Ep. 21 - World Cup Quarterfinals Recap & Semifinals Preview

Brandon and Shaun get together to recap all of the action from the Quarterfinals before moving onto preview each of the Semifinal matchups.

First, we talk through each of the games the past weekend and what impressed us about the winning sides. We touch on those who failed to advance and how their tournaments should be viewed. In the second half, we preview the two semifinal matchups that are sure to deliver. Can France return to World Cup glory or will Spain defend their Euros crown? Can Kane or Jude prevent another Messi run to the title?

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Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:22

Hello, friends, and welcome to episode 21 of the Friends on Football Podcast. I'm one of your co-hosts, Brandon Johnson, and joined as always by my main man, Mr. Sean Boyle. Sean, how are you doing today?

SPEAKER_00 0:33

Brandon, I'm doing well. We're recording here on Sunday, a day without any World Cup action. We've only got three games left. I'm excited to talk to you about these matches that have taken place. I'm excited to preview the semifinals. We really haven't spoken the last couple days, so I'm excited to get your thoughts on what happened. And I think we have a lot to talk about, so it should be a good episode.

SPEAKER_01 0:55

Sean, I agree with you. It's been a few days, and we've sent a few texts here and there, but I'm excited to really deep dig deep and dive into this with you. Uh I'm getting a little sad though, Sean, I will admit, with only three games left in the tournament. It's been a crazy month, a month and a half of football, and now it's all ending. But we'll enjoy it. We'll enjoy these last three games. And we gotta take them in while we can. Yeah, we've got we gotta enjoy it. Save save them while we can. Yes. And then we have club football preseason beginning next week. We have MLS coming back next week. So there's really no gap, uh, which is good for the new American fan, maybe who's who's just starting to get into the game. They don't have to wait a few months for the seasons to come back. They can dive right into it. So, Sean, let's start by breaking down these quarterfinals. We have four quarterfinals, four quarterfinal matches. The first of which was France-Morocco. Sean, this game actually took place on Thursday, uh, which feels like forever ago at this point. But France-Morocco, France wins this game 2-0. There's a lot of history between these two teams. A lot of the players play with each other in club football. These teams know each other well. A lot of French players have some Moroccan uh background, and vice versa. So these players have known each other forever. They've come through each other's youth systems. There's there's a lot of connections between these two teams. They also played in the 2022 World Cup semifinals with France winning that match. Sean, for me, this game wasn't even close. France absolutely dominated eight shots on goal to one shot on goal from Morocco. The expected goals, about 3.7 from France and 0.14 for Morocco. So, really, on paper, Sean, this game wasn't even close. Did you see it similarly by viewing it, or did you think differently?

SPEAKER_00 2:43

No, I think I got the same impression as the stats are providing. So it was just a very professional, you gotta golf clap, tip your cap to the French for continuing to play not only exciting football, but just professionally getting the job done and really never letting any part of the match feel like it's going to go Morocco's way. It felt like the fr the French were in complete control. And that's just a credit to them. They've really outperformed even my expectations for them this tournament. I mentioned last episode how I went back and watched that 2022 game against Morocco, and how I thought the French side in this World Cup were way better than that French side, and that was only four years ago, with some of the same players, including the main man, Kylian Mbappe, but this team now it's gotten to a completely different level. They're so much better than that side. Whether they win this World Cup or not, this is the best the French national team has played under Didier Deschamp, and they've won a World Cup and finished second. So that's that says a lot, and that's how I truly feel. I honestly think that they're going to be nearly impossible to beat. The only problem for them is we're going to talk about their opponent in the semis, and you could say almost the same thing. So it's going to be a great match when they get to Spain, but in this match, they just knew when to press their foot on the gas, they knew when to let up, but still not let Morocco really get any ground in the game. I think one of the storylines that are developing, Brandon, is the injuries that are kind of starting to take shape in this tournament. I'm not going to say it's a war of attrition by any means, but there are some notable absences that we'll touch on throughout this episode and that could impact the semifinals. I thought the Saibari injury for Morocco was a big one in this game. They were already thin at center forward striker, and they did not replace him with a like-for-like replacement. So it turned into a midfielder kind of parading around as a striker, and they just never had an outlet. They couldn't get out, they couldn't link play consistently. I thought they struggled from start to finish in this one. And those expected goal stats, I think they're pretty indicative of how this game went.

SPEAKER_01 4:48

Sean, I agree with you. Morocco just never seemed to put it together. I will say early, Sean, and something I'll bring up and pose as a question to you. I thought Morocco did hold their own for a bit. I thought maybe France was still feeling the game out. So there were a few chances back and forth. But France early draws a penalty kick, and my talking point for you, Sean, isn't necessarily about the foul itself. I think the foul was probably a foul. But the antics around a penalty kick, Sean. So now everything gets reviewed, and we know that we have VAR and hate it or love it, it's here. But after the VAR reviews it, Sean, there's still another two to three minute period where players are standing on the penalty spot. Players are still arguing with the ref. And there are just delay after delay after delay. Killian Mbappe puts the ball down to get ready to take the penalty, and then there's even another 20 to 30 second delay before the referee allows him to take the penalty kick. He then misses the penalty kick, the goalie makes a good save. But Sean, my my question to you is how do we eliminate these antics from the game? Do we can we eliminate these from the game? Or is this just the way football is and we're just gonna have to suck it up and deal with it? Because for me, it it dirties up the game a little bit. And I think you and I can understand it. We we love a little bit of dark arts, we little we'll love a little bit of hey, this is a little cheeky move, and and we'll we'll embrace that for our team, but I think for the casual watching the game, they they just want to get on with it. It it the foul gets called and the penalty kick doesn't get taken for six or seven minutes after it's called, and it's like, what what are we doing? So I just want to know your thoughts around that, around penalty procedure, I guess you call it, and and what can we do to fix it?

SPEAKER_00 6:33

Yeah, I think it's a good way to frame the discussion because there should be no reason that a penalty takes this long to set up and execute. If you have a proper ref who has command of the match, it's an easy fix. I I think this is a situation that's down to the individual refs because we're not speaking about the VAR review, and that can be lengthy in its own right. But once it's a firm given penalty that's going to happen, it's on the ref to get control of the situation, line the players up. The players could be as immature as they want to be and try to get inside players' heads, and maybe it worked in this case. The Moroccan players might have eventually forced a miss for Killian Mbappe. So good job by you. It was well within your right to do that. But it's also well within the ref's right to give you a yellow card if you're not in the position you're supposed to be in in a timely manner. So I think that's an easy fix. Just start carding, guys. Start taking names down, ref. Names and numbers. Let's not allow this to happen for that long ever again, because it does disrupt the flow of the game. It could get into the player's head. I don't think that that's an excuse for killing Mbappe. I think the player should be responsible for taking and making the penalty, regardless of how long they have to wait. But I also just think, like you said, for the viewer, nobody wants to watch that without any context of the audio for six or seven minutes before the kick actually happens. So we saw the introduction a few years ago. At least to me, it was a new thing where the penalty butler showed up. And it's the guy who basically acts as a decoy. He stands at the spot, he holds the ball, he makes sure that the opposing team doesn't damage it, and he's doing that knowing he's not going to be the one taking the penalty. So for France, it's Usmane Dembele. He seems to be perfectly happy in his role. He goes and he sets it down nicely, gives the ball to Killian. So that's what we we have to do now because we don't want the mind games affecting the guy actually taking the penalty. So it it's kind of just a circus that could be easily avoided. Just start punishing guys for being disruptive.

SPEAKER_01 8:32

I like that. Sean with the iron fist just throwing out yellow cards. But you're right. I think it is, I think it might be needed at this point. It's gotten too too far gone, and we have to bring it back to the game. I would also love to see Dembeli just say, Hey Mbappe, I'm gonna take this one, put it down, and take it himself, but that's probably not gonna happen. So the butler, the butler is an interesting one, Sean, and I'm glad you bring it up because, like you said, something maybe the last two or three years we've really seen an increase of. I don't know if I've ever really seen it before that. Uh, but this sort of, yeah, who's taking the penalty? It's a fake. When it's France and they've done it multiple times, you know what they're doing. But other teams, Sean, I think there is a little bit of magic in it because it's always like I don't know who's gonna take it. Yeah, it's interesting. Yeah, the guy who puts it down sometimes or holds it and and looks like he's the butler is actually the one that's taking it, and he's just holding the ball, getting ready. So there's a little bit of there's a little bit of fun in that, and I do like that. So we let's keep that, but get get rid of the the other antics around it, and let's just get these penalty kicks taken a little bit faster.

SPEAKER_00 9:38

Yeah, we see yellow cards given in the Premier League sometimes if you kick a ball away after a whistle to delay the ensuing free kick. And that's about a five to ten second delay at most. And that's that was a point of emphasis for the for the Premier League the past couple seasons to start yellow carding guys like that. Hey, good job. You sped the game up, you kept the ball in play longer. I think that's a good rule. Well, this is a deliberate keeping the ball out of play for minutes on end, so I think that's an easy fix to start punishing with yellow card. You simply won't see guys doing it as often. It's an easy way to correct what is a wrong currently in the game. So, and I'm with you on the butler. It's electric when you don't know who the penalty taker is, and maybe it's a guy gone rogue saying, no, no, he looks like he's really gonna keep that ball. That's when you're in that's a deep fake. If you're able, if you're able to pull one of those off, catch the other team completely by surprise, that's good stuff.

SPEAKER_01 10:31

Yeah, and one last point about the the butler. I bel I don't remember, it was definitely a club game I saw a few years ago. There was a double butler situation. One guy held the ball, all the antics happened, and he passed it to another guy, but then there were more antics, and I think the team knew this. And then when the everyone finally, finally cleared out, the second guy gave it to a third guy who took the penalty kick and scored. So I love how this has now become strategy in the game, and it's kind of goofy, and something that I feel like you and I keep an eye on just because we love seeing these little games inside of the game moments. But uh, for someone maybe who's a little bit new or casual to the sport, this is not something that's been going on forever, and it's now definitely a trend. So keep your eye on that.

