i lost another bet with portugal. ooof! but morocco, extraordinary as a team. a revelation.

tha final is shaping up to be great.

and the 3rd place match should be very entertaining for spectators even if some players don't want it.

Despite the weird surprises, it's the final many expected before the tournament started. It's also another opportunity for Argentine players to get pissed off and take off their silver medals after the game, as they're wont to do. :D

i hadn't been following too closely but i didn't expect argentina to get here.

according to world hype, brazil was supposed to be the great south american savior.

and then...



sorry they were knocked out but i guess under every cloud there's always a silver lining haaaahaaaahaaaahaa. seeing neymar cry is always a delight. even if he scored a beautiful goal for the ages. seeing him cry is even better than seeing him score. glorious!

so we'll see what happens sunday... france is short kanté and pogba and maybe benzema (more later on that). two more on the defensive side of things have been sick and isolated, not sure of their medical progress.

benzema: i am not sure if fit or not, might return? might play? something? weird...

france has defensive flaws in the midfield. and individually rabiot and upamecano were fucking up and resorting to fouls when they played england. one step here one step there or a different ref can change the outcome. (plus they are the sick ones, so there's that)

of course, mbappé and griezmann and giroud upfront are murder incarnate, even without benzema along or a great defense behind them...

so yeah, odds are that france wins, but... it ain't over till it's over. messi y la araña might have something to say about that come sunday.

Neymar, Ronaldo, and Suarez crying in the same few weeks, this is the greatest World Cup of all time.

Regardless of the result, I'm going to claim that Australia's the third best team in the world now. But because the idea of a French dynasty is repulsive, and I have a few friends there, gloria a la albiceleste...

VIVE la RÉSISTANCE!

Dunno whether this has been posted on this thread before - it's a CLASSIC from 2005:

Mark E Smith reads the football results on the BBC's Final Score

The best part starts about five minutes in, but ya gotta hear the man read the results first. A total pro!

Meanwhile in Australia...

morocco-croatia started super lively...

--

and in the end i guess croatia successfully shut it down

well well well... here comes the big day...

i would love for argentina to win, but right now can't help to see france having higher chances with more great attackers and a better keeper.

i think argentina has a better defense. i expect the real battle to happen in the midfield.

it's very hard to predict what will happen, what tactical schemes will be proposed by each team. and then whoever is tasked with chasing mbappé better be ready.

--

okay we have lineups:
Argentina: Martínez; Molina, Romero, Otamendi, Acuña; Di María, De Paul, Fernández, Mac Allister; Messi, Álvarez.

France: Lloris (c); Kounde, Varane, Upamecano, Hernandez; Tchouameni, Rabiot; Dembele, Griezmann, Mbappe; Giroud.

dimaría starts!!


.

hah, scaloni winning the tactical battle by sending everyone forward to overwhelm france's defensive defficiencies. tight midfield control. and dimaría involved in both goals. brilliant.

-

they took out dimaría and now argentina fallen back risking their advantage. this i do not like.

-

well i saw this coming. goddamn. tactical blunder to get on the back foot. 2-2 right now.


--

this game is pure madness. waiting for the penalties now. fucking nuts.

TODAY'S LUNCH: ASADO Y FERNET

what a final!!!!!!!

Absolutely insane.

I missed both French goals because I was in the kitchen.
Going to write a complaint to the FIFA that they shouldn't schedule World Cup Finals around dinner time :D

Confirmed: Marcelo Bielsa, new Uruguay coach.

They will destroy us.

Then they'll be World Champions.

I'm gonna go hang myself now.

i like uruguay! this is great news

but that guy from the office is fucking annoying. why dont we hang HIM instead?

it would be an extra extra extra bonus hahahaha

And now...



carn the fuckin Tillies

Congrats Chocie!
I think you were great against the Canadians, but I literally watched the match with only one eye. While working, and from my "desk" (= dinner table) I can watch only one half of my TV screen :D
That's still more than what I saw from the Dutch matches so far, they are at 3AM or so. Impossible timing.
Tomorrow's match is better timed, at 9AM, but Tuesdays I'm at the office so I still won't be able to see it... but I'll try...or not...not really interested in Vietnam actually.

Went to all six games in Melbourne throughout the tournament.
*Nigeria 0-0 Canada was thrilling, really fast football from both sides and some great play - Nigeria were the moral victors.
*Germany 6-0 Morocco wasn't something I'd want to see again, the Germans looked clinical but I guess that was a red herring.
*Australia 4-0 Canada was so much fun once we got a couple on the board, loved the fan experience. Mary Fowler is going to be one of the best out there by the next World Cup.
*Jamaica 0-0 Brazil was a hugely shocking result, it was incredible hearing the Brazilian crowd instantly go silent.
*Sweden 0-0 USA was one of the greatest goalkeeping performances I'll ever see, and an absolutely mental penalty shootout - always fun to curse out the seppos.
*Colombia 1-0 Jamaica was alright, I was sat behind a mascot for the Colombian team so I didn't see too much...

Spain football chief to resign after kissing World Cup winner on the lips

Good. Fuck him.

Wait - this guy has not resigned or been fired yet. Fucking douchebag!

triste pendejo, that's a red card

Sam Kerr - possibly the greatest women's footballer on the planet - is going to court for a day where she scored a hat trick, got drunk, munted in a taxi, started fighting about the fine, and called the cop booking her a "stupid white bastard".
Fucking legend, makes you proud to be Australian.