We arrived late and it was about 1:30 in the morning when I got back to our apartment in Bogota.
My wife Monica gave me a sleepy hello while I tried to decompress. Tired not tired. Wired not wired.
Eventually I drifted off and woke up to another game day … D-Day for Colombia against Switzerland. That’s the way it goes. The pace is relentless, the intrigue always thick, the expectations of victory and fears of defeat swirl like dry ice smoke in a crazy disco.
I had a quick trip to the nearby supermarket to get some supplies and already the streets were full of people wearing different styles of Colombian football shirts.
Meanwhile in Vancouver the travelling fans of Colombia were warming up outside the team’s hotel. I can’t help feeling that if this happened in Australia the police chief would be tut-tutting to bogan TV channels the next day about a crackdown on the use of smoke bombs in public places.
The Swiss had their own march and of course there were cowbells at the stadium.
Colombia went into the match with Switzerland with high hopes but it was not to be. A misfiring forward line for each team left them with a 0-0 draw after extra-time and then a Swiss win on penalty kicks. Highlights here. I expect there will be some fall-out from the Colombian loss; we’ll see what tomorrow brings.
I’m not a fan of penalty kick deciders and I wish that the world governing body would look at other ways to break deadlocks. I just don’t find them entertaining; my default reaction is well-encapsulated by this cat.
In any case there is a statistically-significant advantage to the team which takes the first kick, which is decided by coin toss, and I don’t think that’s fair. Look there are plenty of creative and talented people involved in football around the world so why not put your heads together and come up with some alternatives? There are plenty of lower leagues where options can be trialled and assessed: softly softly catchee monkey.
For what it’s worth extra-time periods are often just a dull grind. One suggestion I have heard put forward includes removing players progressively. So each team would have to omit one player at the start of extra-time, and then other in the second half. The concept is that with fewer players on the field the space opens up, but also that the change in numbers forces tactical changes that might shake a score from a stalemate. I have a feeling that conditioning coaches would hate it. It would also be likely to so drain the eventual winners as to negatively affect their chances in the next game.
In the earlier eliminator Argentina had another near-death experience, coming from 0-2 down to overcome Egypt 3-2. The defending champions will now face Switzerland in the quarter-finals.
Beyond a performance that was totally admirable, the Egyptians felt the rub of refereeing decisions in the game was decidedly against them.
Reportedly the Egyptian Football Association has submitted an official complaint to FIFA against the French referee François Letexier and his team, requesting an investigation into their refereeing decisions today, raising concerns of discrimination.
I have to admit I did not see the whole game live and don’t have access to a full replay. The highlights show certain things, and this reel of unfavourable moments to Egypt tells quite a story. I just don’t know what the full story so I understand the context better.
Egyptian coach Hossam Hassan was not mincing words in his post-match press conference:
“I’ll speak my mind regardless of the consequences. This match was clearly rigged, and the whole world saw it.
And one more thing—if they want Argentina to win so badly, why invite everyone else to compete?”
And he also declared he will not watch any more matches in this World Cup. So there.
Regardless of refereeing sins or not, have a think about whether you would want to be on a public bus in Argentina while the national team is playing. And it’s not as if road safety is otherwise a thing.
Interestingly/irrelevantly, Swiss victory was the only Round of 16 game won by a country with lower unemployment among young males. And I have a feeling that Egypt’s 12.9% is higher than Australia’s 12% or so, thus the rubric would have held there. Maybe all the unemployed young blokes turn to kicking a ball on the streets?
After weeks of full-on action we have a lay day in the Americas on Wednesday as teams prepare for their quarter-final encounters.
France will play Morocco on Thursday, Spain v Belgium Friday, before Norway v England and Argentina v Switzerland both take place on Saturday.
Never fear, I’ll still find plenty to write about so I’ll continue the daily blogging until the Final’s final whistle.
Enjoy the football – and rest day – and have fun!