SPEAKER_00 11:18

Yeah, and also France, Brandon, they had to be so accustomed to the dark arts after Paraguay that this was nothing to them in this game. They they've been through it all at this point, so they they probably saw this as just they probably laughed at at what Morocco was trying to do.

SPEAKER_01 11:33

That's true. They're like, this is the best you can you can give us. But moving in, Sean, back to the game. First half end 0-0. France definitely has the majority of the chances. Luca Dinier hits a 25-30 yard strike right before halftime, hits off the crossbar. They definitely are the the team on the front foot going to halftime. Coming out in the second half, a lot of the same, and then the 60th minute comes and France scores three killing Mbappe. He, in my opinion, gets essentially a half chance. The ball's sort of bouncing around in possession. France has control, but then Morocco gets a couple headers, and it's kind of that volleyball part of soccer where the ball is just going back and forth a little bit. And it kind of casually falls to Mbappe. He has a little half yard of space, and he's at the top of the box and just slots it into the corner. And Sean, watching this live, you're like, what in the world? Like it came out of nowhere. Uh obviously, we know Killian's quality, and we'll talk about him at the end of the episode when we talk about Golden Boot and if he could potentially win it, win it again, the Golden Boot. But it I mean it's absolute clash, Sean. How do you how do you defend that? Can you defend that if you're Morocco? Do you just have to permanently have two guys covering him at all times? Because he's the quality that that man has in in his game is is just remarkable.

SPEAKER_00 12:57

Yeah, he combines technical ability with elite athleticism in a way that a lot of these other guys that we are going to talk about in the golden boot and a lot of these other stars that have dominated this World Cup. They don't seem to have it just in that way. I guess Erling Holland is kind of a combination of those two things as well, but he's not the complete player that Killian is, and he's a different kind of athlete. He's more of a powerful athlete where Killian can be powerful, but he's also so just quick and fast. It's an unbelievable finish. It's I mean, I want to say there's really nothing you could do. You probably could do a better job leading up to that point of getting the situation dealt with, which Morocco didn't do, but you basically have to play a perfect game to keep this guy off the score sheet and to keep France out of goal. I mean, they are going to find a way to score. They just simply have too many horses. Even if Killian wasn't able to put this one away, you just know, and we saw it a few moments later with Dembele, but you just know that one of these guys is going to provide a moment of quality that you just can't stop. So it seems inevitable when you're going up against this French attack. And when you you see finishes like that, you're just like, yeah, you just I don't know what to do. That's why I kind of said at the top of the show, you just kind of have to clap your hands. Like, Morocco, you've developed a long way. You're you're a great footballing country. Unfortunately, now in the game, there's just levels to this, and France appear to be sitting at the mountaintop in terms of just the depth of quality that they have and the high-level quality that they have, the Ballon d'Or winners in their side. It's really, really tough to go against. You need to play a perfect match, and Morocco, while short-handed, weren't able to do that.

SPEAKER_01 14:32

Yeah, it's it's unfortunate for a team like Morocco because World Cup quarterfinals, of course, they're gonna go home and they'll be happy with that. That's a great, great result to make it to the quarterfinals. But in a different matchup, maybe they get Switzerland instead of France, and maybe they're in the semifinals now. So the luck of the draw, unfortunately, was not on their side. They get a team in France who was in they've been in incredible form, this whole World Cup. We've mentioned it time and time again on this podcast, Sean. And so and you just alluded to the second goal, Sean. Six minutes later, Usman Dumbele picks up a ball off of Achillan Mbappe layoff in the midfield. I I rewatched the highlight because I was like, was he really that open? And yeah, he dribbles the ball from essentially the edge of the center circle all the way to the top of the box, lightly defended, and just slots a tidy little finish into the bottom corner. And France at this point, it they're flying. I mean, they were already you could see the screw starting to turn, you could see the game really going into their favor, and then they score the second goal uh six minutes after they score the first goal. And Sean, at that point, you're like, all right, this is done and dusted.

SPEAKER_00 15:43

100%. And it's just proof that no matter what happens from this point forward in the tournament, France have been the best team to this point. I don't think their road's been necessarily easy. I I will say I think Morocco's a really good side that they beat. I thought their group was pretty tough, and they handled it all professionally and just excellent to watch throughout. They they're really, like I said, hasn't been a blip on their radar. This Dembele goal is just another example of their class. He's world class when he's firing like this. He's kind of a streaky player. He he took a long time throughout his career to really develop and burst, like everybody thought and expected he would. But since he's done that over the course of the last three, four seasons, he's become utter world class in that top 1% of players. And when you have a guy like Mbappe that demands so much attention that you sometimes can forget about an Elise or a Dembele or a Duet, it there's just not much you could do. Like I said, it has to be a perfectly executed match to beat France. And this is another example from Morocco that they just weren't able to execute at a high enough level.

SPEAKER_01 16:48

Yeah. Sean. And after that, I mean the game's pretty much over. There's a few chances on both sides, and Bappi gets subbed off early. There there turns out there was no injury there. I think it was more just rest, get him off the field. There was a second of worry. The the trainers did come on the field, but he's okay. Sean, my my last question to you before we transition to the next game is are we talking about France's defense enough? I I know the offense is there, and they I would argue without a doubt have the best attack in the world at this point, but they also don't concede a ton of goals, Sean. And maybe it's just the all of our attentions on their offense, but A, is their defense that good, and B, we'll get into it with Spain specifically, but is there a chance that they just beat Spain, you know, 1-0 or 2-1 because they don't have to because their defense is so strong and they don't have to put in five or six goals like they like they have in some of these other games.

SPEAKER_00 17:50

I think it's a good point. We do spend more time talking about the French attack, and I think that's probably rightfully so. But also Dio Apumakano is one of my favorite central defenders in the world. I think he's absolutely class. He's so good out of possession, he's very good in possession when he has the ball at his feet. I also think uh a part of the French defensive setup is their midfield's work out of possession. They're able to basically play as a three-man midfield with two because they're playing four attackers at all times. So you could say Alice is working as a 10 or an attacking midfielder. He's an attacker in this setup. He's not doing a ton of defensive breaking up play or really serving as a midfielder, but because of a guy, and I shadow them out pre-tournament because he plays at Roma, Manu Kone, he is a guy who's going to likely, unfortunately, leave Roma this summer or at the very worst next summer for a big, big money move to an elite club. He is such a dynamic midfielder, and I also think Adrian Rabio, who is a guy who I've never loved, I think he's been excellent for them. He's able to combine defense and attack in a way that is proving he's one of the elite midfielders in the world at this point, too. So I think that the whole unit is just so cohesive and uh they understand each other so well. It's like they've been playing together for years, even though they haven't in a lot of instances. A lot of these guys are making their first World Cup appearance like Manu Kone. But uh Saliba in the back line, Dimier has been really good. He's been better than Teo Hernandez, uh Kunde at right back, he starts every week for Barcelona. I mean, they're just world-class players and they're playing at such a high level. Like I said, it creates a point, and this isn't to the offense's credit or the attack's credit. You're never really worried about the French throughout the match. It never to me watching them has felt like they were gonna lose, even when it was 0-0 against Paraguay for a long time. I never felt that France was gonna lose that game. In this match, I never felt that France was gonna lose that game. So it's really just been complete control. All 11 guys, and they still have some horses in the back too. In case of emergency, they're as deep as any team in this World Cup, probably deeper.

SPEAKER_01 20:01

Yeah, it's it's insane, Sean. And I'm glad you hit on some of those key guys because I don't like we mentioned, I don't feel like they're spoken about enough, and they also deserve a lot of this credit. And I I think we we've been hinting on their next match, and we'll we'll break down spell Spain-Belgium here in a second, but they're gonna need those guys to shine again because Spain, Spain's attack, maybe not as lethal as France's attack, but as far as team performance, uh, Spain really puts it together. So, Sean, switching switching gears to that next game. So we had Spain-Belgium. Uh, Spain wins two to one over Belgium. Spain actually concedes their first goal in the tournament in this game, which is incredible that we're this late into the tournament and they just conceded for the first time. I believe it was over 10 hours of football, 650 minutes of football with no goals conceded. I mean, absolutely insane. You mentioned injuries playing a key part. Yuri T. Elements gets hurt in the warm-up for Belgium, can't go. A huge loss for them. We mentioned him in the US game playing a man of the match level performance against the US, and to not have him three, four days after against Spain, which is even an even better team, obviously, than the United States, uh, really hurt Belgium from the start. Coming out, Sean, I think Spain was on the front foot. Spain had much of the attack, much of the chances. Fabian Ruiz scores their first goal in the 30th minute. On a on a rebound of sorts, the the Belgian keeper makes a save, doesn't clean it up. Ruiz is there to tap it in. And I really feel like that first half, especially towards the end of the first half, Spain was really flying. Lemenium comes on, comes in and starts to really take over the game. And you can see the levels that that 18 now 19 year old has on the ball and around the ball, and how much he can influence the game. He didn't have a goal or an assist in this game, but still one man of the match, and you can see the quality that he has. And you've mentioned Sean, hit his injury and Is he healthy? Is he not healthy? It really seems to be like he's peaking at the right time for them. So if I'm if I'm France, you know, hey, this is gonna be another thing we have to worry about next week. So I I just want to hear your thoughts on on the first half. We can get into the Belgium goal as well at the end of the first half, but just sort of this game overall early on, Sean.

