Merci Côte d’Ivoire!
We could hear the rhythmic beats of traditional African drums and some muffled singing as we waited for our visas to be processed. It got louder the closer we got to passport control before we were hit with a carnival atmosphere as soon as the sliding doors opened and we were in the Arrivals Hall. Bienvenue a Côte d’Ivoire! We had arrived.
Our plane had landed from Brussels via Benin, and I had spotted a number of football shirts on board – the green and white of Nigeria, green and red of Cameroon, and the ubiquitous orange of our hosts for the next 10 days.
Another plane landed just after us in Abidjan – the de facto capital of the Ivory Coast – and a sea of men and women clad in the white of Guinea and waving their national flags piled into the arrivals hall behind us. But that wasn’t to prepare us for what we were about to witness.
The live music accompanied with plenty of dancing made us feel like we had entered into another world. Not since the World Cup Brazil 2014 had I received such a welcome at an airport and there was a real feeling that this was a country where football was the order of the day – or month.
It was late at night when we arrived at our neighbourhood of Koumassi but there was no sign that things were dying down.
Open-air bars were packed with punters keenly watching the post-match analysis of the earlier games that night, smoke raised from the street food stalls that served fresh fish and chicken, while shacks were set up on every corner selling an array of football shirts. Cote d’Ivoire, check. Guinea, check. Mali and Senegal? Yep, they had it.
The international media before the tournament emphasised the importance of the hosts going ‘deep’ into the tournament to ensure good crowds but the Ivory Coast – and especially the metropolis of Abidjan – is a melting pot of West African cultures.
The ‘father of the nation’, President Felix Houphouet-Boigny, invited hundreds of thousands of guest workers from neighbouring countries to Cote d’Ivoire in his attempt to build an advanced capitalist society in the 1970s and many of them have stayed, despite successive Civil Wars in the country in the 2000s. As a result, we spotted just as many shirts around the streets of Abidjan of other nations as we did the hosts.
On our way to the cool, beach-front neighbourhood of Blockhauss – overlooked by the diplomatic quarter and the imposing Sofitel (the home of AfCON’s machine for the tournament) – we dived into a local bar after we heard some cheering.
Fans gather for the match against Equatorial Guinea
Photo: Rhys Hartley
We struggled to find a seat but were quickly welcomed to share a table with a group of three, when we noticed that everyone in the bar was kitted out in matching Burkina Faso replicas.
A penalty put them ahead against heavy favourites, Algeria, and the place went wild with dancing, hugging, and a ‘Santè’ in our direction. They thought we’d brought them luck!
It wasn’t to last, as Algeria scored a last-gasp equaliser, sending our new friend across the table into tears. We quickly bade farewell, and I committed to buying a shirt of my new adopted team for the tournament.
While comments from abroad may focus on the lack of crowds in some games (a 2pm Friday kick-off of Cape Verde v Mozambique didn’t exactly capture the imagination – and we must remember that 40% of the population live below the poverty line), each game was watched with the same intensity, no matter who was playing nor the time of day.
Every TV across the country was tuned into French broadcaster Canal Plus’s dedicated channel to AfCON 24/7, and it was clear that football had gripped the nation.
People may roll their eyes at the importance of football but it has been credited with bringing to an end the first Civil War in Cote d’Ivoire. After qualifying for the World Cup in 2006, Didier Drogba – possibly the country’s most famous export – announced that the country’s next match would be played in Bouake, the heartland of the rebellion. A shock move but one that saw opposing forces sit together in the stands and crowds flock the pitch in unison after their 5-0 victory over Madagascar.
The ‘Elephants’’ success has certainly had an impact on maintaining the peace in this divided country since then, being a symbol that everyone can unite behind. That was the impression that the government and wider population wanted to impart upon us visitors and everyone else watching from around Africa and beyond at this year’s tournement.
However, all was not well on the pitch.
In the impressive 60,000-seater stadium in Ebimpe, around 30 kilometres north of downtown Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire played their final group game against unfancied Equatorial Guinea, knowing that a point would probably be enough to get them through.
