On a couple of days where Manchester United have done their utmost to steal headlines through utter implosion, the 2022 World Cup has rumbled on with big shocks and tight tactical battles.
That is without mentioning the continuing shame of FIFA amidst their decision to block the ‘OneLove’ armband being worn, with Denmark and Germany keeping the matter in the news agenda with small protests of their own.
Seeing as we didn’t cover things yesterday on the day itself, let’s wind back the clock to how it all began on day three in Qatar.
It all seemed to be going so well for Argentina at half-time against Saudi Arabia.
Lionel Scaloni’s two-time world champions could well have been 4-0 up at half-time had it not been for an extremely well-judged offside trap from the Saudis, who many including myself had underrated in the build-up.
Playing in a beautiful green away kit, Hervé Renard’s outfit were well-drilled and stuck to their task against a predictably offensive Argentine side.
What those in blue and white hadn’t counted on was a sudden onslaught, and when the Saudis broke through, they seemed incapable of responding.
Having qualified for successive World Cups in consistently impressive form, Saudi knew exactly what their qualities were and had more than enough to hold off a shell-shocked Argentina.
It was a fabulous shock and got this World Cup up and running in terms of memorable moments.
Elsewhere, there was the mundane and the exhilarating, mixed in with some intrigue too.
Denmark and Tunisia, and then Mexico and Poland, produced 180 minutes – or much more – of goalless football, but the better action was probably to be found in the former.
Tunisia were genuinely impressive, with more industry than they had four years ago when opening against England. This time, they were not here to sit back and defend.
Kasper Schmeichel made a fabulous save in the first half, while Aymen Dahmen did likewise in the second.
Denmark pushed and pushed late on, but it was not to be their day, with the spoils shared to leave Group D very much in the balance.
Mexico vs Poland was a tale of a missed penalty from Robert Lewandowski, and again left Group C in the balance with these two both hoping to progress to the knockout stages.
France, meanwhile, had the compulsory wobble but didn’t go the whole hog as reigning world champions in chaotically losing their first game.
Instead, they were rather thrilling in how they dispatched Australia.
Injury-hit and burdened with great pressure, the French adapted to life without Karim Benzema, Paul Pogba, N’Golo Kante and Christopher Nkunku but blended the old with the new.
Olivier Giroud might have even stolen the show from Kylian Mbappé, with the old timer on hand to deliver a brace that broke the hearts of Graham Arnold’s Socceroos.
On Wednesday, the show really had everything.
It began with a hard-fought battle between Croatia and Morocco, where the North Africans were probably the better team against the 2018 World Cup finalists.
They have a really strong squad, with a solid defence and a promising frontline in Hakim Ziyech, Youssef En-Nesyri and Sofiane Boufal, and I’d wager the Moroccans will be delighted with a point to start their campaign.
Next up was Germany against Japan, where anything could happen in a wide-open Group E, arguably the real ‘Group of Death’ in this tournament.
What unfolded at the Khalifa International Stadium was another seismic shock in World Cup history.
Like the Argentines, Germany were cruising at stages, with a 1-0 lead thanks to İlkay Gündoğan’s penalty and plenty of chances afterwards.
Japan dug in, showed all the spirit that almost took them into the Quarter-Finals in 2018, and reaped the rewards with a late surge for a stupendous victory.
Spain, meanwhile, flattened, pummelled and obliterated Costa Rica.
It kicked off Group F with a deafening slam, with the Central American nation offering very little up against a well-drilled, free-flowing Spain team – albeit one who aren’t at the levels of 2010.
Luis Enrique’s side may well have announced themselves as genuine contenders with this performance, although further context will be required in a totally different game against Germany next.
Finally, we came to Belgium vs Canada tonight; the football hipster’s dream match-up.
A great candidate to be everyone’s second team at this tournament, Canada were thoroughly impressive on their long-awaited return to the greatest stage, having only ever qualified for the 1986 World Cup before this.
Their squad now is packed with talent but retains the grit of the unheralded boys of ’86, who only conceded five goals against the mighty France, Hungary and the Soviet Union.
They fought for everything and probably matched an imperfect Belgium side for the most part, making life difficult for the Europeans.
Michy Batshuayi’s smash-and-grab first-half goal decided it, though, and it all felt a little underwhelming given what could have been – Alphonso Davies’ missed penalty particularly considered.
So, it was a fascinating couple of days’ action – slow at times, but never short of talking points.
Today, we look forward to Switzerland 3-1 Cameroon, Uruguay 2-0 South Korea, Portugal 2-2 Ghana, and to top things off Brazil 1-2 Serbia.
Wishful thinking?
We’ve seen bigger shocks…
Feature Image Credit: BBC Sport YouTube