SPEAKER_00 22:20

Yeah, the Tieleman's injury was devastating for Belgium. I thought he's been their best player at this World Cup. He just runs the midfield for them. And that that was bleak to see that he wasn't in the starting lineup. That's when I mean that's a really bad sign because similar to France, you're going to need your A plus game as Belgium to beat Spain. And without probably your best player, it's going to be tough to give your A plus game. So kind of a dark omen there. The Fabian Ruiz goal, that's a big theme that we're going to keep hitting on in the quarterfinals, Brandon. You gotta box out. Rebounds, rebounds, rebounds. You gotta box out. Keepers can't be spilling them. Chin the ball when you get it. You know what I mean? I'm making some American basketball references because rebounding is such a huge part of that. But yeah, the Thibaut Courtois was the one who spilt that one. I will say it wasn't an egregious rebound to allow. It was a difficult situation he faced, and I thought he did half decent. Not the best awareness from the back line of Belgium to react quickly enough to clear it. But a nose for goal, and Fabian Ruiz was a controversial start in this match. He started over Pedri in his position, but that's just something that they got right because he really does have a little bit of quality in attack and especially in the box around the goal. That Pedri doesn't often venture into those positions as frequently. He's much more of a guy who controls the game from midfield, whereas Fabian Ruiz is constantly looking to get into the box. And I thought that was a wise move because it proved to provide their first goal. For Belgium, you mentioned they get the first goal against Spain. It's once again Charles De Catalara. I mean, this guy, he scored two against the United States. He looks like just a scarecrow. I mean, he's so thin and tall that he's just like you can't imagine him being very good, but he's been great for them. Even if even after that goal went in, Brandon, I don't know about you. I never once got the sense that Belgium was going to win. It was very much against the run of play. Spain, like you said, they were starting to cook. Lamin, I had the same note. He's not 100%, but he's getting a lot closer. There was a couple of moments in this match where I was like, okay, there he is. Like that's the kind of Lamin Yamal performance I was thinking. He takes on two men, it's Doku and De Kuiper, and skins them both and gets a shot that just goes near post. And it's like, oh, there he is. And he's able to provide moments like that where you're like, okay, well, we're not sure what we're gonna be able to do with him. I'm hoping we see some more of that so we have a true best on best in the semifinals matchup. But I think even going into the second half of this one, Spain just once again, the great teams are able to tell you how they want the match to go and control things, and I thought Spain were able to do that.

SPEAKER_01 24:59

Sean, I'm glad you bring up the rebounding because that is like you said, it's gonna be a theme, a theme for the rest of these quarterfinals. So, like you said, box out, stick an elbow out when you get the rebound, chin it, hold it, grab it, be strong with it. And we're just not there yet with some of these, some of these moves. So unfortunately, it it came to to bite some of these teams in the long run. But second half comes and around the 70th minute uh after the water break, Thibaut Courtois has to come out, looks like a hip injury. At that point, it's still one-to-one, and the game's still on, but losing Courtois in a moment like that, Sean, you really worry for Belgium. And it's not even that the backup didn't have quality, he starts for Manchester United every week. It's a quality goalkeeper, but you have a guy like Thibaut Courtois who is sort of a face of Belgium soccer, just like De Brana is, just like Thielemans is now at this point, honestly. And to lose that in such a late game where you're still tied one-to-one, I know we both said Spain we think is gonna finish the job and it's gonna be done and dusted, but at that point it's still one-to-one shot. And you get another counterattack, you get another, you get a mistake from Spain, and you go up two to one, and you can sit and win this game potentially. But losing your goalkeeper that late definitely hurts, and then it really hurts. It comes to the 87th minute, and another similar situation: a long Spain shot, a rebound that wasn't controlled perfectly by the goalkeeper. And Mikhael Marino, their hero from the last game, steps up again and and has a little tap in. He comes in a I believe a minute or two before this. May have been one of his first touches, honestly. And he he taps it in and Spain wins the game two to one. And it's not beautiful, it's not like France, where they're getting these carved chances, and it's it's beautiful football, and guys are hitting the top corner with these great shots. It's just it's just a little bit of grit. It's almost like they almost look like an American soccer team. Uh, like how how the USA used to play, where it was like, we are not better than these teams. We are just gonna kick the ball and hope and pray the goalie messes up and and we'll get a tap in on a rebound or or whatever it may be, a penalty kick, a free kick. But we know the quality from Spain is there. Is there a little bit of worry, Sean, moving into this game against Belgium? I mean, sorry, against France, that they're just not clicking offensively. I I don't want to say they're not clicking because they are scoring goals, they are winning, obviously, they're in the semifinal, but it's not necessarily in the same Spain style that we're accustomed to.

SPEAKER_00 27:33

No, they're certainly not the same side that they were, and I would say the peak of this unit's powers was at the Euros two years ago, where they they dominated and won. And I've brought up this point before, but I think the reason they were able to do that was their attack looks so much more different than it does now, and it was because of Laminia Mall bursting onto the scene and Nico Williams on the other side offering two things on the wings that this current side hasn't shown consistently. Baena has been starting at left wing. He's not a left winger by any means. He's able to do a job there, and he's a quality player, but he's not what Nico Williams can give you at full health. Interestingly, Nico Williams does come on and looked a bit better. He's taking on his man one-on-one in this match. I'm not sure he's gonna be fit to start, but I think that could be a factor down the stretch of the game against France. That he's growing in fitness and maybe he's able to give you 40 good minutes as opposed to 15. So that'll be something to keep an eye on, but I think that would be the reason why. Other than that, they're pretty similar to me, and they're still they're finding different ways to beat you now. It is this Mikhail Marino little ace up their sleeve. Arsenal have played a similar card throughout the season. Marino is a midfielder, technically, but he basically never plays as midfielder anymore. He's basically a utility striker off the bench who comes in and scores goals. That's what he does, and he's damn good at it. He has a nose for it. I I don't understand it really. It's weird. I don't know a player comp for him that is so reliant on just being a one-trick pony, but it's a damn good party trick. If you're just, hey, I'm gonna come on in the 85th and I will score and we'll win. Pretty cool to have that. So that goes back to the depth of Spain, and I think that's what eventually separates them from Belgium. Whereas when Belgium loses Tielemans, when they lose to Courtois, you notice, you start to notice those things. They're just not at the same level of depth. And when Spain goes to their bench, they find match winners, and Belgium ultimately found a match loser with lemons out there. I mean, tough, tough rebound to give up. Not like Courtois, where it's a difficult shot. Kubarsi's shot for Spain comes from outside the box. It's not the best strike I've ever seen. It's just something you gotta do better with, and he gives up an easy one.

SPEAKER_01 29:41

And Sean, before we transition into the next game, could you just give me your thoughts on Belgium now moving forward? Obviously, they're out of this tournament, and we've we've thrown around golden generation, they've thrown around golden generation, and that generation now is starting to show its legs. Is there a world in which Belgium returns to this level quickly, or do you think they're in a little bit of a rebuild now where they're gonna take maybe another four to eight years to really kind of place themselves back in this upper echelon of of world teams? It's weird.

SPEAKER_00 30:10

Yeah, it's a good question. I'm interested in what you think too. I'm not a Belgian football expert, but I'm encouraged about what I know is coming up the pipeline for them. They have a ton of really, really good, exciting young players that I think are going to be the new wave for Belgium. I would be shocked if we see Kevin De Bruyne at another World Cup. I'd be shocked if we see Romelo Lukaku. Maybe even Yuri Tielemans. He'll be 34 or 35 the next time this comes around. I don't know if he'll be around. I even Thibaut Courtois. He's came out after the match and said he would like to play in the next Euros, but beyond that he's not sure. So it's a changing of the guard for sure, but this kind of iteration of the team was a changing of the guard as well. It's weird for a small country like Belgium to at one point have had arguably the best goalkeeper in the world, arguably the best attacking midfielder in the world, and five or six years ago, arguably the best defensive center back pairing when you had Johan Verton and Tobi Aldevirel just coming from such a small country. It's it's crazy rare. And that's why the golden generation billing was pretty apt, in my opinion. It just didn't live up to expectations. You would have expected them to make a final or win a Euros or do something, and that's a high bar for a small country, but I think ultimately they'll feel they came up a bit short. They never consistently got what they were looking for from that group. I do think the future is bright for Belgium. It's just going to be a question of can they get players to get to that world class level out of this really good, exciting young group, or are they just going to be really good players? That's gonna be hard to do, and only time's gonna tell. Okay, okay, thank you for that.

SPEAKER_01 31:43

And I I think I have similar thoughts because you're right, it's a small, smaller country, and the last 10 years of them has been incredible to watch. I mean, truly, truly incredible. We'll talk about it even a little bit with Norway coming up. Like these are this these things shouldn't really be happening, Sean. And to see these smaller countries really burst onto the scene and and stamp make their stamp in in world football, uh, it's it's great to see. But yeah, I'd I'll be interested to see that next generation of Belgian players that come through because they clearly have a model and they do well developing, but it's the difference between good and great is is big. And I think you saw that in the game against Spain, and I think you see that overall in world football. So it'll be interesting to see. Um I'll definitely keep my eye on this team. And it's one of those teams that you do match up with them in a in a knockout tournament, even still, I'd say in four years, you gotta be a little weary, regardless of who's on the roster. They just have that sort of quality that they know what they're doing, they know their way around the tournament, and yes, it hasn't resulted in any finals wins, but they're never gonna get blown out, and I think that's important, and I think they're always put a put together a quality side onto the field. So moving forward, yeah, let's let's definitely keep our eyes on on Belgium.

SPEAKER_00 33:03

I think they were they could be proud of themselves and hold their heads high for this tournament performance as well, because they were kind of dead and gone. They were really bad in the first two group stage games. They responded in that third game and got the job done, and then they were dead against Senegal, and they subbed off to Bruyna and Doku, and it honestly seemed like they were waving the white flag. Like, it's over. It seemed like Rudy Garcia was saying, you know what? I'm disgusted with you guys. Come on off. Like, I'm done, I've had it. We we didn't live up to expectations. And then they score two goals in four minutes, they go on to win that game an extra time, then they completely dismantle the United States, and it's like, well, all of a sudden, and then they acquitted themselves pretty well against Spain without their best player. So honestly, I don't think there's any shame in how Belgium performed in this World Cup. A quarterfinals, damn good to go out to one of the best two teams in the world. Nothing to be sad about, nothing to hold your head over. Overall, I think a pretty impressive turnaround for this Belgium team.