ELIMINATED TEAMS NOW MARINATING IN THE QUAGMIRE OF PUNGENT SADNESS
Now that we are at the stage where teams are being eliminated I am keeping a running list of them and also doing a brief summary of how they went. The list will be in three groups: Overachieved, About As Expected, Underachieved. Newly-addeds are higher-up and in bold.
Overachieved – Canada, Paraguay, Cape Verde, Australia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, DR Congo, South Africa, Curacao, Haiti
Egypt – Round of 16 – Egypt have never been higher at the World Cup. Perhaps the nosebleeds affected them when they were 2-0 up against reigning champs Argentina with just 13 minutes to play and couldn’t bring it home. Undefeated in the group stage, they squeezed past Australia on penalties. Apart from Mo Salah they have plenty of pace and style to turn on and are a team who will be suited to the next World Cup in 2030. They will need to put the refereeing thing behind them and focus on their football which certainly good enough to lift their current ranking of 29 to new heights.
Canada – Round of 16 – I didn’t really rate Canada. They eventually succumbed 3-0 a good Moroccan team after an up and down win-lose-draw group stage and a 1-0 win over South Africa in the 32s. A cohesive unit, they lack a superstar or two who can turn the game. After their previous World Cups in 1986 and 2022 saw them despatched in straight sets, they have definitely set a marker here. Well done Maples.
Paraguay – Round of 16 – a penalty win over Germany in the 32s made this look a better tournament than it was for the Paraguayans. They defended ferociously but had little to offer at the other end of the field and notched just three goals in five games. As much as I like the broad brush of their bold red and white vertical stripe shirts, which scream South America, their football is relentlessly dour and terrible to watch. As a team ranked 41 in the world, last 16 here still counts as overachievement. And the German scalp will be talked about endlessly.
Cape Verde – Round of 32 – easily the surprise packet of the tournament. First-timers who looked like cannon-fodder showed up for draws with former champions Spain and Uruguay as well as Saudi Arabia to bag three points and finish second in their group. They twice equalised against current holders Argentina and battered their goal in a furious finale as they went down 3-2 in extra-time. Every player will be a legend in their home country and the ‘Blue Sharks’ are a surprising new force in African football. I feel like sending this team thank you cards for the sheer entertainment they provided.
Australia – Round of 32 – not the exit we wanted, but an honourable loss after a penalty shootout is something we know what to do with. The defensive effort was very good for all four games although it feels like coach Tony Popovic has no natural instinct for how to structure an attack. As much as we swell with pride at our best ever World Cup result, any team we need to play any time soon will be comforted by the lack of potency in our attack. In the end it’s another Beach-head for Australian football, but we can and will do better. The late, great Johnny Warren would expect as much. And that will require a braver personality than Tony Popovic who is prepared to let our naturally-talented players do their thing. Mark Milligan said it well.
Bosnia-Herzegovina – Round of 32 – copping the USA in the elimination round was bad luck, particularly this USA that has a bit of swagger about it and home support to boot. The country’s football set-up is improving steadily as the war years fade into the past and they surpassed their 2014 World Cup achievement. BH getting out of the group that included another co-host in Canada and the experienced Switzerland was already a fine achievement. The Bosnians will farewell the classy Edin Dzeko but their future looks bright with some classic Slavic ballplayers in their line-up.
Democratic Republic of Congo – Round of 32 – only their second time on the world stage, and a decisively better account than in 1974 when they lost all three matches and conceded 14 goals. This time around they notched a draw with Portugal, a narrow loss to Colombia and their first ever win 3-1 over Uzbekistan. Unfazed by England, they pushed a much more experienced tournament team all the way in a narrow 2-1 loss. “They died with their boots on,” said Diego sagely as we watched the game over breakfast on a mobile phone because the breakfast cafe wasn’t showing football because reasons. This DR Congo team was way under-rated going into the tournament and stereotypical jibes about dictators, genocides and so on seem even more ridiculous now.
