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WCAD 4-30: Big Saš sinks Iran
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Austin and Amit try and make sense of an absolutely insane finish to the Group Stage as Austria and Algeria draw 3-3, leaving Iran on the outside looking in. Plus, the lighting round runs across the rest of the results, including a tepid showing from England salvaged by Jude Bellingham, DR Congo forcing their way into the Round of 32, a high-level affair between Colombia and Portugal and yet another Messi goal.
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Transcript
Unexpected Drama in World Cup Group Stage
00:00:01
Speaker
So we were all set to sleep before this edition of the World Cup After Dark podcast. We're going to put together a nice rundown. we're going We're going to put together a nice show. And it was all going to be good. And it was all going to come out tomorrow morning. Instead, we just witnessed one of the most insane World Cup group stage moments and maybe the history of the World Cup group stage. There's only one thing for us to do. i it ma like It's press the record button in our pajamas and all and just dive into it.
00:00:27
Speaker
We almost never do this. This is a World Cup after dark meeting the moment for ah truly what else could you describe is I think like now title belt World Cup after dark greatest like happening of all time. That was absolutely insane.
00:00:43
Speaker
We're both just in awe. We're just giggling like I'm i'm excited talk about we had to press record and see what happens. This is the World Cup After Hark podcast. I am Austin Miller. He is Amit Malik. You can hear we've done 27 podcasts. The voice is starting to go. We're going to need a good throat coat by the end of this one from what we got tomorrow. But we had to go for it, Amit.
Algeria vs Austria: A Chaotic 3-3 Draw
00:01:02
Speaker
Algeria 3, Austria 3. And with all of the results that we got earlier in the day, this means Iran are out, Algeria are in, and the third place cut line ends up at three points plus two. If at the start of the day, i would have told you that Algeria and Austria were going to draw and it would leave Iran out, your response would have probably been, but that's not super surprising. We laid out all the scenarios that led to this, right? On yesterday's show or this morning's show, whenever that show was recorded.
00:01:32
Speaker
We said that this could be a possibility, but we didn't expect it to be 3-3. What the hell just happened? Yeah, we the number we were working off of was 92% for Iran to get through. They needed one of three things to go their way. Okay, first game of the day, Croatia-Ghana.
00:01:51
Speaker
Ghana equalized, doesn't go their way. Okay, we're down to two. Dear Kong will go down. They come back 2-1. We're down to the last game, and they just need a winner. Okay.
00:02:03
Speaker
Three times teams take the lead in this game with the last one being in the 94th minute, like 20 minutes from the end of the four allotted minutes. And you're thinking we've just like magically, magically won it for what? There's two minutes there where Iran are in after going up on the roller coaster all game.
00:02:23
Speaker
And then what happens after that is the the craziest finish. Austria somehow get it back. And I'll leave it to you. I mean, the fact that the Algeria goal to go up three two on its own was the greatest moment of the group stage. So let's let's tackle the first 90 plus four very quickly to set the stage for for what we just witnessed the last 90 seconds. And then you and I might just react, reenact the last 90 seconds. That's how good it was.
00:02:52
Speaker
this game was played very interestingly in that both teams were not afraid to take chances, but they were both petrified of getting beat. right It was Paraguay, Australia, but with much better attacks and much worse defenses. And so what you saw on two occasions, Austria take the lead. And on two occasions, pretty much quickly, Algeria are able to
Key Players and Strategies in Algeria vs Austria
00:03:12
Speaker
equalize. So Marco Arnautovic, who gets the start in this game, says, I'm not for peace. I'm not for agreements. I'm for scoring goals. He scores the first goal for Austria, runs in behind and does a really good job of bringing it down and plops it past Benbott, the Algerian goalkeeper who has come in for Luka Zidane.
00:03:28
Speaker
I don't even know if Arnautovic touches this, but it gets it one-nil. And so then that then puts the onus on Algeria. They have to score. They cannot lose. They lose. They are out. So Algeria, what do they do? They crank up the pressure. Chayvi hits the post. Golden chance for Massa offside. He's saved. And then it's what a run from Belgali, the fullback to equalize. This is... I forgot that this goal even happened. This goal is is patently insane as well because in the buildup, the ball ricochets off the quarter flag and then Belgali just starts shredding a bunch of Austrian defenders.
00:03:56
Speaker
He beats one. He deflects the ball off a second and he just shreds two guys and scores. You couldn't say that this equalizer wasn't deserved, but this is one of the most and surprising individual efforts of this tournament.
00:04:09
Speaker
Yeah, for Bo Gale to be the guy, he totally cooks the entire Austria back line. This is a surreal, sublime sequence. And the way this game was is that these two teams were like so close to each other in that like Austria would take the lead and it felt like Alger were just going to get it back. like They were both just turning the dials up. And i think...