SPEAKER_01 33:58

Agreed, agreed, Sean. Now we'll switch gears to the England-Norway game. England, Norway, and Miami Saturday night. This turned out for me, I think, to be the game of the quarterfinals. Uh, England do win the game two to one, but this game, you saw a little bit of everything. It was a really, really good battle, and kudos to Norway. Sean, we mentioned it with Belgium, but another small country who really on paper doesn't really have business being in this deep into a tournament of this level, but they held their own. And there the scary thing is Erling Holland, four years from now, may only be better than he is now, which is wild to think. He really didn't have his best game in this one, but Norway Norway should should definitely hold their head high leaving this tournament. I think the first half, Sean, early in the first half before the water break, both teams were just feeling each other out. Not really much of note, in my opinion. A couple half chances, but nothing really, nothing really solid. And I think after the water break, there were some adjustments made, and Harry Kane takes a free kick for England, blasts it over the net. I think he needs to give free kicks to somebody else. In a team like England's team, Sean, I'm sorry, but Harry, we love you on this pod, and you know that. But maybe let somebody else take take the free kicks.

SPEAKER_00 35:22

I don't know. What do you think? We've seen it so many times for so many years at Spurs, Brandon. He's unbelievable at striking a ball when the ball's in play. If it's a set piece, it's dog shit. And I don't understand it. It's it doesn't make any sense to me. But I think the only goal I remember him scoring from a set piece was somebody actually came and they did one of those where they roll it a yard. Like it wasn't actually a direct free kick with how it went in the stat sheet because they rolled it two feet to Harry and then he banged it home and we're like, oh, Harry scored from a free kick. Well, not technically, but unless we're doing that little party trick, he shouldn't be on them. It's it's unbelievable how he just does not ever impress from those areas. But yeah, I do agree with you also on how the match started. I thought England had just the better of it right before the water break. I thought Norway already looked tired, and I was like, oh boy, this Miami Heat's really getting to them. But then after the water break, I thought really we saw Norway build into that game, and that's where the game really started, in my opinion.

SPEAKER_01 36:20

Yeah, Sean, you you just hit it on the head. So the 35th minute comes around, and Andreas Schelter up, uh 22-year-old, his second start of this World Cup, not a regular starter for Norway. I thought in my notes as I was watching the game, random banger from just inside the top of the box, top left of the box. I mean, he gets the ball on the left side, and watching a back shot, I don't think it was a shot. Like it's a little I mean, look, I would assume if they interviewed him after the game, he'd be like, Yeah, I was I was aiming for that. But I watched I saw a different camera angle, and early Holland's on the back post. So it looks like it might be across to Holland, but regardless, an absolute bang of a shot curls over Jordan Pickford's head, hits the inside of the post and goes in. It for Norway, this was a huge injection of energy, a huge moment because not a guy you'd expect to score, not really a play in which it was really a good goal scoring opportunity. It was more of a crossing opportunity, but nonetheless, they go up 1-0. And England, I don't know if it really wavered them too much, but I think for Norway, they were like, Okay, we really belong here. Like this, I don't know if they needed that goal to go in, but it actually may have hurt them, I think, in the long run, because I think England really said, All right, let's turn it on now. But what what what did you think about that goal, Sean? And just that moment, the that sort of 10-15 minutes they had after that, uh, before the end of the half for for Norway.

SPEAKER_00 37:54

It was, in my humble opinion, definitely a cross. That was that seemed just it seemed like a cross to me. Like you said, Holland is lurking at the back post. It's not an area which you see guys typically shoot from. All those things lead me to believe it was a cross. I will say Pickford also on this one, he kind of pulls his hand back. I don't know if he just got lost in terms of his spatial awareness and where he was, that he thought that was going wide or what was going on, but he kind of pulls his hand away from the ball when it's at its apex there. Weird situation, weird thing for him to do. I do think this goal it started things in the game, at least from an entertainment point of view, where like, okay, here we go. Now England have to come out of their shell, they have to really go for it. And I thought it gave Norway some confidence. I do think the biggest moment of the match, and we could talk about several big moments as we break this thing down, but the biggest moment for me was before England were able to equalize. Norway had a two-on-one counterattack with Alexander Sorlot with the ball. And this bumbling oaf somehow, somehow decided not to play the ball to Erling Holland. He had 10 at least 10 yards where he's dribbling slowly, and that he's we're all thinking, just square it. Just square it. Okay, square it now. All right, all right, gotta finally square it. Oh my god, you're running out of time, square it. And he decides to continue to cut in on his left foot and shoot himself. If I was Holland, I don't know if Sorlot would have made it back out after halftime. I would have smothered him in there. I I would have killed the guy. I'm the best goal scorer in the world. I'm streaking free, and you can't find a way to work a pass around John Stones, who did defend the situation about as well as you could. It provided just enough indecision for Soralot, because I'm sure he was thinking I have to square this. But the fact that he wasn't able to, or didn't try to, in my opinion, is the moment that Norway fans should point to as why they didn't win this game. Because if you go up 2-0, it's a whole different rodeo. And instead, minutes later, Mr. Mr. World Cup, Mr. England, hey Jude, he just rips hearts out and makes you pay. This guy's a killer, Brandon. I said match winners in terms of Harry Keene and Jude Bellingham. England have two. They continue to win matches. It's Jude Bellingham. His fingerprints are all over this World Cup. They're all over this game. He is one of the most impressive footballers I've ever seen. It's it's a great goal. Anthony Gordon does well in in providing the assist, but really it's all down to Jude. The first touch, the athleticism to get around, and then the left foot finish. It's I mean, it's world class. And I don't know that we've seen a guy who's now 23 years old, who has the leadership characteristics he has, who has the resume that he has, who has his number retired at his boyhood club at age 17. I mean, it's he's just a special unicorn type talent. And it's almost like he he's one of those situations where a lot of superstars you see they have one skill that they do better than anyone. But for Jude, it's almost like he's the most well-rounded player ever and he does everything at an elite level. And that's rare to me because usually you could find a hole in some somebody's game. I don't really see any in Jude's. Yeah, Sean.

SPEAKER_01 41:10

He is a different player, just absolute class on the ball, around the ball. He'll do the defensive work when he needs to. And he's doing all this, Sean, as a midfielder. I love that you pointed out a lot of his accolades and his skills, but he's not even doing this as a number nine. I mean, he's doing this as the trail runner in a lot of these situations. And the first goal you mentioned from Anthony Gordon, Anthony Gordon and Elliott Anderson do well on that left side, squares the ball to Jude at the top of the box. And yes, it's a great opportunity for Jude, but he still has to take the ball on his left, basically dribble around two defenders and tuck it into the corner. I mean, this is also the 40 47th minute, so we're in stoppage time right before halftime, and it's 90 95 degrees or whatever in Miami. And so I'm sure I'm sure legs are heavy, lungs are heavy, and he's pulling that out right on halftime. And I'm glad you to go back a little bit. I'm glad you pointed out the the two-on-one breakaway for Norway because when this went in for England, it was a complete 180. Yeah. Because up until that point, you you mentioned it could have been 2-0, it's still 1-0 at that point, and Norway feel like they're really holding their own in this game. And then to give up a goal right on halftime like that is tough. And then, you know, after that, Harry Kane actually does score another goal. Uh, however, he's called back for being offside. And Sean, you went from being potentially up 2-0 to potentially being down to one at halftime in that quickly, and it does end up being 1-1 at halftime. But if you're Norway's manager, your your talk changes, everything changes now because now you're starting basically from square one again when you did have the advantage for a lot of the first half. So yeah, they it's unfortunate for them.

SPEAKER_00 42:55

Yeah, they had several of those chances in that kind of spell right after the water break where we had a Holland header, which goes right at Pickford. There's the John Stones back pass, kind of don't know what he was doing, loses the ball. It's it's like he tried to take it in calmly, as if he was in a preseason match and just miscontrolled it, and it almost falls to Holland's feet, which you know would end up in a goal. So, yeah, they just had several of those little instances that they are going to regret for a long time because while they're happy to have been here and reached these heights as a country, they could have gone one step further. And I feel like they did leave some food on the plate in terms of what they how they performed in this match.

SPEAKER_01 43:34

Yeah, and they'll feel hard done by Sean. So we come out in the second half. Uh, the 55th minute, they have a corner kick. They actually score off of this corner kick, Norway does. And it's determined that Holland fouls an England player in the build up before the kick was taken. I do think it was a foul in the field, Sean. The referee should have stopped play at that point. The sucky part for Norway is that Holland wasn't even really involved in the goal, so it's not even like that advantage did. Anything to help them score the goal, but the laws of the game, the referee saw it, they go to VAR, they check it, and it turns out that they called the foul, uh, determined that Holland committed the foul in England before the kick was taken. So England luck out here. Norway gets another corner kick because it was taken before the the foul happened before the kick. Uh, they don't do anything off of it, but another opportunity, Sean, where Norway can go up two to one and unfortunately gets called back. I don't know how you feel about the foul itself or the procedure, but if you're Norway, you you gotta feel you gotta feel for them. They're doing everything they can, and it's another it's another speed bump they have to go over in this game.

SPEAKER_00 44:38

Yeah, I do agree with you. I do think it's a foul. I I thought it was one the ref missed and should have been called immediately. It also probably is a flop. I think Anderson goes down pretty easy. I think he's expecting to be shoved and plays smart. You know, that's what you should do is you should go down because look what it eventually led to. It led to a goal being chalked off. So I think it was the right decision ultimately. I think it was the right play from Anderson. I think Holland could also feel a little bit hard done by because obviously he's stronger than Elliott Anderson is and able to push him a little bit and create some space for himself, but also what you see sometimes is the guy who's pushing off will actually hold the defender up. They'll have a piece of their jersey so that they keep them from falling. So you create the space you need, but then you don't allow them to fall and earn a free kick or a foul. Holland just kind of shoved them and forgot to hold them up. So he allowed the flop to happen. It's it's a tough one. If I was a Norway fan, I'd be livid, but it's probably the right call for me. And I think that was a good VAR intervention. Although we we've seen some other VAR interventions that aren't so welcome.

