#FRABEL thoughts: This #WorldCup is a gift that keeps on giving. This semi-final matchup lived up to its potential, with 22 stars producing excellence all over the pitch. Watching Mbappe play this well on the biggest stage is inspiring and he's younger than me...
Just about every player showed up today for both teams. Do not fault Lukaku, he has been great all tournament, and arguably the best striker during this world cup. Deschamps drew up a game plan to cancel out Lukaku's presence with two world class centerbacks, Varane and Umtiti.
Not to mention, Kante & Pogba were phenomenal in the midfield, blocking & intercepting key entry passes from De Bruyne/others through the middle for Lukaku. Very tough task for Romelu, give full credit to the french partnership of Varane & Umtiti rather than quickly bashing him.
Lucas Hernandez & Benjamin Pavard were equally as spectactular today, dealing with brutally difficult matchups vs. Hazard, Mertens, Chadli, and Carrasco. Eden again proved how world class he is when he has freedom to attack out wide, an aspect I hope Chelsea is taking note of.
Hugo Lloris and Thibaut Courtois both carried over their brilliant goalkeeping displays, it is incredible the match only ended 1-0. The final scoreline certainly is misleading to any non-viewer as several goal scoring opporunties were brilliantly saved. Giroud and Hazard deserved
goals today. Giroud has quietly had a great world cup despite ironically producing 0 goals as a striker. His hold up play & presence alone gives so much more space for Mbappe and the rest of the french attack. Defensively he has also tracked back wonderfully like Cavani did for
Uruguay/does for PSG, applying added pressure to the opppnent, occassionally winning tackles and clearances. Didier Deschamps has (nearly) gone from zero to hero. Selecting Matuidi over Tolisso's world class display vs. Uruguay is not an easy decision to make. Yes this french
team has the most talent but managing that talent requires good coaching and great discipline. It is worth a mention that the likes of Ousmane Dembele, and Nabil Fekir have barely played this world cup. Not to mention, Thomas Lemar and Florian Thauvin haven't at all.
Translation: Coaching this french team isn't easy. Calling up the right squad for the tournament alone is hard, selecting the starting xi each match is even harder. With added pressure from the euros loss in 2016, Deschamps is one step away from zero to hero. #FRA#BEL#WorldCup
Any self-proclaimed 'Bayern' fans advocating for #Robbery to be out should be ashamed. For one, both Robben and Ribery (especially Robben) are still world class, so it's not as if they are hurting the club. Both are monumental figures that continue to perform and lead by example.
Just as true Real Madrid supporters wanted Ronaldo to retire as a Madridista, real Bayern fans should want Robben and Ribery to play their last ever matches at Bayern. Injury wise Kovac will do all he can to minimize their minutes allowing for younger talent like Coman and Gnabry
to keep developing, while simultaneously learning from two legends that they will be expected to replace as starters. For now, Robben and Ribery are still exceptional and deserving to remain in the starting xi. Bayern fans should not want Arjen nor Franck out until they want
#BELBRA thoughts: Exactly the star studded offensive minded matchup I expected. #BRA were very unlucky to not have led early and even more unfortunate to have conceded twice shortly afterwards.The trio of Lukaku, Hazard, and De Bruyne was lethal today. Courtois was exceptional.
Brazil missed Casemiro. Fernandinho struggled to replace his role effectively. Although to be fair not sure how much better Casemiro could contain the likes of Hazard & co. Miranda did well to tame Lukaku in the 2nd half. Martinez/Henry were right to start Chadli over Carrasco
and Fellani too. Replacing Lukaku with Tielemans was risky but the right decision to trust your defense to finish the job. If Brazil had tied @mbatshuayi surely would have come on in extra time. Both Jesus & Firminho struggled to make an impact, #BRA midfield created most chances
#BELJPN thoughts: Easily the best game of the tournament so far, how can you not love football!!! Japan deserves utmost respect for their performance, and Belgium likewise deserves praise for not panicking and finding a way to win. Both teams laid everything on the line.
Japan is such a fascinating team to watch. They are not the fastest, strongest, tallest, or most athletic, but their technical ability and composure on the ball is a thing of beauty. Japan rarely if ever complained about fouls/ moments that did not favor them. Great coaching
with a team that has bought into a specific system, willing to live and die by their style of play. Belgium, on the other hand, were very unlucky during several stretches of the game, hitting posts, having shots saved, and narrowly missing shots that they'd normally convert.
#SPARUS thoughts: Football can be cruel sometimes. Spain clearly the much better side, completing around 500+ more passes, at least 16 more shots than Russia, and they're the ones going home. In penalty shootouts, luck is very much a factor. At that point it was 50/50 odds, maybe
even greater odds Russia advances given they have momentum as the host country. Although Spain outplayed Russia, it was not an impressive display from the 2010 champions. Lots of possession with no end product. Give credit to Russia for their impressive defensive shape and....
fortitude to survive. I will say it looked like Spain were robbed of a pk in the 2nd half of extra time, but to be fair it would have been an unfitting end to such a dramatic match (Spain doesn't care about that though). Golovin is the real deal. As a Chelsea fan I'd love to see
#URUPOR thoughts: So happy for my favorite striker @ECavaniOfficial. If anyone deserved a goal, it was him. Has been the best for his team all tournament, despite Suarez initially getting most of the spotlight. Even for PSG Cavani has been overlooked, especially when he played...
alongside Zlatan. Cavani isn't just a phenomenal goal scorer, his movement and off ball work rate is exceptional, as he frequently coming back to defend as well. Godin, Caceres, and Laxalt are a force in the back. CR7 had little to no room to breathe outside the box, something...
Messi is very familiar with every game. Portugal were outclassed in every way just like Argentina. Defeated by the better side. Portugal too heavily reliant with one dimensional play on crosses, corners, and set pieces (Somehow it nearly worked).
#FRAARG thoughts: Elated for Les Bleus, devastated for Messi. This result is not surprising, France's squad is better in every category, a super team vs the best player. Argentina employing Messi as a false 9 literally signifies that they were relying on him to pull of a miracle
And he did btw. Argentina showed great pride to go up 2-1, but it must be said that France wasted opportunities to go up 2-0 when they led 1-0. Going down 2-1 gave them killer instinct. Di Maria finally showed up after a string of underwhelming performances, wonderclass strike.
Anyone that has the nerve to say Messi is at fault for this loss does not deserve to speak on football anymore. This man has been dealt with a coach that could not put the correct team on the pitch, double (and sometimes triple) coverage, and added pressure of expectations to...