An expectant crowd grew impatient as a cagey first half an hour passed before a shock goal saw the visitors take the lead. VAR intervened to deny two goals to the boys in orange, who seemed to panic from there on in. They attacked in numbers but left holes at the back, which the experienced Equatorial Guineans used to their advantage to stun the tournament’s hosts.
They ran out 4-0 winners against all the odds, leading to plenty of unsavoury scenes in the stands, on the running tracks, and on the way back into town – we spotted a row of the shuttle buses put on for fans with their windows smashed in completely. It really was more than just a game.
Nobody believed that Côte d’Ivoire would go through, needing results in every other group to go their way for them to be among the best third-placed teams with just three points and a goal difference of minus 3.
It came down to the penultimate night of the group stages. Ghana had a worse record than them, so they just needed one other team to finish in third with a worse record. Morocco to beat Zambia. Easy, right?
In Bouake, the second-largest city, every man, woman and child was glued to the TV, urging the North Africans to do them a favour. A first-half goal eased the tension for a while but the second half dragged on with no further goals.
Cue wild celebrations, with people lifting chairs above their heads and dancing all around the bar. All of a sudden, a group of young men with their shirts off started running past the bar and onto the city’s main thoroughfare, whistling and cheering, as cars beeped their horns. The country came to a standstill as they celebrated their unlikely qualification to the next round.
With the hosts still in the competition, I bade my farewell to the tournament as part of a sell-out crowd at the smaller 30,000-seater stadium in Abidjan.
After walking for hours for two days straight in the 35-degree heat trying to find a ticket, we left it until an hour before kick-off to source a tout in the vicinity of the ground. A late second goal saw the ‘Super Eagles’ of Nigeria kill off the ‘Indomitable Lions’ of Cameroon after a spirited performance, as the Nigerians partied long into and the Cameroonians made plans to return home.
Contrary to the theme of this year’s tournament, this wasn’t a shock result – but there were plenty of those to come. Cote d’Ivoire are somehow still in the competition! They defeated tournament favourites, Senegal, in the Round of 16 before a last-minute equaliser saw them take Mali to extra time with just 10 men, going on to win the tie in the last minute of the additional 30.
Other shocks included World Cup semi-finalists Morocco, Mohamed Salah’s Egypt, and heavily-fancied Algeria bowing out early in a poor tournametn for North African sides.
While a Nigeria v Cote d’Ivoire final may seem expected, a semi-final lineup including South Africa and the Democratic Republic of Congo was not on anyone’s mind going into the tournament – even less so following the first few rounds of group games! But, in a country where football is taken so seriously, it so fits that the product on offer has been so gripping.
This is the most exciting tournament I’ve been lucky enough to witness (personal Welsh affiliations aside) and the welcome we received from the moment we touched down to the second we left will stay in the mind even longer than the football.
Whatever happens this weekend – Merci, Cote d’Ivoire (and bon chance)!
Follow us on Twitter @ProstInt
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Wales boss Robert Page started with Nathan Broadhead of Ipswich Town ahead of Bournemouth’s Kieffer Moore. Harry Wilson, who had impressed in the home win over Croatia, also made the starting XI along with Brennan Johnson of Spurs, as Page sought pace and movement in the final third.
At the back, Luton Town’s Tom Lockyer replaced the suspended Chris Mepham. Surprisingly, Mepham’s Bournemouth clubmate David Brooks was only on the bench.
Following Wales’ unconvincing draw away to Armenia, this was always likely to be a do or die game, when even victory might still not be enough depending on events elsewhere.
In a lively opening spell, Jordan James was prominent for the hosts. Nathan Broadhead also fired narrowly wide.
But it was Neco Wiliams who really brought the game to life, firing past Uğurcan Çakır in the Turkish goal after just nine minutes.
The pace and movement of Broadhead, Wilson and Johnson were proving too hot for the visitors. Conor Roberts and Neco were potent weapons on the flanks.
The Turkish were clearly rattled by all this, and a series of unpleasant exchanges saw a yellow card for Johnson, followed by a lunge on the Spurs man by Fenerbahçe defender Samet Akaydin which might have resulted in a spot kick. Referee Matej Jug gave a corner though.