SPEAKER_01 45:47

Yes, and we'll we'll we'll get into that as we get into our last match. But also a little bit of added spice in that moment because now Holland and Anderson will be club teammates at Manchester City next season. So I'm sure there'll be some words at the the first the first reporting, the first training of the of the new season between the two of them.

SPEAKER_00 46:05

This whole game, this whole game, Brandon, was just Holland going against his Manchester City teammates. The whole back line for England, it was John Stones, it was Mark Gaye, and it was Nico O'Reilly who Holland was up against for the majority of this thing. And then it's Elliott Anderson. It was just Manchester City party out there. Honestly, I think it added a little bit of an element to this because this, I don't know if it's down to them knowing Holland or whatever the case is. This is the first match in 14 consecutive matches for Norway that Holland didn't score. So he had scored every game that he played for Norway dating back to 2024. And doesn't score in this one. I don't know that they did an exceptional job on him, but they made it difficult for him, and the service was not there for him throughout the match. So I think overall that's something England should hold their hat held high on because that's a tough assignment.

SPEAKER_01 46:54

Yeah, he's not the easiest guy to cover. He is Yeah. Like you mentioned earlier, Sean, the speed, the strength, the skill, it's a perfect combination of the three. And for him to really be non-existent, I feel like this moment uh with the foul and Elliot Anderson on the corner kick was really one of the main talking points that he has to leave this game for. He had a few headers, uh, some simple to pick for some off-target, but that was really kind of his his lasting moment. And it's unfortunate for him because you never want to see a player go out that way. But England, like you said, credit, and maybe there is a little bit of that club history there that helped them to really shut him down. So he he was really a non-factor in this one to me. Moving forward, Sean, Anori did have a couple more chances. They had a shot off the crossbar, or I think believe it was a header off the crossbar, uh, off of a corner kick in the 76th minute. And they really seem to still, even after this goal that was disallowed, still be taking their chances, still making moves forward. And you thought maybe they could squeeze it in and get a second in before before full time. Uh obviously that doesn't happen. And I think uh Saka looks really good for England, and it pains me to say that as he's an Arsenal player, but he really created a lot of chances for him. I thought he could have helped them end the game early. Like he he had some quality, quality plays. Norway did had some last stitch defending, and it really helped them and kept them in the game. But he he provided a really good spark on the right side for England in that late in that second half.

SPEAKER_00 48:23

Yeah, the halftime subs for Thomas Ducal, Declan Rice comes out for Eberetch Eze, which Eze didn't do much, but Rice is a big talking point because he's been not himself, and I hate Declan Rice like a lot. I hate him a lot, but he is a good player on his day, and he's not been the Declan Rice that I'm accustomed to seeing, especially for England, so that's a worrying thing for them. I know he dealt with a flu or stomach bug or something this week, a virus of some sort, and then playing in 100 degrees, I'm sure that didn't feel great. I do think the point you made on Makayu Sokka, the level, the level difference between him and Noni Medwake is night and day. I know they are club teammates and they often replace each other. Medwake often starts when Sokka's not able to for Arsenal, as well as England, but boy oh boy was Medwake horrible in this game, and Sokka came on, and even though he's not 100% healthy, you could see 80% of him is a lot better than Medwake's 100%. So I do think that changed the game for England and helped them create some more attacking situations in the second half. I also thought our guy, Tottenham Jed Spence, came on. Absolute shift he put in, just made an impact. He won a penalty, which at some point, but it was ultimately chalked off to VAR. Probably not a pen. We don't need to spend too much time on that one. But I do think Tuchel did a good job adjusting this England team, even if he spoke about after the match, they still haven't played well, in his opinion. They're still not clicking how he wants them to, but they're fighting like hell. And I thought they did just enough to get to the point where Brandon, the the match winner himself, in in extra time here, you knew it was going to be one of two guys, and on the occasion it had to be Jude. And they did just enough England to get to a point to allow an opportunity for the boy to score. And what's the name of the game, Brandon? Boxing out and rebounding. And once again, Norway, just the keeper doesn't chin it, just loose with the ball. A horrible rebound, Nealan gives up, and the only guy aware to it and the first to react is Mr. Bellingham. And it was absolute scenes in South Beach.

SPEAKER_01 50:33

Sean, it says rebounds. You we hinted on it earlier. We said it was gonna come back up again, and here we are again. And it's just I feel for these goalies, they're playing with a new ball, the ball has spin, you know, they're playing in the US, and there's humidity, and that makes the ball travel differently. And we can give every excuse in the book, but whatever happened to just knocking it out for a corner kick. Like, I think these goalies are trying to make these Hollywood saves and you know look great for the cameras and hold on to the ball. But hey, just give up a corner kick. If they score on the corner kick afterwards, fine. But I think these goalies have been trying to catch the ball too much instead of parrying to give up, you know, a corner or deep throwing or whatever. And then also the defenders are switching off, they they see these long shots go in and they just kind of freeze instead of like you said, boxing out, getting ready for the rebound, because there's been I mean, this is this is the third time we've talked about it in this this episode today. So yeah, yeah, and you look and you watch the highlight, Sean, and Jude is completely switched on. Morgan Rogers takes that shot, and instantly it looked like a basketball play, Sean. And I know that's you know, our background together, and honestly, how we really even know each other is the basketball, and you watch that moment happen, and it looks like Jude is going to crash an offensive rebound. He doesn't even he just looks at his defender and figures out how how can I get by him so that if this ball does spill, I'm there to tap it in. And what do you know? The ball spills, he's there to tap it in, and England go up 2-1. And I don't know if it's strategic, I don't know if it's legs, I don't know if it's mental, but he Jude is just playing on such a level that he is untouchable. It's it's ridiculous to see what he's been able to do this World Cup. And again, like we mentioned, he's a midfielder, and he's potential, he could potentially steal steal the Ballon d'Or, depending on how these next games go for them, but he it's just that determination, and that's what you need at a World Cup quarterfinal. And and with his determination right there, I mean, England are now in the semis, and it's on all on heart, I believe. Not even really skilled play.

SPEAKER_00 52:47

No, it it really they have not looked great, and they haven't had the most difficult roll road to the semis, but they uh they're almost making me do a 180, Brandon, as somebody who doesn't traditionally root for England. I do obviously, I still have a very big soft spot in my heart for Harry. I love Jed Spence, the Tottenham guys. But it used to be where Tottenham had several players in this England squad, and now Harry left. I don't hold him in as high of a regard as a youngman's son, a guy who chose to stay and battle through those tough times. Harry did eventually leave Tottenham, so I it's not as soft of a spot, but I do still love him. I mean, he's probably the best player I'll ever see play for Tottenham, so that's something. But it's almost making me root for these guys because of the way that which they're winning. They're just bought in. They're dude is undeniable, and honestly, his energy is like infectious. Like he's it's a true example. We say guys carry teams sometimes. In soccer, it's really hard for one guy to carry a team, even though Argentina are carried by Messi. Those guys are all dying for Messi out there. They speak about how they want to win it for Messi. That means they're getting their best too, and they're putting in shifts. For England, honestly, a lot of the time it looks like Jude is just picking them up by the scruff and saying, I'm not losing, and he's not losing. So, I mean, you just have to just clap. I I've been a fan of Jude. This this game would probably meant a hell of a lot for him, too. He was going against his old Burcia Dortmund teammate, Erling Holland. Those two are good friends. It's just another moment where Jude is continuing to build a resume of maybe the best English footballer of all time. Long way to go. But that's the trajectory he's on at 23 years old, playing for Real Madrid and making every big moment his moment. You just don't see guys like him. So we could talk about how good he's been for probably a whole episode, but I think the main storyline is England are advancing because of Jude Bellingham once again.

SPEAKER_01 54:36

Yeah, Sean, they're advancing because of Jude and they're advancing to play Argentina, Sean. Our last quarterfinal match, Argentina, Switzerland. Argentina wins three to one after extra time. This one was an interesting watch. The Argentina starts off early, starts off with a bang early. A corner kick. Uh Messi takes the corner kick, and your guy, Alexis, aka Kevin McAllister, wins a header to put them up one nil. Yeah, Kevin's little brother. They go up one nil early, and you think, uh-oh, this could be four, this could be five. And kudos to Switzerland. Switzerland holds their own, they they keep it together. They get a yellow card, uh, Breeze and Bolo right before halftime. And it's a it's a very turns out to be a very interesting yellow card because of what happens later in the match, Sean. He basically gets stuck in late. It's it's a kind of a a ticky-tack yellow card because he doesn't get it, he doesn't really earn a yellow card there. It is a yellow card worthy foul, in my opinion, but he's fouling a guy making a pass in midfield. The pass wasn't a goal-determining pass. You know, they're just passing around the midfield. He's probably frustrated because he didn't get the ball enough in the first half, and he leaves one in late on uh an Argentina player and goes into the book for halftime. And it just really sort of changes the trajectory of things that happened in the second half. But Argentina go into halftime, they're up one-nil. What are you what are you thinking at this point? I'm at I'm watching this and I'm like, all right, this is probably gonna go the way we think it's gonna go. And then some events in the second half make things even more interesting. But I thought at that point it was gonna still be two or three, zero Argentina.