South Africa – Round of 32 – after making history in 2010 as the first host nation to not pass the group stage, the Bafana Bafana had a point to prove here. No-one was confident of that after their opening round shocker losing 2-0 to Mexico with two players sent off. A come-from-behind draw against Czechia gave them a sniff before they did the business with a historic 1-0 win over Korea. The Saffers pushed Canada all the way with a respectable 58% possession in the round of 32 game but lacked punch up front. Overall the tournament was a big learning experience and a marker of progress for South African football.
Curacao – Group stage – the smallest nation at the tournament, and from their first appearance they will go home with a goal and a point. The entire squad will be legends in the nation’s footballing history.
Haiti – Group stage – not the worst, and if they had got something out of their first game to Scotland instead of a 1-0 loss maybe things could have been different. They put a couple of goals on the board against decent teams in Morocco and Brazil and overall put up a better showing than their only previous World Cup appearance in 1974.
About As Expected – Colombia, USA, Mexico, Ghana, Algeria, Austria, Ecuador, Ivory Coast, Sweden, Japan, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, Panama, Iran, Uzbekistan, Jordan, Scotland
Colombia – Round of 16 – a good unit, the Colombians acquitted themselves well and copped a penalty shootout loss after a flat 0-0 draw with Switzerland in the 16s. The result is short of their best at the World Cup, 2014 quater-finalists. While the defence did a superb job, star attackers Luis Suarez and Luis Diaz did not gel as a combination and couldn’t find a goal between them after the opener against Uzbekistan in four games plus extra-time. Ageing stalwarts Yerry Mina, Juan Quintero and James Rodriguez should call time on their international careers so coach Nestor Lorenzo, very astute technically, can continue the rebuild with younger talent. Beyond that it also feels like this team lacks a bit of killer instinct, knowing how to win, and developing that is not easy.
USA – Round of 16 – this team had tickets on themselves. The socials are full of ‘new’ soccer fans who are somewhat surprised the USA isn’t going to win it. Spoiler: they were never going to go close. After bullying Paraguay and then an Australia that wimped our selection, and indeed Bosnia in the 32s, the USA looked quite crumbly when attack-minded teams had a go at them. Belgium’s 4-1 romp in the Round of 16 was a class tactical and on-field performance from which the USA is still light years away in terms of ability and squad depth.
Mexico – Round of 16 – to be sure it was a relief that Mexico won their first knockout match in 40 years when they punched out Ecuador in the Round of 32. Unfortunately they copped an England team that has quality and that was that. Overall their tournament featured four wins and the single loss, plus four clean sheets. That their defence went inexcusably to sleep for three minutes and conceded a pair of Jude Bellingham goals against England is something for new coach Rafa Marquez, himself a former defender, to mull. Outgoing coach Javier Aguirre can be proud of his efforts and some of the best Mexican moments of the World Cup displayed glorious speed and movement, against the backdrop or raucous celebrations. I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that this World Cup came a little early in the current cycle of development, but I feel Mexico has a big enough base of talent and resources to actually win the World Cup within 20 years. Respect.
Ghana – Round of 32 – I don’t feel the Ghanaians showed much as they bowed out without a shot on target against Colombia. After a slim win against Panama and a grungy draw with England were enough to secure a third-place ticket out of the group, my expectations were low. Mainstays Jordan Ayew and Thomas Partey look well past their use-by date for international football. Coach Carlos Queiroz’s future is in doubt.
Algeria – Round of 32 – it’s one thing to bully other African nations that often lack facilities, quality administration, a stable background and so on. It’s quite another to put yourself about on the world stage against bona fide football countries that have their act together. Algeria are dynamite at the former and pants at the latter and this tournament did not change that. Third in the group and then despatched 2-0 by Switzerland in the first elimination match is the proof of the pudding. The Algerians are fine by African standards and struggling to make the next level. See you next time, hope you have a bigger vision.