The Spurs ace went tumbling again on 29 minutes. Yet again the Slovenian official saw no reason to point to the spot.
Manchester United’s Altay Bayindir took over in the visiting goal as the Turks faced another Welsh corner.
Muhammed Kerem Aktürkoğlu carved out a rare Turkish shot on goal as the interval beckoned, but the response from Wales was another effort from Johnson which the United stand-in managed to hold.
It had been a terrific show from the Welsh, who continued to chase the dream. But the news from Croatia was not good, Ante Budimir putting the home side ahead on 43 minutes. It would be interesting to see the impact that goal would have on the atmosphere in Cardiff.
Wales continued to take the game to their visitors, but the mood in the stands seemed more low key thanks to the score in Zagreb. A save from Danny Ward kept the lead intact as Türkiye sought to capitalise.
Page replaced Broadhead with Brooks as the visitors saw more of the ball. Chances at either end but really, it was all about Zagreb now.
The Turkish pressure brought its reward on 68 minutes as a harmless looking challenge by skipper Ben Davies on Kenan Yildiz led to a penalty, which Yusuf Yaziki slotted home with composure. As tempers rose around the pitch, Yusuf Sari drilled a fierce drive over.
With the visitors looking confident and threating, Daniel James entered the fray to replace Harry Wilson. Johnson clipped the ball into the net but was clearly offside.
Kieffer Moore joined the proceedings with five minutes to make an impact.
This was not to be for Wales though. A stirring closing rendition of the anthem from the stands sounded like the last waltz at a wedding, as the news came in that Croatia had scraped their way past Armenia to leave Wales with the play offs to navigate next year.
Wales 1
Türkiye 1
Att. 32,291
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Sajidur Rahman is the 2022 Unheard Voices Student Football Writer of the Year
Bellingham was an unused substitute in 2021 when the Three Lions fell to a 3-2 defeat on penalties to the Azzurri.
Instead, counterparts Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho and Bukayo Saka were all called on by Gareth Southgate to come off the sidelines and take the final three penalties.
All of them missed.
While many rose to praise the courage of the youngsters who were aged 23 (Rashford), 21 (Sancho), and 19 (Saka) at the time, the occasion was marred by the racism faced by the trio on social media.
Suddenly for the vocal minority, Rashford, Sancho and Saka were no longer viewed as English.
Rashford was black and Jamaican. Sancho was black and Trinidadian. Saka was black and Nigerian.
Though there has been lots of support and awareness brought to the Black Lives Matter movement since then, unfortunately, there is a possibility that the next star to rise through the ranks will face the same prejudice.
Bellingham has had a sensational start to the season since switching from Borussia Dortmund to Real Madrid in the summer for £88m.
The midfielder has scored 10 goals in his first 10 games for Los Blancos, adding an additional three assists in that time too.
At just 20 years old, the new Galactico is being dubbed a future Ballon d’Or winner and is one of the favourites to win the European Golden Boy award for 2023.
Bellingham’s mother, Denise, is of African-British heritage and despite the midfielder being heralded as the new hero for England, disgustingly it does not take long for the opinions of some fans to change and strip him of his shining armour to bare his skin tone and ethnicity.
Bellingham was rested in the 1-0 victory over Australia on Friday and is expected to be back to try and help dominate the midfield against the tricky Italian opposition.
Victory tonight for England will secure them a spot to once again compete for the European Championships crown in 2024, joining neighbours Scotland who have qualified with two games to spare.
Prior to the final in 2021, there were ugly scenes of fans trying to force entry to the stadium but it seems fitting, that in a world with so much division at the moment that this fixture takes place now, to remind everyone of the upsetting moments that were witnessed two years ago and the fights that we still face to this day.
[Eye witness from Wembley: How the police, UEFA, idiots, media and politicians let England down]
This has extended from the old racism to the battle for LGBTQ rights with England midfielder Jordan Henderson at the heart of the debate having been selected while plying his trade in Saudi Arabia and the conflict between Israel and Palestine increasing anti-semitism and Islamophobia.
Football is insignificant in the grand scheme of things, especially when fans are lost trying to watch the sport they love as was the case last night for two Swedes in Brussels.