SPEAKER_00 56:23

I went back in my mind to our preview, and you did a good job of highlighting how tough to break down Switzerland is. And my thoughts on this game were it's going to be close late. I kept telling myself that because I think Argentina will win, but I just kept saying it'll be close late because I've seen nothing to support an argument that Argentina are capable of putting teams to bed. And once again, they did not do that. It's like they scored a goal, which was against the run of play. I know it was in the ninth or tenth minute, but they barely had crossed midfield with the ball before this corner was awarded, and then they score off of it. And it's kind of like, oh, okay, that's weird because Switzerland looked a better team early. And then in the whole set the rest of the second half after the rest of the first half after they scored the goal, they didn't do much. They didn't create much. They're just kind of going about it, they're going through the motions, they're keeping a good defensive structure, they're hard to break down, but they didn't look super likely, in my opinion, to go get a second or third goal. They that wasn't the impression I got, was that they're hungry to put these boys to bed. I didn't see that. So they come out in the second half, and what do you know? 60-something minute Dan and Doy scores for Switzerland, and all of a sudden it's like, whoa, we got a game, and now it's on a knife's edge. And all the momentum is with Switzerland because Argentina were kind of just coasting around. No, nothing really to see here. We're gonna win this game one-nothing. We'll probably score a second late. Well, they played with their food again, Brandon. We talk about all the time, and all of a sudden it's 1-1, and then that Brielle Mbolo yellow card starts to really make itself felt. As I'll let you talk about what happened, but you pointed it was a big decision in the match. It turned into the biggest decision of the quarterfinals, probably, because of what ensued.

SPEAKER_01 58:06

Yes. Thank you for for prefacing me there, Sean. So 72nd minute. Uh, there's a play where Mbolo is dribbling the ball, actually kind of right in front of the bench, bench area, technical areas, and Perettes for Argentina tackles him. The referee gives a yellow card to Perettis uh on the field based on the tackle. He then gets alerted by his VAR boys in in North Texas. They're like, hey, you might have messed this one up, buddy. He goes to check the VAR for that uh mistaken identity rule that kind of came up in one of the early USA group stage games that we talked about. Tim Rim. Turns out got the wrong guy. Got the wrong guy. Yeah. Hey, you you you missed this one, bud. So cut come come have a look. Turns out Perettus did not fail in Bolo at all. There was no contact between the two. So, based on the FIFA laws of the game and the way the VAR rules work and all that, the yellow card has to be re-rescinded from Perettus, which we'd all agree that makes sense. He didn't do anything, it doesn't do the yellow card. But because of that, because the referee gave a yellow card on the field, he has to then change the yellow card and give it to the other player that was called for the simulation or the dive, which was Imbolo. So Imbolo gets a yellow card, which is now his second yellow card. He is now out of the game with a red card. And unfortunately, that really, really flips the game because both of his yellow cards are in very inconsequential moments, Sean. Nothing really life or death about either yellow card, and now they're losing a player to Argentina in the 70 second minute. So you have 18 minutes left in the regular game, and then we obviously had extra time, but that that's a worry. Now you only got 10.

SPEAKER_00 59:45

It was it was a big, big, big decision, Brandon. This one is where we need the common sense committee. I I this is just a classic example of VAR doing too much and saying, hey, hey, hey, you guys haven't talked about me in a few days. Let me butt in and make it about myself. I I first of all, I don't want to sit here and like talk out of both sides of my mouth because we as fans can't sit here and say we want to punish flopping, and then when flopping gets punished, cry about it. Because I I like giving guys yellow cards for simulation, which is diving. And that's what this was. This was a horrific dive. Like you can't do this if you're on a yellow. I know you're not thinking I'll get sent off for simulation, but it's happened before. Roy Keane has talked about once how he got sent off for diving, and he said, Well, uh somebody asked him, Well, you dived, like thinking Roy Keane could never dive. And he goes, No, I didn't dive. That's my point. Like he's saying he wasn't diving. This was a dive. But the the thing that bothers me is he shouldn't be sent off for it. The mistake was that the ref gave a yellow card in the first place. And because he gave a yellow card in the first place, like you said, that yellow card had to go to somebody, and it ultimately ends up in Switzerland being down to man for the rest of the match, and inevitably that that ruined their chances of winning this game. So it's one of those situations. It's never something a guy should get sent off for. But it's also a decision from Imbolo that is questionable. I mean, you shouldn't be diving like that in that instance on a yellow card, but it's really down to the ref fucking it up originally, handing a yellow card out when clearly there wasn't a foul on the guy, let alone a yellow cardworthy foul. That was the worst decision in this. You can't take a yellow card off the board. It goes to Mbolo. He is absolutely distraught after you feel terrible for him. He he's just like his heart breaks because he knows the writing on the wall then and what's going to happen. And he seems like a great guy, too. I've read about his upbringing and his history, and he does a lot of work for charity, and it's just like he cares a lot about showing up for the national team. He's one of those guys that only shows up for the national team. You really don't hear much about him for three or four years until one of these tournaments. But it's a shitty, shitty way for his World Cup to end. It's a shitty way for the Swiss to eventually go out. I don't necessarily think it's the craziest VAR thing we've ever seen. I think the ref's decision to give a yellow card on the field for a play that clearly wasn't yellow card worthy is what ultimately came back to bite them. And I wish we had VAR. I wish there was a common sense feature, like a slider in a video game. We turn the common sense up to 99 for VAR because we we've lost the plot on some of these. Like it's just if that's AI, if like if our AI can't think in it with some ration, we can't have it. So it was just a crappy way for this match to kind of completely shift on its head.

SPEAKER_01 1:02:32

And you knew, Sean, once that yellow card, second, second yellow card to the red card decision happened, this game was gonna end with Argentina winning. Switzerland's only hope was to get to penalty kicks. And I I mean for a time, for a time they they almost did it. But it's you just know Argentina, that attack. I love how you mentioned it in the last episode where you said Christian Romero just sort of makes himself a another center forward and just throws himself up there. He did that again, and I was watching the game and I was laughing because I was like, Yep, Sean's right, there he goes, and he just runs right to the front, sends somebody else to go play defense and and and becomes a striker. He did not score, but it's it's good to have his presence up there. So game goes to extra time, Sean. Uh Argentina does not score before extra time. The first period of extra time ends uh still one to one, and then the 112th minute, so just six or sorry, just seven minutes into the second period of extra time, your guy, Julian Alvarez, you were saying free Alvarez for a while. I think they finally, finally heard you, gets the ball. It was a spell of possession for Argentina, and Messi takes a shot, shot gets rebounded again. Alvarez did not score directly off the rebound, though. Uh, and it gets sort of recycled by Argentina. But Alvarez gets the ball at the top of the box and takes a touch, and it it's just playing perfectly on his right foot, and he hits a curler right into the top corner. And for him, yeah, an absolute banger. It's it's his moment of the World Cup. It's it's his first real hey, I'm here moment, and you could see how how much it meant to him. Uh, not only personally, but obviously helping the team. And at this point, Sean, after this shot goes in from Alvarez, you kind of know it's over. There's really nothing Switzerland can do to counterattack, subs are all used, guys are tired, we're playing Kansas City, another 90-degree night. I love how we you know instituted these water breaks, Sean, and they're good, bad, whatever, we can argue. But then we decide to play all of the quarterfinal matches in these outdoor stadiums where it's 95 degrees in the middle of July. Like, why don't we just play those games in indoors? We have the facilities, but it goes back to the game. Again, common common sense committee, yeah, non-existent. So we we will be on the common sense committee when it is established by FIFA. I can promise you that because what are we doing? But uh you can tell Switzerland's dead, legs are dead, legs are heavy, and Argentina after this goal from Alvarez just sort of sees the game out. Uh, Switzerland throws numbers forward. Unfortunately, the last last pretty much the last play of the game, Sean. Uh Switzerland throws numbers forwards, they get countered. Uh Tiago Almada, an MLS guy, an ex-MLS guy, I should say, basically is on a breakaway-ish. Uh, there's there is a Swiss defender, and he has the option he could pass it, he could square it. Similar to the situation with Holland in the Norway game. Almada decides to not pass it and sort of botches the chance, honestly.

SPEAKER_00 1:05:37

I thought he I thought he tried to pass it to Messi. I thought he tried to side foot it to Messi. I could be wrong, but that I didn't know what he did, but I thought that's what his intention was. He did botch it. You're you're 100% right. He botched it. I don't know what he was doing, but I in my head, I don't know how you don't pass it to Messi there, because the whole like if you don't, Messi has the right to kill you. And I Think he had to have been trying to do that, but admittedly, I watched this as I was falling asleep and didn't revisit it, so I could be wrong, but either way, it eventually leads to what you're going to tell us.

SPEAKER_01 1:06:11

Yeah, you're right. Now that you say that he may have been trying to pass it to Messi, but the goalie sort of deflects it.

unknown 1:06:17

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 1:06:17

Goalie and defender kind of deflect it, and it gets a little bit mucked in there, and it just pops out to Lautaro Martinez. Lotaro Martinez, who just has a pretty much empty goal inside the box. He just sidefoots it right in. Uh, it's the icing on the cake for Argentina. And at that point, it's three to one then, and there's you know two minutes of stoppage time within the extra time left. So at that point, the game was over. But uh for Switzerland, Sean, you know, they were my dark horse team. I predicted them to go to the quarters. They did go to the quarters, and and then they have to hold their head high.

unknown 1:06:49

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 1:06:49

Uh, some injuries. You mentioned the injury bug earlier. Um they they dealt with Manzombi being out due to injury and and Bolo getting the red card, so they're going down to 10 men, and it's just not it just didn't play out the way it could have played out. Again, another another quarterfinal opponent, maybe the results are different, but you got Argentina who just every game this tournament, Sean. You've you've brought it up, they just find a way to win, and it's not always the dominant, it's never, it hasn't been the dominant 3-0, 4-0 win at all in this tournament, but they've won all their games and they've they've made it this far, and you know, it sets us up, Sean, for some really, really high quality semifinals coming up.

SPEAKER_00 1:07:28

Yeah, I can't wait for the semifinals. And Argentina is the team I'm rooting for, but I don't think they're going to win this World Cup. They've been the team I'm rooting for because you know how much I like their their culture and everything. I don't think on paper, and what I'm seeing, it makes no sense for Argentina to keep winning. They you have to kill them nine times before you kill them once. They have this spirit where they're they're like a cockroach, they just don't die. You stomp on and they don't die. It's they're incredible in that aspect, but what we've seen on the pitch, it just hasn't been that good, in my opinion. I think there's even if I were to power rank these four teams remaining based on what we've seen, not projecting forward, but based on what we've seen, it would be pretty clear to me that it would fall France, Spain, England, Argentina. I would would you agree with that?