00:04:33
Speaker
I was a bit surprised at how it turned out how much Algeria had the ball and Austria were playing against the ball. And I think that was, it was like we were asking the question before the game, are we really going to see them play for the draw? And it wasn't really that.
00:04:45
Speaker
Like both teams were playing for the win. It just happened that once the goal started, like it it converged towards this draw path because of goal equalized, goal equalized. So it goes to halftime at 1-1 and you're thinking, oh man, Ralph Radnick and Vladimir Petkovic are going to give their guys a lashing in here. Like, how could you guys be playing? Like, we're going go for the draw. Austria make three changes at halftime. They bring on Gregorich, Grilich, and Vaughn.
00:05:12
Speaker
And then this game just keeps going. and And Austria take another half chance. And it's a sabbets or curler from just outside the area. This is another great goal in this game. This is a really good cutback. And the run from, I think it's Gregorich at this point, that like he doesn't dummy it, but he he makes the run. It goes behind him. We've kind of been saying if there was one guy who was going to have final third quality for Austria, it was Sabitzer. And he finally, finally, in the second half of the third game shows up.
00:05:38
Speaker
And you can see like the Austria patterns. They had struggled against Argentina. They had struggled against Jordan. But Algeria was just open enough and Not even, like they were defending with a lot of numbers, but it just worked in this game. And I thought, that's the finally the guy they've been waiting for that chance to fall to you because no one else on the team is making that shot right now.
00:05:59
Speaker
Austria go up 2-1. Algeria crank up the pressure and they get back to 2-2 very quickly, right on the hour mark. It's a great ball across from our and Riyad Mahrez makes it 2-2. And at this point, it feels like these guys can't stop scoring.
00:06:11
Speaker
this is where the game goes fully insane. I think because imagine this from Iran's perspective, like what they're thinking when this, when this goes in and the type of game that's happening, because,
00:06:26
Speaker
When it's up one, the team that's up one could easily go get up two, right? Like Austria are built like that. but It felt like Iran were waiting for an Austrian counterattack, right? They're just hoping, just get me Sabitzer and Gregorin's running back two on one the other way. it And it just turned out because the team going out was, the team down one was going out. Like Algeria just cranked it up. And I was like, why doesn't either team play better?
00:06:51
Speaker
the level when they can crank it up more because you could just like win this game outright but they were only saving it for game states it was a very game city game but like Algeria's quality on the ball and ability to lock Austria in was a was was I think the most impressive part of this game on the whole like the most of the game is one way for Algeria both teams are absolutely petrified of losing. That's what it is, right? Like Algeria, yes, they can crank it up. They can play this, but if they do it, they're open back the other way. And the second they're open back the other way, they're bringing going out of this into the question.
Austria's Stunning Comeback and Group Impact
00:07:24
Speaker
And also I think there's a little bit underlying here where... I don't think this is actually what happens, but you can think about it this way. The draw actually was slightly better for Algeria because going through third sends them to play Switzerland and not Spain. I don't think that's actually what's going through their mind because as we see with the 3-2, they're willing to score if given the opportunity. But I think that also just helped that the draw state was better for the team that was slightly better at controlling the ball and playing.
00:07:50
Speaker
yeah And so that meant that Algeria were perfectly content and Austria weren't about to risk going out. It was the same. If Austria went through, they were playing Spain regardless. There was no way for them to manipulate this to not end up playing Spain. So after this goal goes in at the hour mark, I know where he comes on for Algeria and you're thinking, all right they they might be doing something. And then from about minute 70 to minute 90, this feels like the worst American football game you've ever seen.
00:08:15
Speaker
because they're just moving inch by inch forward. And so Algeria take like three passes in a vaguely forward direction, two passes in a vaguely negative direction, one pass in a vaguely forward direction, and they're just passing it around. And the Austrian press has no desire to do anything, right? Like Gregorich at this point is just trotting around, barely applying pressure. But the second Algeria get the ball in anything resembling a dangerous space, then everybody just crashes it and there's nine Austrian defenders trying to cut it down.
00:08:44
Speaker
And so just when you think this is how this is going to go. And from 70 to 90, I think Austria maybe have the ball for legitimately like two minutes. Yeah, Ragnick tells his guys to just go 4-4-2 on the back of their box and maybe 20 yards, 25 yards between the back line and the front line. Like you said, there's no press. It's just a block. And it's like, yeah, the way you said it was incrementally going like inch by inch up the field. I'll assure you, their passes completed number in this game ends up like 700, 800, like a prime Spain type thing going on.