However, the game can be used to push a powerful message and unite everyone to come together in the depths of darkness.
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This had been a must win game for Wales with pressure growing on boss Robert Page amidst rumours of the FAW seeking a “big name” manager. Speculation had emerged in relation to TV pundit Roy Keane for example.
Page chose to start with Bournemouth’s David Brooks ahead of Dan James, though with injuries to key stars such as Aaron Ramsey and Brennan Johnson, the rest of the side pretty much picked itself. Kieffer Moore led the line for the home team.
Real Madrid legend Luka Modrić captained the visiting Croatian side, making what could be his last international appearance on these shores.
Wales made a lively start, with Brooks linking up well with club mate Moore. Wilson and Connor Roberts felt the strength of Croation resistance though, going down to some hefty challenges.
Petar Musa headed over Danny Ward’s goal on 18 minutes as, with Modrić at the heart of things, the classy visitors began to settle.
The effervescent Brooks put Wilson through soon afterwards though, but the Fulham man was put down by Domagoj Vida. Only a yellow card was shown by Referee Davide Massa. Wilson brought a smart save from Dominik Livaković from the resulting free kick as the home side stepped on the gas.
Neco Williams brought another fine save from the Croatian keeper following neat work by the influential Wilson, who was winning his 50th cap.
It had been a fine first half from the home side. With a shade more finesse with the final ball, they could easily have gone off for the break ahead.
But the large home crowd did not have to wait long for the goal they craved. Brooks, inevitably, sent Wilson through and the former Cardiff City man lobbed the ball home with great composure.
Croatia saw more possession as they worked their way back into the game, but the Welsh stood firm.
Brooks exited the field to a hero’s ovation as he left the field with an injury on 57 minutes. James took over.
The Leeds wide man was immediately prominent, crossing for Wilson to head in a cheeky second for the Welsh, putting the home fans into ecstasy.
Wales were almost playing on the counterattack, but it was working to perfection. The guile of Wilson and Moore and the pace and trickery of James and Neco Williams made them a constant threat. As if to emphasise the point, James raced forward to fire narrowly wide on 68 minutes.
The home fans in the crowd of 31,240 were in full voice now, running through their full repertoire of lusty hymns and arias.
The visitors’ pressure told on 75 minutes though, as substitute Mario Pašalić headed in from close range.
Williams fired wide as the game ebbed and flowed. The anthem boomed down from the crowded stands. Nathan Broadhead replaced Wison. Modrić fired over. It was hectic stuff.
Marcelo Brozović who plays for the Saudi Pro League club Al Nassr, was booked for a foul on James as the clock ticked on towards five added minutes.
Nerves jangled all around the Cardiff City Stadium. Ward grabbed precious seconds with a magnificent take. Williams urged more noise from the stands. The stands responded.
This had been yet another memorable night at this venue. Page had rallied his troops in the face of much pressure. For Croatia, it completed a miserable few days as Wales gained an important advantage in the qualifying group.
Wales 2
Croatia1
David Collins, Wales Football Correspondent
Follow us on Twitter @ProstInt
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Bournemouth’s David Brooks has been selected for the first time following his recovery from stage two Hodgkin lymphoma in October 2021. Sadly though, injury has ruled out Luton Town skipper Tom Lockyer. The talismanic Hatter was stretchered off as Town overcame Coventry City in the Play Off final at Wemley.
Ben Davies and Brennan Johnson also return to the squad having missed the opening qualifiers in March due to injury, while defender Joe Low receives his first senior call-up.
Morgan Fox, Luke Harris and Liam Cullen are the three uncapped players in the squad.
Cymru had a successful start to the campaign in March, drawing to World Cup semi-finalists Croatia in Split with Nathan Broadhead scoring on his debut, and beating Latvia 1-0 at the Cardiff City Stadium thanks to a Kieffer Moore goal.
Rob Page’s side are currently second in group D, with Türkiye and Latvia sitting in the third and fourth places.