Austria – Round of 32 – forever in the shadow of neighbours Germany, Austria has a poor record at major tournaments. A win over Jordan and a draw with Algeria either side of a loss to Argentina gave them four points and second place in the group. Spain easily ended their campaign in the knockout round and this team will need to learn from experience to become capable of going further; in the Europa Nations League they are a B team and it shows.
Ecuador – Round of 32 – a win over Germany to secure their passage from the group was their tournament highlight and one that they will surely talk about for a long time. That said they were unadvisably clinging to an ageing Enner Valencia in attack and struggled in their eliminator against the pace and movement of Mexico. Facing a host country was always a big ask. Energetic coach Sebastian Beccacece is out the door with his contract finishing with this tournament. I suspect he’ll land on his feet, as will the Ecuador which has plenty of young talent to work with.
Ivory Coast – Round of 32 – a far cry from the 2010 version that featured absolute stars like Didier Drogba, Yaya Toure and Salomon Kalou, an aura still surrounds the IC as one of the classier African outfits. It’s surely fading now after this team eked out modest wins against Curacao and Ecuador, lost to Germany, then lost a winnable eliminator against Norway. They didn’t show a lot to be honest and an exit at this stage is their current level.
Sweden – Round of 32 – a sparkling 5-1 win over Tunisia got them off to whirlwind start, though they reversed that scoreline in the next game against Netherlands before drawing with Japan. That only put them in third place in their group and yes the punishment for that is banging heads with one of the top teams. France duly showed them what football is about. This is not a bad Swedish team but really needs a very gifted manager to make it a better-than-the-sum-of-its-parts outfit. Currently ranked 38 in the world and that feels about right.
Japan – Round of 32 – really the Blue Samurai didn’t do too much wrong. They started with a credible 2-2 draw with Netherlands, bushwhacked Tunisia 4-0 and drew with Sweden to finish second in their group. Unfortunately the draw paired them with Brazil in the eliminator and that was never going to be easy. With a 1-0 lead at half time they were in a position to cause an upset, but late Brazil pressure told with an equaliser and then Martinelli’s winner five minutes into stoppage time. As a team ranked 18 in the world they were capable of going further and might look back at this as a missed opportunity. Overall very competitive and a chance in any tournament when a slice of luck goes their way. I’ll monitor fan reaction and see if they agree with my categorisation!
Saudi Arabia – Group stage – the team struggled in qualifying and is clearly going through a generational change. I expected them to slot into third at best and in the end they were stonewalled by the brave Cape Verde unit.
Tunisia – Group stage – before this tournament Tunisia had qualified for the World Cup finals six times and failed to progress beyond the group six times. Make that seven and seven. Sacking the manager after game 1 smacked of chaos in the camp. They have a major goalkeeping problem with Chamakh rating 2.9 for the first game loss against the Netherlands, one of the lowest I have ever seen on Flashscore.
Panama – Group stage – only their second appearance at the finals, they lucked out with a difficult group. They drew three teams that have been at the quarter-finals or better since 2010 and all still with decent pedigree. Unsurprisingly they went down to straight losses, although all quite competitive. Better luck with the lotto ball sorting next time.
Iran – Group stage – on paper a good side but war and US immigration hard-ball was against them. Their travelling fans being denied entry and having their tickets revoked also didn’t help. I expected the dramas to be a bit much to handle and they were. As formeroo Socceroo and pundit Craig Foster said: “Above all, the World Cup must have exactly the same rules, treatment for all teams. Otherwise, it is not a ‘level playing field.’ Which is the inviolable premise of competition in football. Equal opportunity to compete, to excel. That has not been the case. And it’s shameful.”
Uzbekistan – Group stage – first time at the Big Dance for the Uzbeks. They certainly boasted a star coach in former WC winner Fabio Cannavaro, but still lack a bit of quality on the field. Some impressive moments and they will not be too disappointed in the end.
