 in the knock-out stages
Ronaldo’s current position went down like a sandcastle, but at 38 years old, this should not come up as a surprise. He didn’t impress anyway at any World Cup, apart from the group game against Spain in 2018, when, in the 3-3 draw he netted three goals. Now, sliding up and down and leaving Cristiano aside, we will focus on one of the fakes Ballon D’Or’s all time, Luka Modric. Sure, his Croatia reached, once again, the semifinal, where they were trashed by Argentina, 3-0, but eventually won the bronze… Their second one in the history. What I am trying to say is that Modric, even though a great overall playmaker, is not at the level of some great others, let alone when we speak about his level from 2022. Croatia played two semifinals in two consecutive World Cups, but the reality is that, in this interval, they didn’t win any match that counts in 90 minutes!!! But for a country of 4M people, their numbers remain great and there is no debate here.
The Netherlands, poorest side ever
OK, those are the semifinalists, we discussed about a top quarterfinalist, Portugal, but there are some nations, maybe players that worth mentioning, at least for the sake of keeping them in the history. England, it comes to my mind because, even if they played decent against France, the history of England is one of a generally losing team, that won only a major tournament thanks to the fact they organized it, the World Cup, in 1966. That was all, their team, that played semifinals four years ago, failed to impress as always. Did we have higher expectations? Not really… but we had higher from The Netherlands. Unfortunately, my general impression is that the Dutch have / had the worst side in their whole history. In spite that, they did come back, 2-2, against Argentina, the limping World Champion with which we opened the text. It was not enough, and the only impressive memory we will keep from this will be the equalizer scored by the losing site in the 90 + 11. Great piece, but too little.
Brazil, denied a fantastic World Cup semifinal against Argentina
Teams, teams, teams. What about players? Messi, Mbappe, Modric, Cristiano Ronaldo, like it or not, remain the central figures. Neymar could have been one as well, once he finally scored an important goal for Brazil, in the stoppage time against Croatia, but then, a late equalizer and a penalty shootout lost threw for good the flamboiant Brazilian in the same World Cup trash bin as Cristiano Ronaldo. In theory, Neymar looks to have time for another World Cup, but the reality is that he didn’t play real football at any of his previous World Cups, so regardless, it will be just a statistic. The biggest sin of Brazil was that because of their ignorance, forbid people to see a once-in-a-life-time semifinal against the great rival Argentina and who knows what might came up from that? The answer linked to a wanna be memorable duel between Messi and Neymar will remain forever a mystery!
Photo: marca.com
Germany, on its way to catch Italy from behind
You didn’t think I will go back to all the teams, right? I mean, if you didn’t make to the quarter finals, in this epoque of poor football, you cannot have any merit for achieving greatness. Or you might… If you are, for example… Japan! To beat Spain and Germany in the group stage and to be eliminated only at spot kicks by Croatia proves you have something to offer. Japan offered good to great pieces of football, but they failed to fulfill the basics. I eman to beat Costa Rica, who was 0-7 down to Spain in the first group match and after to execute properly one single penalty kick in the last 16. This is why I am saying, against all different opinions, that if you didn’t make it at least to the quarters, then you didn’t for a solid reason. Spain was once again an embarrassment, in spite the accidental victory I was mentioning three rows above in front of the Central Americans. Germany is an Italy in becoming, after two disastrous World Cups in a row.
The great Lewandowski, first goal at a World Cup, age 34!
Serbia always looks that is a more talented Croatia, but they always fail to qualify anywhere. South Korea arranged a gruesome match against Portugal in the last game from the group, a 2-1 win, but they were swiped by Brazil. Iran made a great match in front of Wales, one worth mentioning, but without undermining it, we should say that Bale’s national side was one of the worst qualified from Europe ever at a World Cup. Poland and Lewandowski were also a disgrace. And even if the striker is regarded as one of the greatest in world football, he only now managed to score a goal at a World Cup… Wow! Surreal… Mexico, even though played poorly and “managed” for the first time since 1978 from the group stage, they deserved far more than Lewa’s team. Oh, what about Saudi Arabia, then? What a story this was!
The game that changes the perception!
The Argentina – Saudi Arabia 1-2 has a history of its own and was a debut for the World Cup that mixed expectations to output even more. The Arabs played football only 10 minutes and manage to trash Argentina, Messi scored once then – from the penalty, of course! – and in the second half surreal happened. To share a secret, I was sure that Argentina would beat 6-0 or so and Messi would score 3-4 goals, mostly from the spot, of course, but at half time, seeing such a poor performance, I did go for a run since I was expecting of a flat and disgraceful 2-0 win. When I came back, I was stunned. I have missed one of the biggest surprises from the history of the World Cup. In the end, though, it did not matter anymore. Saudi Arabia failed to qualify, and the Pumas became World Champions so that day and Herve Renard’s’ wonderful half-time-speech diluted severely. Still, for people who like how football is written from one page to the other, the achievement stands still as it was yesterday!
Senegal, oh, Senegal!
Senegal… Oh, what memories are brought back from 20 years ago when the goal of late Papa Bouba Diop stunned France or when the same Senegal, also in 2002, put down Sweden in the 16 finals, against a very young Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Now, the 16 finals are back, but after a deceiving qualification against Ecuador and a thin win over the hosts, Qatar, a football team that had nothing to do with this kind of tournament. So, England beat the African side, 3-0 without any doubt. In the end, the World Cup Qatar 2022 looked to be a mosaic of achievements and of quality football, but in reality, considering it was played in the middle of the football season, it looked very below expectations. I mean against the expectations of people that really have some expectations, proportional with what football is demanding in terms of audience and money.
What remains of this World Cup!
Regardless, it will remain in history by the World Cup won by Messi and the World Cup lost by Mbappe. It is a correct picture, despite not accurate and not profound. For people who deeply and really understand the phenomenon. In the end, Messi was strongly push from behind to win it, while Mbappe was maybe, indirectly, “saved” from becoming World Champion twice, at only 24 years old. To have already won two World Cups at that age, it would have become more difficult to keep the momentum high because, basically, there is nothing more to prove.
Admitting in the end, it is not the worst thing to see Messi lifting the World Cup. He is only a great driven by trophies won, goals scored and great talent. Not necessary also by a genius like it happen in any other cases. He is a guy that, even has not too much to say of the field, it is identified of the sporting hero of hundreds of millions. Even he didn’t fully deserve this World Cup, it came, in the end, to him. It is not Messi’s World Cup, but Argentinians World Cup. And, because of this, indirectly, we should accept it as Messi’s World Cup. Very late, but still.
Cover photo: pixabay.com