Limited tickets for the match against Armenia at the Cardiff City Stadium are available to purchase on the FAW ticketing website, with prices starting from £5 for juniors (16 and under). Cymru squad:
Wayne HENNESSEY (Nottingham Forest), Danny WARD (Leicester City), Adam DAVIES (Sheffield United), Joe RODON (Rennes- On loan from Tottenham Hotspur), Ben CABANGO (Swansea City), Chris MEPHAM (AFC BOURNEMOUTH), Joe LOW (Bristol City), Connor ROBERTS (Burnley), Morgan FOX (Unattached), Neco WILLIAMS (Nottingham Forest), Ben DAVIES (Tottenham Hotspur), Ethan AMPADU (Spezia- On loan from Chelsea), Joe MORRELL (Portsmouth), Jordan JAMES (Birmingham City), Dan JAMES (Fulham- On loan from Leeds United), Nathan BROADHEAD (Ipswich Town), Aaron RAMSEY (OGC Nice), Harry WILSON (Fulham), Ollie COOPER (Swansea City), Luke HARRIS (Fulham), Brennan JOHNSON (Nottingham Forest), David BROOKS (AFC Bournemouth), Liam CULLEN (Swansea City), Kieffer MOORE (AFC Bournemouth), Tom BRADSHAW (Milwall)
Follow us on Twitter @ProstInt
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Prior to the game, Wales fans had chance to say a huge ‘Diolch’ to talisman Gareth Bale. The record Welsh goal scorer has retired from football now and at this game – the first home fixture since Qatar – the FAW gave the former Spurs and Real Madrid star an opportunity to wave goodbye to the ‘Red Wall’ of Wales fans.
The fans responded in enthusiastic fashion, lapping up the montage of Bale moments shown on the giant screens.
But this was no night to bask in past glories. A terrific performance in Split in their opening qualifier, had seen Robert Page’s new look side off to a terrific start in their quest to reach Germany. Debutant Nathan Broadband had rescued a point in the dying seconds in Split.
Despite these heroics, Page went with the same starting XI as in Split to tackle the Latvians, so there was only a place on the bench for Ipswich Town striker Broadhead.
Harry Wilson almost gave the hosts the perfect start but visiting keeper Pāvels Šteinbors kept out his firm close-range drive.
Kieffer Moore was a threat for the Welsh and the Bournemouth striker almost eluded the visiting defence after quarter of an hour. Harry Wilson was also prominent for Robert Page’s men.
On the whole though, the game was evenly balanced and, it has to be said, somewhat lacking in flair.
A net flick from the visiting striker Vladislavs Gutkovskis almost caught Wales out and they responded with a firm shot from Moore as the tempo slowly increased. Neco Williams blazed a close effort beyond the crossbar.
Moore continued to pose an aerial threat and Ethan Ampadu fired another shot over as the interval drew near.
Right on cue though, it was that man Moore who headed firmly past Šteinbors on 41 minutes from a cross by Dan James.
The visitors responded to this setback with a series of ugly fouls but the Welsh stood firm to hold the lead at the break.
Williams warmed the Latvian keeper’s hands as Wales started the second half as they had ended the first.
The pace and mobility of James looked threatening for the hosts. Ampadu held things together in midfield as the Welsh maintained a tight grip on the game. The home fans were grateful to Danny Ward though, who blocked a shot from the dangerous Gutkovskis with his feet.
Wales created few meaningful chances as the game sank into something of a stalemate.
Page saw the need for fresh legs, replacing James with Split hero Broadhead with 20 minutes to go.
Wales continued to enjoy possession but that much needed second goal never looked close. Williams again shot over the bar.
With the clock ticking down, substitute Renars Varslavans wasted a chance on the edge of the area for the visitors. Wales held their nerve.
This had been a less than flowing performance from the Welsh. On the face of it, the new dawn had started well for Page’s men with four points from two games, though tougher nights than this may well lay ahead on the road to Germany.
Wales 1
Latvia 0
Att. 32,806
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- This is only the second ever meeting between Wales and Latvia, with the other coming in August 2004 in a friendly in Riga, a 2-0 Welsh win with goals from John Hartson and Craig Bellamy.