00:09:20
Speaker
And it's just literally the center backs and the midfielders playing catch with it, right? It's Mondi, Bensabeni, Bentilab. And they're just playing this triangle where they just, they get the ball they're like, oh, I'm like, I'm not looking forward. I'm passing it backwards. And every so often it'll ping out to Aitonori and he'll like do a quick little step. And he's like, nah, I'm playing it backwards.
00:09:38
Speaker
And so for 20 minutes, we get literally this. And the people in the stadium in Kansas City start literally leaving the stadium because this is the most clear draw in the history of clear draws. It's 2-2.
00:09:50
Speaker
Both teams are going through their content. Absolute despondency for sure in the Iran camp in Tijuana. And then Algeria rope-a-dope. And this was all just this big thing to get revenge for the disgrace if he honed in 1982.
00:10:04
Speaker
with like When the clock turns like 89, Algeria have the ball. and They just have it for four minutes straight. And it's exactly that triangle that you're talking about. But like they're not really going anywhere. And you could it felt like they were just...
00:10:21
Speaker
just playing out the string it really really really felt that way and do you think like truly do you think there was some like message from someone a player or the manager like to do it or it just happened and they saw it like to this point and it's not that long after the game i still don't know like what they were trying like what the instructions were from a top level I almost think that legitimately, and this sounds weird to say, every single time they played this triangle, they always looked up.
00:10:53
Speaker
They were always looking to see if if if if this was on, if there was a way to play an incisive ball and get a run in behind. And then finally, Austria just kind of turn off. And you see it, right? like They're not pressing. They're not moving. They're very stagnant. At one point in this game for Austria, Conrad Leimer literally starts stretching. right You see it. He's literally like stretching out his hamstring, it's just like waiting. like I'm not actually going press. You're not gonna do anything.
00:11:19
Speaker
And then all of a sudden, out of completely nowhere, just when you think this is completely over, Riyad Mahrez makes an incisive run in behind. The ball comes from hour after a ball was initially played by the Algerian number 10. And that means that in this situation, Mahrez gets in behind, one touch shot, boom, everything changes, and they've rope-a-doped Austria, and they're 3-2 up.
00:11:43
Speaker
it happens in like two seconds, the movement, right? They're going from static, lull, tame possession. It's very direct, like a long one, two into the box. And,
00:11:54
Speaker
I feel like we I was just ready to to run away with this narrative. Like i could I could have done this podcast right now about Algeria doing the Revenge for 82, the absolute scenes, Austria getting dumped, being a fake dark horse, like Ragnik not knowing the assignment, like the team was asleep. And I was like, oh man, there's so much stuff here that like feels super rich narrative. Like I'm ready to run with it all.
00:12:19
Speaker
Like, Now you go to Iran, like they must think they've just won the lottery. This game was draw for 20 minutes, 25 minutes. This game was the drawest of draws for 25 minutes. The ball literally did not leave like five yards of the center circle for these 20 minutes, basically. And in the 90 plus three, Algeria have taken the lead. And you think there's only one minute to go. They put up four minutes, right? Nothing else can happen in the this game. And so Ralph Ragnick and the Austrian team is just shell-shocked. So what do they do? that They do the only thing they can do. They they take off Philip Mouine and they put on Sasha Kolodzic. They put on as many big guys as they can get. Interestingly, Algeria even make a substitution here. They take off Wauer, Auer, and they bring on Gajemis, who's like a theoretical defensive player. And Austria just go from the kickoff and they get one chance with Leinhardt, whose left-footed shot is high and wide. And then the ball recycles back out on the goal kick.
00:13:12
Speaker
And Austria have it. they play it to the side. And once again, it's a bit of quality from Gregorich. He's the one player of this Austria team that has shown us quality. And he crosses it in. And at the far post is waiting Michael Gregorich.
00:13:24
Speaker
And Gregorich heads it back. And who is it but big Sasa Kaladzic out of nowhere, muscling off an Algerian defender, heading the ball in the back of the net, just over the foot of the Algerian goalkeeper, Ben Baut, into the back of the net, breaking Iranian hearts,
00:13:41
Speaker
And changing this game and just sending this into another realm of wackiness after it had already coalesced it and and and gone beyond everything we could have expected. So one of my favorite things to do is sometimes you just you turn on YouTube and you go to greatest late goals of all time.
00:13:59
Speaker
and You know, you're going to get Watford, Dini, like you're going to get any. You can even do just World Cup goals and and you just sit there and you know the ball, right? It's 10 minutes, 11 minutes, and you're just having a blast reliving all the moments.
00:14:15
Speaker
Sorry to all the YouTubers. Sasa Kalachic is now in the comp. You gotta redo all the comps. This is just, like, truly, like, an unexplainable moment. Like, there's always a bit more. There's always that last bit. And, like...
