Favourites fall in dramatic fashion
RUSSIA 2018 is drawing to a close and the drama and action continues unabated in the recently completed quarter-final stages. Russian tears were shed as the surprised hosts were eliminated after a dramatic penalty shoot-out against Croatia.
The Russian team and fans did their country proud with a kaleidoscope of colour, sound and action.
Who would have thought that we would have reached the semi-finals stage without at least one of Brazil, Argentina, Germany or Spain being in the hunt?
It’s also an all European line-up, with the stand-out tie and probable eventual winner coming from France vs Belgium.
England had a lucky draw and progressed without much fuss and will face a talented but tired Croatian team who have been involved in two penalty shoot-outs in a row.
It will be interesting to see club mates face each other in opposition national teams. In the France vs Belgium clash there are some interesting match-ups: Tottenham Hotspur (Lloris, Alderweireld/Vertonghen/ Dembélé); Man United (Pogba, Fellaini/Lukaku,) Man City (Mendy, Kompany/De Bruyne) and Chelsea (Kante/Giroud, Hazard/Courtois). In the England vs Croatia match, Liverpool teammates Henderson and Lovren will do battle. With Belgium and Croatia not having ever tasted World Cup glory, this is an ideal opportunity for us to witness a firsttime winner – and I wouldn’t mind either team winning the tournament.
Unfortunately, the Ronaldo vs Messi contest ended prematurely, and I wonder if we will see either of them in their national team colours again? The next great hope and most expensive player in the world, Brazilian Neymar jr, was an embarrassment.
For all his natural talent he will be most remembered for his poor antics on the field. The diving theatrics and overdramatic reactions left him with very few fans, and he will will be unlikely to carry the mantle of best player in the world.
What I fail to understand is that the players know they are under extreme scrutiny, but still continue to feign injury, exaggerate fouls and dive. In what was apparently inspired by Neymar, a major fast food chain has produced an hilarious advert mocking his on-field antics. In total, Neymar spent approximately 17 minutes on the floor. Give him an Oscar for acting!
While transfer activity has been subdued during the World Cup, we should see increased activity by the end of this week. However, the most sensational transfer this season may have already been agreed, with Cristiano Ronaldo apparently joining Juventus in a €100-million deal.
The Portuguese star did cause a stir with a cryptic statement immediately after the Champions League win, so this proposed move may not be a complete surprise.
Wimbledon has taken a back seat to the football this past week, but Roger Federer and Serena Williams continued their march to the finals.
Federer and Williams who have won 8 and 7 titles respectively, will be favourites going into the final week.
Federer will face the tougher battle with his long-time rivals, Djokovic and Nadal, still in the mix.
Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel continued their duel at the British GP, with both drivers swapping the championship lead over the last few races.
After a first-lap crash which saw Hamilton move from pole to stone last, the gifted driver showed why he is 4-time world champion by driving a great recovery race to finish second.
It was one of the most pulsating races seen in a long time, with the two Mercedes and Ferraris separated by just a few seconds heading towards the final few laps.
Vettel’s victory means he extends his championship lead to 8 points. But the season is far from over.
Watch Hamilton in the next race at Hockenheim, Germany, on July 22.