SPEAKER_01 1:08:13

I do. I think Spain, England maybe a little could be swapped, but Spain on their day and how they looked, especially in that second half against against Belgium, yeah, I would probably put Spain second.

SPEAKER_00 1:08:23

The reason I gave it to Spain was just the quality of teams they've beaten. I think you could easily argue that Portugal and Belgium are tougher than the path that England has faced with the their games in the knockout. But yeah, I just don't think Argentina's been that impressive, but also they don't die. So when will what comes, you know, it's what comes first of chicken or the egg. I don't know what'll happen. Like it we're meeting two kind of teams of destiny here with this England-Argentina game, so I can't wait to talk about that. But I do think Argentina need to up their level quite a bit before they head into this semifinal round because it it's going to go up a level in terms of who they're facing. They had a dream scenario breakout in terms of how the bracket shook out for them. They got to get better and they got to get better quick. I would love to question Scaloni, Lionel Scaloni, the manager, but he has his record as an international manager is just unbelievable. But it just seems like we shouldn't be playing Rodrigo DePaul over some world-class midfielders we have on the bench. I don't know how he plays so frequently. Even Leandro Peredes, who I love, he's one of my favorite players. Like he was a Roma guy, he's a Boca Juniors guy. I I love Leandro Peredes. I'm not sure that he should have a spot on this team. He seemed like a guy who they're just bringing for vibes in the locker room, and now he's the holding midfielder in this outfit. So a lot to figure out for Argentina. I do think Julian Alvarez, I think that waiting and trusting in him paid off. He is world class, and hopefully that goal is the first of a couple more down the stretch here, but they do need to get better quick, Argentina. I'm excited to talk about these two semifinals, Brandon, because they are absolute behemoths.

SPEAKER_01 1:09:56

Sean, we are in for some treats this week. Let's start, let's go in chronological order. We will start on Tuesday afternoon, Sean, 3 p.m. Eastern time in Dallas, which is an indoor stadium. So we got that right. We have France and Spain. Sean, you mentioned it, I believe, in the last episode or an earlier episode. This could this should probably be a World Cup final. It's unfortunate the bracket fell the way that it did, and it's a semifinal. But where do you want to start with this one, Sean? I'm I'm all ears because I I don't even know if I have a prediction because my I've gone both back and forth. I might have an idea, but I would love to hear what you gotta say about this one first.

SPEAKER_00 1:10:37

I'm torn too. Let me just preface it with that. This is the two best teams for me. These are clearly the two best teams in the world at the moment, in my opinion. They're different. I do think France have been slightly better and a bit more dynamic, especially in attack. I think Spain have been a bit better defensively, out of possession. I just think they're better at keeping the ball for longer stretches than France are, which might be why I think their defense is a little more stable, but we talked about the French defense too. It's not like they have been conceding at all either. So it's really two equal teams. It's a rematch from the Euro semifinals, which Spain won. I don't think Spain are at the level they were in those Euros yet. I I mentioned earlier, I think Nico Williams giving them something maybe 30-40 minutes off the bench could change that, and they could maybe find that level in this game. But that would be a projection for me, as opposed to basing it off of what I've seen. And from what I've seen, I have to just edge it to France. I will say 2-1. Uh I don't know. I this could go either way, and I wouldn't be surprised. I hope it's a fantastic game. I think it will be. This is the two deepest teams, it's the two best teams for me. I just think that I don't want to risk projecting something to happen that I haven't seen yet in this World Cup for Spain, where I have seen that level reached from France. So I will go a narrow France victory and they march on to the World Cup final. How about you?

SPEAKER_01 1:12:11

I love it, Sean. Sean, you before I give you mine, you said two to one. Do you want to throw a goal scorer or two in there? You don't have to name all three goals, but I'm just interested if you have a guy that you think is going to hit the back of the net.

SPEAKER_00 1:12:23

I will say Ulisse gets a goal on the board for France. And I will say Laminia Mall scores the lone Spanish goal. So that'll be, I think Lemin has a moment where it's like, okay, here he is on this biggest stage now. I do think we have one of those. The other French goal, the winner, the match winner, because I think it'll be 1-1, and France will score late. I I don't want to say Killian because it seems like a cop-out. So I will say Desire Douway, which might be a bad shout because he might start and come off. I'm not sure how they'll break up the him and Barkle minutes, but I'll say the left winger for France scores the winner.

SPEAKER_01 1:13:00

Okay. Okay. I like your I like your prediction. I was leaning France as well. Spain only giving up one goal in the tournament, though, really, really attracts me. Spain holds the ball well. That also attracts me. I this might I don't want to I don't want this to be a cop-out answer from me, Sean, but I I think it's first one to score will win. I and like maybe that's like you know, young buck playground style sports, but I I really think whoever scores first will win because I think it will force the other team to come out of how they want to play. We've mentioned France is kind of okay with not always being on top of the ball, and all things equal, they probably won't be on top of the ball as much in this game as they have been in the past. However, if Spain score first and Spain hold the ball, like can't score if you don't have the ball. So you you might get into a situation where France has to panic a little bit, and we haven't seen that. We haven't seen them having to really play from behind or or play in a situation where they can't control the ball when they want to control the ball. Uh, we mentioned you know they don't always want it, but they're okay with that. I think they're gonna need to if they go down one-zero. So I think I'll I'll go the other way, Sean. I'll take Spain, I'll take Spain and I'll I'll keep the same score line. I think two one. I think Spain jump on them early, go up one-zero. I think Spain actually go up two zero, and France scores a consolation goal of sorts uh to make it two to one. I don't know if I'm saying that with all my heart. This might be a little bit of fun just between the two of us, but we we love that. And I think I think it really can go either way. I I don't think you're crazy for thinking two one the other way. I don't I think Elise could have another breakout game because he's had such a great tournament and he's forgotten about, you know, Mbappe scores. We all know that he's gonna be probably on the score sheet, or at least trying to get on the score sheet, but Elise has been right around the box, he's had his assists, he's had his moments, and I think maybe, yeah, he could have the a moment to score in this game on Tuesday. So, but I'll take Spain, I'll go two to one. I do think Leminima will score, and I think Spain will score some stupid rebound, like some stupid bouncing around goal where it's Merino or what's the other guy, or you or you have the ball, one of those guys who just scores like a tap in off of a rebound. It'll be like a Le Mean shot from 25 yards, goalie deflects it, hits a defender weird, and somebody else from Spain taps in. Danny Olmo, maybe. Uh, so I'll take Spain two to one in that one.

SPEAKER_00 1:15:33

Yeah, I don't think I don't think either of these games have a clear winner. So I think any prediction is inbounds and on the table. So I definitely hear that Spain shout. I think I might actually be rooting for Spain, and I might be doing a thing in both these games where I pick against who I'm rooting for, so I kind of am happy either way. That might be my new move.

SPEAKER_01 1:15:51

Fair enough. You gotta do what you gotta do, Sean. This the other game though, Sean, I feel like we might have a little bit, we might be a little further on our on our uh evaluations here. So we'll we'll we'll discuss this one now. We got Wednesday, the day after, July 15th, Sean in Atlanta, another indoor stadium. We have England, Argentina. This is the team that I picked to win it all, England. Argentina, a team you didn't choose to win at all, but you said would make a run and and would definitely, definitely be in that final, final rounds. My prediction, Sean, I'm gonna go. This is tough. I'm gonna go 3-2 England. I think this game will be a little bit more open than the France-Spain game will be. I think France-Spain will be a little bit more controlled, a little bit more um, a little bit more European in the sense. I think this game will be a little bit more Kankafe, a little bit more con and bowl, tackles will be flying, yellow cards will be given, and the energy I think will be through the roof in Atlanta on Wednesday. So I'm gonna go 3-2 England. Uh I'm gonna I don't I don't want to pick a player per se, but I will say I think the winning goal will be someone other than Jude or Harry. I think those two guys are just they've had incredible tournaments, don't get me wrong. They've done their they've done their duty, but I think someone else will step up and make that final, final little final goal, final moment for England to push them through to the final.

SPEAKER_00 1:17:18

Wow. That's a big call. I like that. You know what, Brandon? You know what's funny? I wrote down the same exact score line as you. I wrote down 3-2 England, and this is a pick against my heart. This is a classic. I am dying for Argentina to win this match, so I'm gonna pick England. I genuinely think England have impressed me more than Argentina have. So that would be the reasoning and logic behind why. I don't think England have been particularly good though either, at least in terms of their expectations. They really do continue to get bailed out by two match winners, and that strategy might work all the way. They might win a World Cup doing that. I also think there's a world where that comes back to bite them. But you can make the same argument for Argentina and how they've gone about doing it. They've been bailed out by Messi time and time again in this World Cup against lesser competition. So I do agree. I was thinking this game would be a bit more open, but now I'm hearing, I feel like everybody's saying that, and I'm I'm in agreement with you. I feel like maybe now we won't see it, but I think on paper we should. I don't know that I trust England's back line to be smart enough and committed enough for 90 plus minutes against Argentina, who's gonna be up to some tricks, they're gonna win some free kicks. It's gonna take them not losing their head at all. And I think there's a potential that we see a bad pass from Stones or a bad tackle from Gaye, and all of a sudden the game shifts. So I would be worried about that if I was an England fan. I'd also be worried about you the point you brought up is getting somebody else on the goal sheet. I don't know who it will be, but I do think a good prediction would be for somebody else to score because that needs to happen, I think, if England are gonna score three. It just seems like eventually, right, that Jude and Harry can't keep billing them out every time. But you never know. This is the big matches are for the big players. I will go with you. I'm gonna go right the same score. I'm gonna go three-two England. I hope it's four-nil Argentina, but I just don't see a world where that happens. So I'm rooting for Argentina, but I'm picking England.