00:14:30
Speaker
Yes, this is dumb, but like I truly think you have to give credit to Ralph Radnick. It's a minute left. It's 94 minutes. His team is out of the World Cup as it stands. They're out when this result is 3-2. And he's like, we're not done. Sub on our 6-7 guy. Our plan...
00:14:48
Speaker
K for Klogic and we're just mixer balling it in. And like sometimes you the ball is really high and you're six, seven guys, the only guy they can get it. Like poor Algeria. Like, yeah, they're not the tallest center backs. Like this is like the longest, longest knockdown of all time.
00:15:07
Speaker
Also, is it really poor Algeria? Because they lead this with a better round of 32 matches. Sure, sure. And they're honor intact, right? like You can't accuse them of not going for it. So it's poor Iran is really who it is. Yes, yes it it is. You're right.
00:15:22
Speaker
I'm just... I mean, this is now 15 minutes of podcasts. Like... I don't think I've seen anything as like boggling mind boggling live as that 90 minute sequence truly.
Analysis of Match Dynamics and Missed Opportunities
00:15:35
Speaker
And like Sasa Kolodzic is such an unlikely guy to score that goal. Like it's his first moment of quality in the entire world club, right? Like it's fair to say, like it's the first thing he's done.
00:15:46
Speaker
Yeah, he's been really poor. He's just looked like kind of unconnected to his own body parts, to the front line, to the back, ah to the the midfield. And Ragnik has been cycling through strikers. He starts Arnautovic in this game, who also, you know, we glossed over, was like, or we didn't gloss over, but was like really committed to the bit and kind of showed that this wasn't just a...
00:16:10
Speaker
a draw like to be played a draw i think that's what makes this so amazing as story is we're going to look back and be like they didn't try to do this it ended this way because of one of the great finishes of all time and i think there's more we could keep just saying silly things about this game but when we started the day we yesterday was 92 percent Were we wrong?
00:16:33
Speaker
Was anyone wrong? Or was this just in the numbers free zone of soccer? I mean, you and I doubted that number and we knew to doubt that number. And I think we were correct to doubt that number. This is not the path that you and I expected to get there. This is an path. This is a path.
00:16:52
Speaker
We did not have a 3-3 on our bingo cards, but we did have the game state of 2-2, right? Because it eventually it gets to the spot that we were all expecting. Like, okay, we took a circuitous route to get there. But at 2-2, it very much felt like, all right, they're just playing it out. They're playing out the string. They're both content with it. And then there's just two more absolute haymaker sucker punches out of nowhere that just get us back to where we were. that just doesn't feel right.
00:17:19
Speaker
If you play Austria Algeria for three hours, someone takes the lead and someone just comes back because one of them goes out. And like this is a perfect, perfect modern reflection on game state. Like managers will just teams just never stop when they need that goal. And.
00:17:38
Speaker
Algeria and Austria are just bad enough defensively that no one can see out the one goal lead. That's what I'm saying. Like they could do this for three hours and the other team would just score. This was a fascinating level. And
00:17:53
Speaker
It's like if Austria don't do that surprise attack, it like ends the
Knockout Stage Predictions for Algeria and Austria
00:17:58
Speaker
same way. But instead, like it showed that the the the defenses here were ill prepared to defend. Right. Like yeah the second anybody turned up the pressure, it ended up in a goal. And that's how we got six goals in this game. So it was better for Algeria where they ended up. But again, to the point for 20 minutes, should they have done something or was that just? No, I don't think so. Like it was the exact result they needed. And but so then why?
00:18:22
Speaker
So then why did they go at the 93rd 40? That's my that's where he's like, I'm. Because I don't know, because the ghosts of Heon are haunting them behind and and they're thinking we can pull one over on these guys and the pass was there. And these are professionals. and when the pass is there, you take the pass, right? Like, I think this all just kind of boils down to that. And look, I think Algeria could be okay with this. Like, I don't think it's the end of the world, but they didn't it's not the end of the world for them. that They didn't see this out.
00:18:47
Speaker
But yeah, like, you should be able to see how to result when you're a goal up with one minute to play and all they have are their big lugs and they're just whipping in a cross. Like... You just have to be able to handle that. And once again, the goalkeeping issue for Algeria is not going away. It doesn't matter that they took Luka Zidane out because Benoit wasn't much better in this game. He wasn't great on the Arnautovic goal. He had a chance that he could have saved this Kaladzic goal.
00:19:09
Speaker
That's a big concern for them going forward. It is. It's definitely one of their limiting factors for a dark horse. And I think oh ah neither of these teams are should really you should count on them to do a lot in the in the knockout round, which is fine. um I mean, <unk>ll talk about the matchups like it's it's a little tricky going forward.
00:19:29
Speaker
Yeah, so Austria will play Spain. you' like Before the tournament, you gave me the case for that game, right? After having seen three games of this Austria, I don't think your case is is holding up. Not that you're still buying into that case, but I think you're selling all the stock there.