Jordan – Group stage – another debutante who copped a group with very experienced opponents including of course reigning champions Argentina. Three defeats was in the tarot and thus it was.
Scotland – Group stage – ‘as expected’ as this is their first appearance at a Finals since 1998 and they clearly lack major tournament know how. That said, with the classy McTominay and other players from the Serie A and Premier League this is a somewhat golden generation that were very impressive in qualifying. After a win against Haiti the lack of any points against Morocco or Brail left them flapping in the third-place repechage. I think they’ll go on from here and Scots fans can look forward to next European Championship with a positive mood. Coach Steve Clarke stepped down after the exit.
Underachieved – Portugal, Brazil, Croatia, Senegal, Netherlands, Germany, New Zealand, Qatar, Uruguay, Czech Republic, Turkey, Iraq, Korea Republic
Portugal – Round of 16 – generally failing to impress, the Portuguese looked hampered by continuing to select a slow and immobile Cristiano Ronaldo. The ageing star clogged up crucial space and left little for his more agile countrymen to work with. Apart from a 5-0 park stroll against a poor Uzbekistan the Portuguese struggled for rhythm in three and a half matches out of five. As a country ranked 5 in the world (currently) they would have dared to dream of at least a semi-final or better. Admittedly Spain was a tough draw in the 16s but this is senior football, amigos. Coach Roberto Martinez has already gone.
Brazil – Round of 16 – eventually put of their misery by Norway, this was a Brazil team that only just squeaked past Japan in the 32s and benefitted from a group featuring weak Scottish and Haitian opponents that were easy pickings. Brazil’s modern problem is that it doesn’t seem to produce the prodigiously-talented jogo bonito ballers it once did, nor can it find the right recipe to meld serviceable professionals from top leagues into a unit with a distinctive style and edge. The writing was on the wall when Brazil struggled in qualifying for this tournament, as the CONMEBOL zone is a darn good indicator of whether you are in shape to face the rest of the world. Round of 16 is not acceptable in Brazil, not least for a country still ranked sixth in the world.
Croatia – Round of 32 – the Croats have plenty of pedigree, having reached the final just eight years ago where Luka Modric (still playing) was the best player at the tournament. This time around they were beaten by England in their opening match before lumbering to slim wins over Panama and Ghana. A dominant Portugal defeated them 2-1 in the first elimination round and for a country ranked eleventh in the world that will feel like underachievement.
Senegal – Round of 32 – after losses to both France and Norway, no disgrace as such, Senegal relied on a 5-0 goal feast against Iraq to catapult themselves into the last of the eight slots allocated for the best third-placed teams. This guaranteed them a tough opponent and thus they fell to Belgium through a cruel last-minute penalty after coughing up a 2-0 lead with just minutes of normal time left. Senegal had come into the tournament after having beaten Morocco in the African Cup of Nations Final earlier this year (although the title was later stripped for ‘excessive protests’ against the referee), and they are indeed the second-highest-ranked African country in the FIFA list. In that context they would have fancied a run to the quarter-finals or beyond. They will be very disappointed at having condeded three goals to all three European opponents and that is not a winning recipe.
Netherlands – Round of 32 – still probably the best footballing country to have never won the trophy. The Dutch have been runners-up three times and are out in here in the first elimination round. After they coughed up a lead to draw 2-2 with Japan in their opener, they were flattered by the 5-1 scoreline against Sweden. 3-1 over the abject Tunisia gave them deserved pole position in their group, but unfortunately put them on course for Morocco who finished second in Brazil’s group. The Africans looked marginally superior all game it was no surprise they held their nerve in the shootout. At least on the surface it’s hard to understand why a team who scored 10 goals in the group games sat so low (more players behind the ball than the 4-2-3-1 formation used in the group) and surrendered so much possession. Coach Ronald Koeman will have a lot of explaining to do. With the Netherlands having plenty of experienced coaches with big egoes looking for their next challenge, I think Koeman’s a goner. A Dutch fan commented: “Zlatan (Ibrahimovic) never misses with the truth bombs. He’s right the Dutch have always been about attacking flair, total football, taking risks. This team looked lost and defensive. Losing your identity in a big tournament is the ultimate sin for Oranje. Koeman under pressure now. What do you think: time for a change?” Update: Koeman gooooorrrnnee.