SPEAKER_01 1:19:22

Alright, that's that's fair, I guess. We'll allow it here. It is it is your program. I can't, I can't tour program. No, but I I I I feel what you're saying, Sean. It's gonna be one of those games that could go anyway, any direction. There's just gonna be so much energy in that stadium and around these two teams. Both teams, I feel like, have this sort of I don't know what the word is, almost like destiny, where they just feel like they belong there. And unfortunately, something's gonna have to give. Only one of these two teams can make it through to the final, which, you know, we're not even gonna talk about today, Sean. But put any whoever you want in the final between these four teams, it's gonna be it's gonna be a game. So yeah, Sunday, next Sunday, yes, that we will be watching that, and we will be following that because that's a huge one. Sean, the the last thing I want to do before we close out today, let's just do a little golden boot chat. Golden boot, we've typically I feel like you see a tournament where one or two guys pull ahead and you know it's gonna be one of those two guys. I'd argue we have four to five guys in this world cup that all could win it. I'll just go through the numbers real quick for us, Sean. Uh, we have Messi, who's currently on eight goals, Killian Mbappe on eight goals, Jude Bellingham on six goals, Harry Kane on six goals, Usman Dembele on six goals, and uh Oyoizabal from Spain on four goals. Just for some previous context, Sean. Killian won in 2022, he had eight goals, and Harry won in 2018 with six goals. However, those were smaller tournaments. They did not have 48 teams, those were your traditional 32-team tournaments. I'll let I'll let you go first. Who do you think come Sunday is is raising the golden boot? And remember, this does not have to be a guy who's in the final, he could be at home watching the final. So I just want to hear what you got to say about this.

SPEAKER_00 1:21:15

I am going to just keep doing what I was doing with my picks. I'm going to root, I'm going to pick something that I'm not rooting for. So I'm going to say Harry Kane. I will say Harry Kane wins the golden boot. I do think it feels like since he didn't score in this last one, it does feel like Harry has a goal in him in this Argentina game. Could be a penalty. I hope it's not at the hands of Christian Romero. That'd be Spurs on Spurs crime, the highest of levels. We don't want that. But I do think Harry finds his way on the score sheet in this one. And I didn't predict Mbappe to get a goal. So since I picked England with my head, and since I Harry would then get an extra game over Messi, I will pick Harry Kane to win this golden boot, would be quite an honor for one of our own. But I don't know that I'm picking that genuinely, with definitely not with my heart. It's kind of one of those, it's it's a hedge, it's a nice hedge, it's an emotional hedge. Because after you're done with your pick, Brandon, I'll update the listeners on our little player pool, which is going down to the wire as well. So you please give me your golden boot pick.

SPEAKER_01 1:22:21

This is tough. I kind of want to follow the same strategy as you or pick a different player because I would love for Harry Kane to win the World Cup. I mean, win the world, well, yeah, win the world cup and the golden boot. So uh I will not pick Harry Kane. I I'll go Killian. And you're you're evil. You did the same thing I did. You're scumbag. I yeah, I had to do it, Sean. Looking at the numbers, I'm like, I I did pick Spain, like I said, to to win um this the semifinal, but Killian could score number nine in the semifinal. Maybe Messi doesn't score in their game and he goes home. So Mbappe goes into the final, potentially against England on nine. Harry at that point probably has seven. Maybe Harry only scores one in the final. Uh Killian doesn't score at all in the final, but then Killian wins nine to eight over Harry Kane. Uh, but Harry Kane wins the World Cup. So I'll take I'll take Killian and Mbappe. But again, it's that's that's a head pick, not a heart pick. Yeah. Just just just trying to play the game. I got I gotta do what I gotta do. I'm just trying to cover my basis here, and I respect you doing the same.

SPEAKER_00 1:23:27

I I will say, for the listeners' context, we we announced at the beginning of the World Cup, we put the graphic on our Instagram, we did a player draft, which was part of an episode, and you basically get points for goals and assists throughout the World Cup. You had to pick players from each tier. It was a lot of fun to draft, it was a lot of fun to prepare for the draft, and we've gotten a good product out of it, Brandon. It's a neck and neck race. As of recording, going into the semifinals, brand team Brandon is on 110 and a half points with Sir Harry Kane and Lionel Messi still to play. Team Sean is on 115 and a half points. So a five-point lead with Killian Mbappe, Laminamal, and Julian Alvarez still to play. So an edge for Team Sean, I'm happy about that, but by no means is this thing done and dusted. I need one Harry Kane goal here, and that's an eight-pointer because it's worth four in the semis, and you captained Harry Kane, so it's worth eight. I mean, I'm losing after one Harry Kane goal. So we need the Killian, we need your buddy. He's my captain. I've been riding him to the tune of 48 points, which has been he's the leading scorer in the tournament. He has 24 points normally. I have doubled his points by putting the captain's armband around him. Your leading scorer, you have Harry Kane on 32. He's your captain. You have Leo Messi with 23. He's backing them in, not even a captain scoring that many. My other good move, Brandon. I'm kind of a two-horse team. Erling Holland for me had 33 because he was a tier two club Norway, so their run really helped me. Would have loved one in the quarterfinal game at Erling. How about we don't shove Elliott to the ground? And then the other key contributors for both of our sides. You had a good pick, Usmani Dembele. He's been balling out, he's been doing well. Vinitius Jr. had nine points for you. You had Chris Wood get you eight, which was really solid. I had Raul Jimenez get me 15. That was a big help. And then I've gotten some little contributions from the likes of Wilson Isidore. He scored an eight-pointer. Julian Alvarez got that world D to get me on the board with him. It's coming down to the wire, which is all we could ask for. So good stuff on the Golden Boot race and good stuff on the Friends on Football podcast team player draft race as well.

SPEAKER_01 1:25:42

Yeah, kudos to us. We did well. I would have loved if Christian Pulisic decided to do something at the World Cup. That would have been fantastic for my team.

SPEAKER_00 1:25:49

I would have loved if Rafina didn't do his hamstring in the second minute, too. That would have been sick.

SPEAKER_01 1:25:54

True. But we we yeah, there's some defin I'm glad you I'm glad you want to really highlight Sean because there were some points too. I didn't bring those up.

SPEAKER_00 1:26:02

Absolute goose egg from Omar Marmoush. A couple other bad picks by me, for sure. But overall, I think we really did a good job. I mean, it's pretty easy when you draft, you know, Mbappe, Kane, Messi, and uh Erling Holland say hey, they might score goals. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 1:26:19

But but Sean, it's it still goes back to this was a World Cup where the stars all showed up. I feel like there are some in in years past where you have two or three guys really show up and everyone else is kind of there, but we talked about the golden boot and just the the player pool. I mean, the stars are here, and we're in the final four here, the semifinals, and the stars are there still for this too. So it just it just gives that these games even more juice. Uh, you know, Messi is probably potentially, I don't want to say probably, potentially last World Cup. You know, England is they believe football's coming home, and and and they're in that that mindset. France defending world champs, Spain 2010 world champs, kind of trying to get I'm sorry, France is not the defending world champs, Argentina is the defending world champs, France finalists trying to get back again, Spain 2010 world champs on this new trajectory, this new wave of players. It's defending Euro Champs. So there's there's a storyline for all four of these teams, and I I know it's a little chalky, but you want to see the best teams playing in the most important games, and and I think that's what we got coming up.

SPEAKER_00 1:27:27

100%. We've been so lucky with this World Cup. We had the underdogs and the cool stories, the Cabo Vrare days, and the the different countries that got in because of the expanded field. We we saw a lot of good things come from them. We saw tremendous, we had a tremendous stretch of just down-to-the-wire good games, back and forth, where everything was providing drama. And then when it's all when the dust settled, we got the four best teams in the world, according to FIFA rankings, playing against each other for the World Cup. So it's it's a perfect tournament, no notes. Now we just need to get it over the line with three more good matches. I'm expecting three more great matches. And I wouldn't have asked, I think, at the beginning of the tournament, for any four different teams in this situation. So this is absolutely perfect. I can't wait for Tuesday and Wednesday, and then we'll get back together on here, recap those, and give you a preview ahead of the World Cup final on Sunday. It's it's still all to play for. It's a brilliant, brilliant tournament, and I'm pumped to take some more in before a little bit of a summertime sadness situation next Sunday night.

SPEAKER_01 1:28:30

We we can't we can't get too far ahead of ourselves, Sean. But yes, next Sunday will be a rough, rough night. It it's it's great, and and I'm glad we're doing this together, and I'm glad we get to to highlight and and recap these games because it this has been a great World Cup. I we both before the before this started, Sean said 48. Not too sure about 48. You know, what what is this Cape Veraday team doing? What is Curacal doing in these tournaments? And these teams came in and they captured our hearts. So let's keep the 48, Sean. We'll we'll do it again in four years, but it this has been great and and truly, truly couldn't ask for a better semifinal and potential final matchup. So it's gonna be a good week. It's gonna be a good week. Can't wait.

SPEAKER_00 1:29:13

Bart Scott, can't wait. The the old Jets being can't wait. I'm I'm I'm in.

SPEAKER_01 1:29:19

Any any any final words for the followers, the listeners, Sean?

SPEAKER_00 1:29:23

No, please just go ahead, like, subscribe. We appreciate that. If you tell a friend to tell a friend, that would be obviously appreciated. Any bit of word of mouth you could say, hey, it's a good podcast for an introduction to the game. It's also good if you're a fan of the game. We would appreciate that. So just continue to spread the good word of the friends on football. And I think that's all I got.

SPEAKER_01 1:29:43

All right, Sean. Well, thank you. Thank you as always. Thanks for breaking these games down with me. Thanks for previewing with me, having a little fun with the golden boot, the player pools. And listeners, we'll be back to you soon. And until then, take care.