00:19:44
Speaker
I was trying to make the case then. i think the the weaknesses were what they were and they look exactly what we thought they would look like through their games. And look, you saw that Argentina game. Think about how that is with a team that's 10% better on the ball and it looks worse, perhaps.
00:20:00
Speaker
Algeria gets Switzerland. Manzambi is going to have a feast against this Algeria defense. Like they've just not been, they've not shown an ability to defend anybody, but Algeria could maybe have some some joy going forward.
00:20:11
Speaker
Yeah, I mean, the thing here is Mahrez, after game two, I think, gave them an off-ball runner for like the left side to play through and for all the passers to find that like kind of off-ball movement.
00:20:24
Speaker
And the defense is tough, but someone needs to ask Switzerland the question to defend in space with their old and slow back six. And i think Algeria will have trouble getting on the ball, but...
00:20:37
Speaker
in that game, there'll be enough moments where they can ask questions. So I don't think it's a done deal. Yes, I would favor Switzerland, but like Algeria could 100% make that a game. right, so we're not going to come back and record tomorrow morning, so let's lightning round through everything else that we saw today, and we'll just call it a night. We'll get a good night's sleep, and and we'll come back. We'll preview the round of 32 tomorrow after we witness some South African candidate. There's a very high bar for that game to clear. I think it's fair to say after what we saw tonight.
00:21:03
Speaker
ah Early group, Amit, Croatia 2-1 win over Ghana. England were pretty labored in a 2-0 win over Panama. Harry Kane finally figured out that the Ghanaian witch doctor curse was over, and he found the back of the net here.
00:21:16
Speaker
Yeah, I think the thing for England is they're not answering any of the allegations or criticisms against their team. They're struggling against low blocks, but it doesn't really matter because they're playing so defensively. like It's just not going to be a pretty run for them.
00:21:30
Speaker
I'm still not moved off their like total talent level and what their ceiling is. It's just going to be really ugly. And I think Tuchel is trying to take this math even worse. He's trying to get by with two attacking players, three attacking players that And he, the blocks are tough. He just, the way his possession system works, he doesn't move guys out of their half spaces, except in this game for Jude Bellingham, who was allowed to go do whatever he wanted. And at the end of the day, the quality is there. He steals ah goal on a set piece, and then he's the guy forcing the issue on the left wing and getting the cross into Kane. And that was gonna, that space for Jude was gonna come off eventually. It was almost a matter of time.
00:22:12
Speaker
But, Yeah, they don't just like take a game to you by like getting numbers forward. They're just not built to play that way. And the other thing for England I will say from this game is that right back is an issue, right? Rhys James is out.
00:22:24
Speaker
Kwanzaa comes in. He's hurt. Now you're really, really like... thinking why did Tuchel leave a player like Trent off? They really could have used a right back. Well, he's not here, so it doesn't really matter. So they're going to have to solve that. But I think England are just going to play really, really grimy knockout football and like try to steal goals off set pieces and individual moments of Jude and maybe Rashford and Saka. They were pretty middling today, but that's okay.
00:22:49
Speaker
They're going to low blocked, right? It's DR Congo in the round of 32. That team is going to low block them. It's Ecuador or Mexico in the round of 16 at altitude. That team is going to low block them. Like they're going to have to figure this out. They're going to have to find the keys. It can't be the Ghana game all over again because that could could bring some possibilities for for England. Croatia, I thought were good. Ghana were adventurous in the second half. I think this was Carlos
Team Performances: Ghana, Colombia, and Portugal
00:23:09
Speaker
Karras letting his boys have some fun before the the knockout round comes and and you just got to shut everything back down. Again, I think Carlos Karras also can point and say, yeah this is why you don't get to have fun. This is why you have to play by defensive style because you gave up two goals and they didn't equip themselves super well defensively here.
00:23:25
Speaker
Pretty much. I thought it was great to to get the equalizer. like That was good effort from them, and it was a nicely taken goal. Look, Luka Modric being effective in the second half against your team in space is probably a bad sign, but he was good. Creation, again, they just are what they are. They have enough quality. If you you give them space and are a bad defensive team, they can hurt you.
00:23:47
Speaker
On another day, on another podcast, in another moment, Colombia-Portugal would have led the show, and we might have spent 20 minutes on this Colombia-Portugal game. It was a great game. As it is, we're lightning rounding it. It finished nil-nil. I thought Colombia was better in this game than Portugal. I think they are the deserved group winners, and they probably should have won it. And they maybe did win it. There was some questionable barring at the end.
00:24:07
Speaker
Yeah, he's offside by a half foot, which is really annoying. Like, i think the spirit of the rule and the offsides and the way they look to our eyes. But ah I don't think it's fair to distrust the the system here.
