The first date of the first round of Qatar 2022 ended and there were already political consequences: for example, after losing to Saudi Arabia, in Argentina the dollar rose 10 pesos while in Riyadh they decreed a national holiday.
Now, the risk of being eliminated early will fuel the tension of this second World Cup week, not only for Argentina but also for other important teams, such as Germany.
In October 2020, an American therapist named Moriah Mason Quenneville published a self-help book whose title is Leaving Parties Early (“Leaving early from parties”). On the flap it warns that, in addition to being a manual on how to leave a birthday before the candles are blown out, it is a book to “learn to be happy where we are, even if it is not where we think we would be, to see ourselves and to others clearly. It’s about choosing to celebrate how far you’ve come, instead of beating yourself up for how you learned your lessons.”
It will be a recommended reading for those who are eliminated from the World Cup just in the second game: they will oscillate between self-flagellating for the missed goal and thinking that reaching the World Cup is not something, that this is a game, that in four years there is revenge. Those who happen to them will have the supreme punishment of facing a third game knowing that they have been eliminated.
But for that it is missing because 16 games will be played first, and these are the keys in the previous one:
Group A: Netherlands-Ecuador, Qatar-Senegal
The Dutch and Ecuadorians won the first cap and now they are looking to settle their classification with a victory, although a draw would also leave them well outlined. To the oranges anyway only 20% of the country would be paying attention to it, for the remaining 80% the lack of human rights in Qatar took away their interest in football. In Ecuador it seems to be the other way around: they are collecting signatures to ask President Guillermo Lasso to establish a “half day off” for the remaining matches for the country in the World Cup.
Qatar seeks to avoid being so nutty amid all the noise. Perhaps the Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, who hung a Saudi flag on his shoulders after the Arab victory against Argentina, forgot seizure that the Saudis imposed on the Qatari emirate a few years ago and believes that only its neighbors can save the honor of the peninsula. People seem to be in tune. At halftime of the debut, the Qatari fans withdrew en masse from the stadium; And they are not attending the rest of the games with the enthusiasm that the hosts of other World Cups did.
Group B: Wales-Iran, England-USA
Gareth Bale’s Wales had to win yes or yes so as not to necessarily need a victory against England in the third game and depend on other results. Iran tried to explain that their debut (2-6 against the English) was a misunderstanding. It was a match against censorship. Welsh fans sought to prevent Qatari moral police once again confiscated their hats with the colors of the rainbow, in repudiation of the local policy against the LGBT population. And the Iranian players once again did not sing the anthem in repudiation of the repression of the Tehran regime against women (in the debut match, state television did not transmit what happened and the live broadcast began with the match). Iran left Wales on the line and, as in politics, it will be all or nothing against the United States.
IRAN’S GOAL IN ’98. Madness breaks loose. They are going to get their first three points and sentence Wales. #Qatar2022 #FIFAWorldCup pic.twitter.com/OAnWYN6bgO
— David Ferris (@DavidFerriis8) November 25, 2022
In the other duel they play the soccer against him football. Although the United States team is increasingly influenced by the English Premier League and the World Cup is much more interesting than before, even Biden phoned the players to the locker room before the first game. In both countries the social boycott of Qatar is very strong; but also the contradictions, and not only because of the amount of business between the English, Americans and Qataris, but also because of the allegations of corruption around them. King Carlos III would have received bribes of the Qatari millionaires who “bought London”.
Group C: Saudi Arabia-Poland, Argentina-Mexico
The Argentines mix with the World Cup what happens to them in other areas. More than 90% of the population believe that the championship will be decisive for the mood of the majority and at least a third of the country believes that what happens on Saturday against Mexico will influence in the presidential elections next year. If Argentina does not win, they will be out sooner than any nightmare predicted. Messi will play on the precipice; he cannot not win, with the aggravating circumstance that he represents a country that deposits in him what it no longer deposits in politics and finance: trust and hope.
Never has a World Cup been played so close to Mecca, and the Saudis know it. The custodians of the spiritual center of Islam also know that with the tie they will be well outlined to obtain a historical classification (even if they also tie the last game); and Poland, which tends to prefer defense over attack, will have to go looking for the result. This is all good news for Saudi prince bin Salman, who this week, in addition to celebrating his team, celebrated that the United States, despite having promised otherwise, I forgive” having been the mastermind behind the assassination of journalist Khashoggi in Turkey.