- Including play-offs Wales have lost one of their last 21 home games in major tournament qualifiers (W13 D7), a 1-0 defeat to the Republic of Ireland in a World Cup qualifier in October 2017.
- Wales have lost two of their last three home matches (D1), having lost none of their previous 19 before this. Wales haven’t lost consecutive home games since October/ November 2018.
- Latvia have won just one of their last 21 European Championship qualifying matches (D5 L15), which came in their most recent such match in November 2019 vs Austria.
- Their last away Euros qualifying win was back in September 2011 against Georgia (D4 L7 since).
- Wales are winless in their last nine competitive matches (D3 L6), last having a longer run between August 2003 and September 2005 (14 games). They’ve also conceded the first goal in each of these nine games, since beating Ukraine 1-0 in June 2022.
- Latvia have only won their first European Championship qualifier in one of their previous seven campaigns (D2 L4), beating Norway 3-1 away from home back in September 1998.
- Five of Wales’ last seven goals in all competitions have come in the final 10 minutes of matches, with Nathan Broadhead equalising in stoppage time against Croatia last time out with their only shot on target of the match.
- Of the 46 nations to play a European Championship qualifier between March 23rd and 25th, no side had fewer shots on target than Wales (1), while only San Marino (3), Andorra (3), Liechtenstein (2) and Gibraltar (1) had fewer overall shots (4)
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Newly installed Wales captain Aaron Ramsey is looking ahead to a new era for the Wales team, starting with a tough fixture away to Croatia.
The Nice midfielder told of his pride in being given the captain’s armband for the forthcoming Euro qualifiers. He also paid tribute to the contributions made by Gareth Bale, Chris Gunter, Johhny Williams and Joe Allen, who have stepped down from international duty since Qatar. He also referenced Ashley Williams, who had led Wales to 2016 glory.
Ramsey was mindful of the enormous part played by such players during a glorious era for Wales but he was also keen to look ahead to an exciting future.
The former Cardiff City and Arsenal star picked out Forest star Brennan Johnson, describing how the exciting youngster was currently “at the top of his game” at the City Ground.
The new skipper also spoke of the exciting potential within the team these days, singling out Luke Harris of Fulham, Birmingham City’s Jordan James (“JJ”) and Swansea City’s Ollie Cooper as exciting names. The retirement of Bale and others gave such youngsters a wonderful opportunity to take Wales forward and create new history, said Ramsey.
Ramsey told a media conference at the Vale Resort in South Wales, how he was enjoying his time in Nice. He also opened up on what we can expect from him in his role as skipper as he looked forward to helping a new generation represent Cymru.
Exciting times ahead in Welsh football then, starting with a tough trip to Split this weekend.
Follow us on Twitter @ProstInt
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Luke Harris, Jordan James, Ollie Cooper and Nathan Broadhead are four uncapped players that have
been called up to the squad, while forward Tom Bradshaw receives his first call-up in five years after
winning the EFL Championship Player of the Month award for February.
The international window will begin a new era for Welsh football and Rob Page’s squad, following
the retirements of Gareth Bale, Joe Allen, Chris Gunter and Jonny Williams since the 2022 FIFA
World Cup. The camp will also be the first for Page’s new backroom staff, following the
appointments of Eric Ramsay and Nick Davies last month.
For the qualifiers, Cymru have been drawn alongside Croatia, Latvia, Turkey and Armenia in Group D,
as they aim to reach their third consecutive UEFA EURO finals. The winners and runners-up in the
group will qualify directly for the tournament which will be held in Germany next summer.
Tickets for the match against Latvia at the Cardiff City Stadium are available to purchase on the FAW
ticketing website, with prices starting from £5 for juniors (16 and under).