00:24:20
Speaker
Look, i agree with you. Columbia were really good in this game. I think the one thing that was different from what we thought was how good Colombia's midfield was on the ball once they had the ball.
00:24:31
Speaker
And it was not so much of Portugal attacking Colombia. Colombia controlled the game to keep the ball out of Portugal's feet. Because when Portugal had the ball, they were as dangerous as they normally are. But Colombia really, really had them uncomfortable. Diaz's threat also was everything in this game. And look, you know we could we we really could have done 10 minutes on this. But...
00:24:53
Speaker
Ronaldo, second game against a good defense, offers nothing in movement, doesn't trouble the center backs, and crucially, also defensively, is not pressing, which is why Colombia is allowing to access their midfield so easily. The entire defensive shape from Portugal...
00:25:11
Speaker
Ronaldo, Fernandes, Neves, Vatinha. These are four slight guys that can't like physically get into you. And so a team can keep the ball away from you when you need it to Portugal. Portugal needs the ball to thrive. I thought this was a really, really concerning game. And now Portugal...
00:25:31
Speaker
had had the draw advantage for Columbia, they get a worse draw because of it. And I just think this comes back to this game of Ronaldo and the first draw against DR Congo. It is very, very obviously hamstringing them. And Roberto Martinez won't do anything about it.
00:25:47
Speaker
He's also offside. Like he just like is eternally offside and just like in ways that like a high level striker just should not be in these situations. You said it. I mean, the Portugal draw now is Croatia and the round of 32, which is exactly the type of gangly old wily European team. One more run, one more scalp before they call it quits and and their legs just literally disintegrate on the pitch against Spain in the round of 16. And if they get past Croatia, it's probably Spain in the round of 16.
00:26:15
Speaker
It is significantly more difficult than what Columbia will have, having won the group. And for the last 15 minutes in this game, Portugal were the team that needed to take the initiative, and they simply couldn't. Columbia was that good in the midfield. They were that physical in the midfield. It's Columbia who have the better chances finishing off this game.
00:26:31
Speaker
Truly. And this is an excellent, excellent game for Jefferson Lerma. I thought he's just fantastic at the base, of the midfield. And the other thing is I thought ah using um Suarez as a super sub was good. He deserved, not deserved, he had a bunch of chances. And in general, like, James was good too in the first half. Like, this was impressive from Columbia. It all was working. there They're dangerous.
00:26:56
Speaker
Right. And Hamas is showing that this team can work around him, even with his kind of limited physical capabilities and defensive work rate, right? Like there's still enough room for him to find space and ping passes enough to make up for what he doesn't give the other way. And I think it's, it's crucial because when Columbia make the change for Hamas, they bring on Juan Fernando Quintero, which is, Tom is light, right?
DR Congo's Resilience and Tactical Discipline
00:27:16
Speaker
Like they want this type of quality player to kind of offset the the the brutal midfield that they have. And if they can continue to find space to put ah a luxury guy, if you will, in their midfield, I think that's going open up a lot of doors. And as you said, Luis Diaz is fantastic. DR Congo came back to beat Uzbekistan. What a finish from Shomer Odov to start this, like just a beautiful chip loop finishing. Absolutely. 100% meant this over the head of impasse. It was labored for DR Congo. It did not come quick. They needed a penalty.
00:27:47
Speaker
to get back equalized in this game. But I think a lot of credit for Yohan Lisa, who steps up and takes the penalty and puts it in the back of the net. And then from there, DR Congo just kind of muscles this over the line. It was exactly what we expected from them. We've seen them play this game a lot, right? DR Congo needing to take the initiative isn't always pretty, but they somehow generally get it done.
00:28:08
Speaker
Yeah, they're they always play the assignment well. DeSarbo is a very solid manager. They just have enough creative talent. Or if it's not working creatively, get the ball in the box and use their athleticism in the box. And we finally saw 18 minutes of Theo Bogonda and Misha Kelly. It was good.
00:28:27
Speaker
It was good. I would play that more if you need goals, if they need that game state more. And truly the the winning goal here, the two one is just a surprise moment of brilliance from Fiston Maele, who just is a step ahead of the Uzbekistan back line. And that little unexpected contribution is kind of reflective of Dier Congo's run here.