Group D: Tunisia-Australia, France-Denmark
For now the most prominent Australian in the World Cup was this fan that, when the official transmission focused on him, he cursed loudly: “We are dating on fucking television.” Tunisia wants to confirm that this is the World Cup for Arab teams and, with a victory against Australia, turn the golden point they obtained against Denmark into a talisman. The tie does not favor anyone: it will be an open match.
Denmark have beaten France the last few times they met and will have to do it again if they don’t want to depend on other results to reach the next phase. France comfortably overcame the first obstacle of this World Cup; but he still has to play the two most difficult games in the group. Macron has faith: he said that plan to travel Qatar in the semifinals. In France they try to qualify the boycott, the television that broadcasts the matches promotes the tournament but avoid mentioning the host country.
Group E: Spain-Germany, Japan-Costa Rica
Duel of colossi Two world champions who come from very different experiences. Germany must win yes or yes to avoid being eliminated in the first round for the second consecutive World Cup. Gary Lineker’s famous phrase used to be taken for granted: “Football is an eleven-on-eleven sport, in which Germany always wins”. On Sunday it will be seen if it lost validity. Nothing is guaranteed for Spain, the 7-0 debut will be devalued if they don’t get at least one point in the next game. In Madrid, meanwhile, they discuss whether King Felipe’s trip to the World Cup means supporting the Qatari regime and, above all, if he is not taking advantage of it to visit his dad.
Japan can confirm the surprise and get into the round of 16 against a Costa Rica that was very vulnerable, unable to make two passes in a row. A party of two great candidates: one to go to the round of 16, the other to come out last. The Japanese have thought of everything and not only the team prepared: the fans of Japan have a repertoire What did they import from the Argentine fans? and when they celebrate, they do it alone when the traffic light cuts. They are so prepared that even they speak perfect spanish.
Group F: Belgium-Morocco, Croatia-Canada
De Bruyne, the Belgian star, has one wish and that is that this time they give him the best player award for deserving it: “I don’t think I played such a good game. I don’t know why I have taken this trophy. Maybe because of my name and reputation, ”he said after the first game. It is that the first date showed how difficult it is to choose a standout in this corner of the World Cup: this proved to be the most even group. Belgium won just enough. Canada lost by nothing. Croatia and Morocco did not draw any difference. The second date does not look very different.
Group G: Brazil-Switzerland, Cameroon-Serbia
The group started with a Swiss goal by a Cameroonian: it had never happened before that someone scored a goal against their home team. “I am the number one fan of my country,” he had said. He was referring to the native. This goal is the fruit of a divorce. At the end of the last century, when his parents separated, Breel Embolo went with his mother to Europe. What followed ended in an apology rather than a celebration.
Brazil (without Neymar?) has already warned: it is a candidate. Not only because he won, but because he did what must be done in a World Cup: he overcame adversity. The World Cup is more about solving problems than winning games.
What comes for Serbia and Cameroon will be a round of 16 duel: all or nothing. In the other game there will be contrasts. And for Brazil and Switzerland a clash of styles. One of the Brazilian virtues is to mess up: appear by surprise, invent a dribble, an individual imbalance. Switzerland is the opposite: nothing goes out of plan, everything is en bloc and collectively. In soccer, the equation of the global economy is reversed: here Brazil plays with plenty of resources and Switzerland manages the scarcity.
Group H: Uruguay-Portugal, South Korea-Ghana
Portugal won suffering against Ghana and it seems that this will be the norm of the group. Cristiano Ronaldo, who made history by converting at least one goal in five different World Cups, has a team to think of a History with capital letters; but, for now, not the regularity in the operation.
Uruguay and Korea decided to procrastinate. They did not want to take risks and postponed the vertigo for the following games. That moment has come: Uruguay will give revenge to Cristiano Ronaldo’s men after leaving them out of Russia 2018. The match, along with Spain-Germany, is one of those that could have occurred in the final instances but happens in the initial stages. Uruguay and Portugal are similar countries: small territories where people live well but where young people leave. They are countries with large diasporas and strong identities.
Iñaki Williams plays in Ghana, while his brother Nico plays for Spain. They arrived in the country as refugees and then each one decided to play for a different team and face a very different challenge in the World Cup. In Korea, on the other hand, they all look like brothers: half the team is called Kim. It is the surname of more than 20% of the population and means “gold”. In the upcoming game both teams need the patience of the metal miners; but, in addition, it will be a duel of physical resistance: neither team is characterized by getting tired.
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