Cymru squad: Wayne HENNESSEY (Nottingham Forest), Danny WARD (Leicester City), Adam DAVIES
(Sheffield United), Ben DAVIES (Tottenham Hotspur), Neco WILLIAMS (Nottingham Forest), Ben
CABANGO (Swansea City), Oliver COOPER (Swansea City), Tom LOCKYER (Luton Town), Joe RODON
(Rennes- On loan from Tottenham Hotspur), Chris MEPHAM (AFC Bournemouth), Ethan AMPADU
(Spezia- On loan from Chelsea), Connor ROBERTS (Burnley), Sorba THOMAS (Blackburn Rovers- On
loan from Huddersfield Town), Jordan JAMES (Birmingham City), Nathan BROADHEAD (Ipswich
Town), Wesley BURNS (Ipswich Town), Aaron RAMSEY (OGC Nice), Joe MORRELL (Portsmouth),
Harry WILSON (Fulham), Daniel JAMES (Fulham- On loan from Leeds United), Kieffer MOORE (AFC
Bournemouth), Luke HARRIS (Fulham), Brennan JOHNSON (Nottingham Forest), Tom BRADSHAW
(Millwall)
Photo: Stephen Gormley (Red Eye Photo Agency)
Argentina secured a 4-2 penalty victory over current holders France following a dramatic 3-3 draw to win the World Cup in Qatar.
Following four weeks of winter football in the desert it all came down to one match to determine who would be crowned the 22nd World Cup Champions at the end of 2022.
The 88,000 Lusail stadium was dominated by the noisy light blue and white fans of Argentina. Even the most passionate of them would have doubted seeing their team make it all the way to the Final following their shock 2-1 opening-match defeat to Qatari neighbours Saudi Arabia in the very same Lusail stadium three and a half weeks earlier.
However at 35-years old, Argentinean Captain and undoubtedly one of the greatest players world football has ever seen, Lionel Messi magnificently led his team back from that early disappointment with subsequent victories over Mexico, Poland, Australia, Netherlands and Croatia.
The Final turned out to be the battle of the number 10s. Messi and Mbapee were both level on five goals each at the top of the 2022 World Cup scoring charts as the Final commenced.
Argentina looked the hungrier of the sides early on. Di Maria was having the freedom of the left side, twisting and turning the French defence inside out. His efforts paid off in the 21st minute when he was taken down in the box and the referee had no hesitation in pointing to the spot. Messi stepped up to make it 1-0 to Argentina.
In the 36th minute a sweeping move saw Argentina break forward. Quick balls from Messi to Álvarez to Mac Allister and finally to Di Maria who finished off the beautiful move to make it 2-0 to the South Americans.
It looked like the match was done and dusted as the clocked ticked by with Messi looking relaxed as he relished the prospect of lifting the cup for his country as well as becoming the tournament’s top scorer. However France received a life-line when they were awarded a penalty in the 80th minute after Kolo Muani was dragged down in the box. Up stepped France’s number 10 Kylian Mbappe to score the penalty to make it 2-1.
Suddenly Argentina looked nervous. Their nerves were then shattered just two minutes later when Messi lost possession of the ball and out of nowhere Mbappe levelled the match with a magnificent volley from the edge of the box.
The match continued on into extra time with chances falling to both teams. However in the 108th minute the little magician Messi had one more trick up his sleeve. The ball fell to him in the six yard box, first attempt saved but no mistake with the rebound, it was 3-2 now to Argentina and both number 10s were level again at the top of the scoring charts.
Surely Argentina wouldn’t let their lead slip again when they were ten minutes away again from victory. But no, another penalty was awarded with four minutes to go following a hand ball at the edge of the box and Mbappe dramatically levelled again. Both teams had great chances at the death to win it in the final few seconds of extra time but the match would be decided by penalties.
Mbapee stepped up first for France and put his side ahead with his third successful spot kick of the night. Messi was next up and coolly rolled the ball into the back of the net
France then missed their next two penalties and Argentina’s Gonzalo Montiel had the honour of stepping up to slot home his countries fourth successive spot kick to win the title for Argentina 4-2 on penalties.
It was devastating for France who had comeback so well twice in the match from 2-0 down and 3-2 down and in particular very tough on Mbappe who had somehow managed to score a hat-trick in a World Cup Final and finished as the tournament’s leading goalscorer but who walked away with a loser’s medal.
In contrast, Argentinean’s number 10 Lionel Messi finally achieved the missing piece of his illustrious career by scoring twice in the Final, converting his penalty kick in the shoot-out and captaining his country to the greatest price in World Football.
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