00:28:50
Speaker
um This was hard. This was really hard for them. But they to your point, they never panic. And I think that is a big calling card for them. It's me, Jack Elliott, who gets the assist on the fist of my illegal, right? Like these are their two kind of attacking players. and look, these guys are never going to start for them because I like from here on out, like Derek Congo are not going to have to boss a game. Like they're not going to be expecting to boss a game at any point, but big contributions here. it's It's, what got them over the line in what was a pretty sweaty situation. For a lot of this game, it felt like Uzbekistan might give Iran the helping hand, right? We talked about, if you've listened to this podcast, if you've been here from the start, these two teams have been intrinsically linked this entire cycle. They played four World Cup qualifiers together. They played two more friendlies ahead of the World Cup post qualifiers. Maybe Uzbekistan was going to team to bail out Iran. And for an hour, it kind of looked like they were. But the challenge from Kusenov on the penalty, I think, really just kind of turns this whole game. D.R. Congo needed a break.
00:29:42
Speaker
I don't know if they were going be able to open play something in the back of the net. But once they got the penalty, I think that really kind of spurred them on. It was mentally a tough game for Uzbekistan, who I thought, as we said, that would have a game in them, have a good effort in them. And this this was good. Look, at the end of the day for them, a team you and I really like, there was two and...
00:30:06
Speaker
two good quality players and a bunch of solid role players, but there was not player four, three through like eight or nine to be at like a level, like what we're seeing from these calf teams, which are getting like six, seven quality guys. And then three or four rotation plays, even Cape Verde, like Uzbekistan, like that's an interesting case of the the number of good quality players on the ball. You need at this level.
00:30:33
Speaker
It's like, I think they can hold their heads high, but like, yeah, it's frustrating. They, maybe in another group, they could have had more joy. Physicality always going to be an issue for them. I think it was an issue for them at this World Cup. And like you said, Kusanov is maybe their best player. I think Shomarodov is their best player, but Kusanov is just mistake prone. And it just feels like he's doing too much to try and cover for the rest of the back line at points. And that's what leads to the penalty in this situation.
00:30:56
Speaker
Credit to DR Congo, they got this over the line in very, I think, on brand fashion, right? This was similar to the Jamaica game. It was similar to the, to the calf playoffs. They do it, right? It's not pretty, it's not super silky. It's not great, but they have brute force and they have strength and and they can get it over the line. And they're going threat in the knockout round. already seen it. They held a high-level Portugal team to a 1-1 draw. They can just run that game state back.
Argentina's Favorable Path in Knockout Stages
00:31:19
Speaker
They they limited Colombia to just one goal.
00:31:21
Speaker
They can just keep running that game state back and see as... take It can take them as far as it'll take them. Last game to talk about, I mean, it was meaningless. It was Argentina and Jordan. Really good goals from Argentina. Giovanni Lo Celso, free kick curler. Lautaro Martinez finally gets his first World Cup goal on a penalty. And then Lionel Messi comes on for 40 minutes and he keeps his World Cup goal stream goal scoring streak alive. Seven straight World Cup games with a goal for Messi. Free kick effort. the The Jordan free kick walls were not very good in this game. And that led to two of the three Argentina goals.
00:31:54
Speaker
Yeah, I mean, I don't have much to add. It's Messi keeps just kind of doing bits at a high level, which is the fact that he can come on as a sub and still get his goal. And it wasn't like he farmed this one. This was a free kick. It wasn't great walling or goalkeeping, but...
00:32:09
Speaker
I mean, the the the other story from the day subplot is Argentina's path is really, really good now. It's wide open. Colombia would be their quarterfinalist. It could have been Portugal. Listen, that's a tough game, and Colombia wants revenge for a lot of things, including the Copa America final recently, but...
00:32:30
Speaker
It's a very familiar game, right? It's a very familiar game for Argentina. They've seen that opponent. They know what that opponent brings. And the vibes are immaculate for Argentina too, right? Giovanni Lo Celso, a guy who in 2018 didn't get in, 2022 missed the squad, right? Like he gets a goal. That's great. Feel good. Latar Martinez gets his first world cup goal. Lionel Messi keeps scoring. Like if you could have picked three goal scorers for Argentina today, those are probably the three guys you pick.
00:32:54
Speaker
They just keep like checking off their side quest boxes to keep everyone happy. And the last part for them is, listen, I like i always am defending England. Not actually. I'm trying to be objective with them, but I just i think they have a chance. England have not shown themselves well through three games. there's no I don't think you could make that case.
00:33:15
Speaker
Argentina's path to a final is about as good as it gets here. Out of any of the top four seeds, I think they have the easiest run in. So I'm sure the odds might reflect that. we We'll talk about that tomorrow night, but there's definitely some value in Argentina's, you know, overall title odds based on the group stage. France on the other side of the bracket, Spain on the other side of the bracket, Portugal would ship the other side of the bracket. As you said, Germany on the other side of the bracket, England have probably been the weakest of the top four
Unexpected Outcomes and Narratives of Group Stage
00:33:44
Speaker
teams, if you will. Maybe Spain are in that conversation as well. But like again, it's there for Argentina, so so we'll see. One final note quickly from me on Jordan. Musa Atomari had a really good goal here. he beat a very slow Leandro Paredes. Jordan acquitted themselves really well at this World Cup. I know the scorelines might not bear it out. They scored three really good goals. in this tournament. And I think their level was higher than what we were expecting their level to be, and they deserve credit for that.
