Time for final-4 showdown
Three weeks have skipped by and only four teams are still standing in the World Cup war of 2018 with England facing off against crafty Croatia and French flair pitted against Belgian efficiency.
The final four in World Cup 2018 have emerged from more than three weeks of intense competition in Russia, reaffirming European hegemony in the global game as the South Americans flopped again at the
World Cup.
But the semi-final line-up for the tournament is not what many might have considered. England and Croatia will deliver between them a surprise finalist from tomorrow’s match in Moscow, while France were among the picks before the tournament started but few expected the Belgians would have not imploded again by now.
Their “golden generation” has flattered to deceive in the past and looked to have missed out on another opportunity, especially after crashing out to Wales in the last eight of the 2016 European Championship.
But the Belgians have proven not only formidable footballers, but developed a street warrior edge too. Their second-round win over Japan, where they were 2-0 down with 25 minutes to go, made the game a competition classic.
France’s wins over Argentina and Uruguay lifted them out of the slumber of the first round, which admittedly did not tax them much and allowed them to coast along.
Tonight’s semi-final between the neighbours in St Petersburg will likely determine the tournament victor, even if the English are whipping themselves in hysteria, having reached their first semi-final since 1990.
There is already talk about Harry Kane being in the hunt for one of the most rare hat-tricks in football history as he could win the World Cup, Golden Boot and Golden Ball at the same tournament.
Kane’s tally in Russia is six goals, but crucially he is two ahead of Belgium’s Romelu Lukaku, who failed to find the back of the net in Belgium’s quarterfinal win over Brazil. That means Tottenham man Kane is almost home and dry to win the Golden Boot award for which he is currently 1-7 favourite.
But to win the other prizes England must get by a crafty Croatia first. Luka Modric and Ivan Rakitic run a good team and although they’ve needed penalties to get through the last two matches against Denmark and Russia, they could hand England a nasty shock.
France and Belgium could deliver a classic encounter. But they both have heaps of good talent and explosive pace. It must be that the side that wins this one goes on and takes the World Cup.