Germany – Round of 32 – after crashing out in the group stage for the last two World Cups, this is a slight improvement. But for the second-best national side in World Cup history after Brazil, it’s just not good enough. This was not a German team with anywhere near the pedigree of some of the former incarnations. Clinging on to goalkeeper Manuel Neuer who is now over 40 was to me symbolic of a lack of decisive leadership by coach Julian Nagelsmann. Bullying Curacao 7-1 in the first game was fools’ gold, 2-1 over Ivory Coast acceptable, but the writing was put on the wall with a 2-1 loss to Ecuador in the last. Nagelsmann had several days to sort out his team’s issues with South American opposition and didn’t quite get it right. One German fan commented: “Julian Nagelsmann should be sacked with immediate effect. The squad has not improved since he took the helm. There is a fundamental lack of personality in this squad. Robotic in nature, not clinical, pass backwards, can’t dribble, etc. That includes the Bayern Munich players as well. When all of the players get worse, there’s a structural problem and for that, Nagelsmann must go.”
New Zealand – Group stage – the All Whites dared to dream after a promising 2-2 draw to start and fine team goals. That was as good as it got with Egypt and then Belgium showing the gap in quality that is still to be bridged. I think third in the group was gettable so it feels like an underachievement to head home with another wooden spoon to add to that of 1982.
Qatar – Group stage – playing their second World Cup in a row, and in hot conditions, and presumably with a generation coming through that was inspired by hosting the tournament in 2022, I thought the Qataris might have been competitive. A 1-1 with Switzerland must have given hope of qualifying, but a 6-0 reverse to Canada flipped the script. Another loss to Bosnia and the departure lounge it is.
Uruguay – Group stage – trying to find something polite to say. Failing. Uruguay fans expect better than third place in the group and a miserable two points. As coach Marcelo Bielsa admitted, he failed to get the best out of the squad he had available. No excuses, their tournament was a disaster. Good analysis here.
Czech Republic – Group stage – have players playing in top leagues but did not put it together as a team. Just disappointing all round and the side looked strangely intimidated by the atmosphere and conditions.
Turkey – Group stage – they were a bit full of themselves prior to the tournament and paid the penalty. Their very expensive forward line failed to hit the target in the first two games and by then it was too late. Personally I think they were flattered by their ranking of 22 in the world and it will perhaps fall back to a more realistic 30-something after this tournament.
Iraq – Group stage – 1-4, 0-3 and 0-5, the Iraqis leaked goals to everybody. The Lions of Mesopotamia (spoiler: there are no lions and never have been in Mesopotamia) are renowned as a steely side and it just vanished here. See ya! As a caution to Australia, some of the Asian sides that have been caned at the World Cup will be licking their wounds and determined for a better showing in the Asian Cup in early 2027.
Korea Republic – Group stage – a shock 1-0 loss to South Africa in the final game left them on only three points. The Koreans generally put themselves about pretty well in World Cup group stages and this is definitely a fail by their standards. Coach Hong Myung Bo was sacked the day after their exit was confirmed. Aaaand South Korea president Lee Jae Myung says he is “utterly baffled” at the national team’s World Cup group-stage exit and called for the country’s sports ministry to investigate. Taking it well then…
Alan Whykes is a Tasmania-based writer and an ex- too many things to list.
This blog is the start of a new section called Tas At Large which showcases stories of Tasmanian diaspora let loose upon the world.
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