00:34:08
Speaker
better than Saudi Arabia, better than Qatar, closer to Korea, who another team that was on the cut line today behind Iran, we haven't even mentioned them. I mean, kind of a real bummer for them too. And they were team we had circled on our preview podcast is in that tier of could disappoint in ah in a round of 32. And um man, the teams that went early just got crushed by this third place table.
00:34:34
Speaker
And the third place table, I don't think this was the form we expected it to take, right? Like three plus two is the eighth spot in this table. let's That is not what we expected at all. we We were, we were tossing around minus three, minus two. Couldn't there be a situation where two is is the cut line? No, the four point, you basically had to have four points in this situation to go through. That's really impressive.
00:34:56
Speaker
I did appreciate Steve Clark, the Scotland manager submitting his resignation all of exactly five minutes after they were officially eliminated from this tournament. Yeah. He just had a four-year extension like before the tournament. So no wonder if they worked that out. Otherwise, congrats to Steve Clark for that. um The last bit I'll throw in here while we're doing our truly World Cup after dark after darking is that Uruguay, after they're their failure yesterday, were not allowed to fly private home. They had to fly commercial from the Federation. Just, man, so many of these narrative bits that we had like kind of picked on
00:35:33
Speaker
happened and not all of them but it's been a it's been a fun little group stage truly like we we got a lot out of it i think what it shows is that following the entire qualification cycle in such a granular way really helps pick up on a lot of this and you don't get to the world cup surprised by a lot like yes there are things that happen that surprise us all the time but being able to track all of this and watch these ebbs and flows i think really helps pick out who can be the team that is above expectations, who can be the team that is below expectations. And our track record on that to pat ourselves on the back a little bit as we close the group stage and get set for a knockout round where it might all blow up in smoke has been pretty darn good.
00:36:16
Speaker
Yeah, i feel I feel really good about that. I think, honestly, the the biggest surprise was Turkey, and perhaps that was was unlucky, a team I had thought. But also, maybe there was two minutes, 90 seconds, we're Austria, we're also out. So like that's the beauty of all it. That's the beauty of the
World Cup's Excitement and Upcoming Content
00:36:33
Speaker
World Cup. And just to circle it, like this kind of game, this kind of moment is like why we do this whole after dark thing.
00:36:40
Speaker
It's that's why we keep coming back to the international soccer. It's why ah while there may be some people in other walks of life who are texting their bae like, you up tonight, you and me were texting each other, you want to record?
00:36:51
Speaker
And it was like, yeah, all right, we got to do it. You sent the eyes emoji when I said you want to record. And we had to because this was such a great World Cup moment. All right, that's going to put a bookend on our group stage content for us here at World Cup After Dark.
00:37:03
Speaker
Knockout round kicks off tomorrow. South Africa take on Canada in the afternoon. If you want a preview of that, you can head to our Patreon page. I recorded a preview with Isaac Bushnell on South Africa, Canada.
00:37:15
Speaker
So be sure to check that out if you're one of our Patreon subscribers. If you would like to check that out, but are not one of our Patreon subscribers, you can do that at patreon.com slash WCAD. Three bucks a month, access to subscriber only content like that and much, much more. Amit and I will be back tomorrow night to recap South Africa, Canada quickly. And then we will take a look at the rest of the round of 32. This tournament is like only one third of the way over. And it feels like we've already had an entire tournament. It's been that good. We have loved it that much. It's knockout round soccer coming. You have to love that.
00:37:48
Speaker
I'm so, so excited to really get into these matchups and the moments we're going to have. And i wish you didn't say one third. That feels feels like a lifetime. So ah no fractions on the tournament length for me. Thank you. I don't know. Maybe my math's wrong. Maybe we're like halfway through. i don't know. It feels like we're we're less than, we're probably a third of the way through on drama though. And that's what counts. I did watching that Columbia Portugal game got me very excited for the knock around because it was high level.
00:38:12
Speaker
I texted you during, it felt like a quarterfinal, right? And those are the games that are coming from us mixed in with all the weird oddities that we get. Like, again, we're, An hour ago, we just witnessed one of the craziest group stage endings in World Cup history. And Sasa Kolodzik is the hero for Austria and the the executioner for poor Iran. i Look, I don't know if we're gonna be able to top that in what's coming in the World Cup. but We might just be able to. and if we do, you know that we will be here to recap. So that's it for us on the World Cup After Dark.
00:38:41
Speaker
We'll be back to preview the round of 32 tomorrow. As always, thanks for listening and see you then.