The Fußball Chatter

In July 2018, in a packed Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow, France became champions of the world for a second time, defeating Croatia 4-2. It was a deserved victory for  Les Bleu,  navigating their way through the tournament, beating Argentina, Uruguay and Belgium on their route to the final. Blessed with the likes of Paul Pogba, N'golo Kante, Raphael Varane and Antoine Griezmann, France has produced another generation of players that has matched the class of 1998. Not to mention the emergence of Kylian Mbappe, who instantly became a worldwide phenomenon, scoring four goals plus the final, becoming the first teenager since Pele to score in a World Cup Final.  France has been a regular in the World Cup. However, in the last twenty-five years, they have become a force in the international scene. On Sunday, France will make their fourth appearance in the World Cup Final in just seven appearances. Their first time was in 1998 on home soil, where they defeated Brazil 3-0, with Zined...

When Argentina lost the 2014 FIFA World Cup Final to Germany, it felt like a missed opportunity to claim the coveted trophy in the home of their bitter rivals Brazil. They entered the final without conceding a goal, with two knockout games going into extra time. Not to mention their attacking options in Sergio Aguero, Gonzalo Higuain, Ezequiel Lavezzi, Angel Di Maria and Lionel Messi.  Messi's impact during the knockouts and the final was underwhelming, failing to score in the entire knockout phase. Though he won the Golden Ball (Best Player), it felt undeserved. Many greats of the game are lucky to reach one World Cup Final, and given what happened in the coming years for Messi and Argentina, 2014 was their best chance that got away from them. Now, come Sunday, Argentina has that rare second chance to win the World Cup. Argentina has made it to the sixth World Cup Final, making their second World Cup Final in three editions. They were winners for the first time in 1978 on home soi...

The Group Stages of the World Cup are almost over, and as of now, three teams have booked their place in the knockout stages, while two teams have been eliminated already. So, there is so much to play for in the final group games from Tuesday to Friday, with some teams having their own destiny in their hands while others will have to rely on the other fixture to get through the group. Here are the permutations of all the eight groups in the World Cup. GROUP A In Group A, the Netherlands and Ecuador are tied on four points each with the same goal difference, goals scored and goals conceded. The Netherlands top the group based on the fair play points. Senegal is third in the group with three points while Qatar is bottom of the group with zero points. Qatar is already eliminated, becoming the first host nation to be eliminated before the third game. Their final game is against the Netherlands at the Al Bayt Stadium. It would be a huge shock if Qatar gets anything against the Netherlands, ...

URUGUAY           Nickname:  La Celeste           Captain: Diego Godin          Key Player: Federico Valverde          Coach: Diego Alonso          Last World Cup Appearance: 2018 (Quarters) Despite being a small country in land mass and population, Uruguay is one of the best football nations in the world and has a remarkable legacy in the game. They were the first country to win the World Cup in 1930, winning a second World Cup against Brazil in 1950 at the Maracana, known as the  Maracanazo . Since 1950, Uruguay's best finish in the World Cup was a fourth-place finish in 1970 and 2010. They have not won silverware since 2011, winning Copa America and being knocked out in the quarterfinals of the 2021 Copa America, but have a new crop of Uruguayan players to Qatar. They finished third in CONMEBOL qualifying, winning their final four games to see off Col...

BRAZIL           Nickname: Selecao           Captain: Thiago Silva           Key Player: Neymar           Coach: Tite           Last World Cup Appearance: 2018 (Quarters) Brazil is the nation many associates with the game of football. Historically, they are the gold standard. They have won the World Cup five times, more than any nation on earth and have been to every World Cup since it began in 1930. Pele, Garrincha, Carlos Alberto, Zico, Socrates, Romario, Rivaldo, Ronaldo, and Ronaldinho have all worn the famous yellow jersey, becoming household names in the game. Since winning the World Cup in 2002, Brazil has been unable to reach the World Cup Final. They only made the semifinals once in 2014, which ended in complete humiliation, losing 7-1 to Germany on home soil. In the last World Cup, Brazil was eliminated in the quarterfinals by Belgium. In South America, ...

CANADA            Nickname:  Maple Leafs            Captain: Atiba Hutchinson           Key Player: Jonathan David           Coach: John Herdman           Last World Cup Appearance: 1986 (Group Stage) Many Canadians would say that football is not one of the major sports in the country. A backwater country in football as baseball, ice hockey and American football gain attention in Canada. Canada has only been in one World Cup, which was back in 1986 and has barely made it to the final round of qualifiers in CONCACAF ever since. In the CONCACAF region, they have won the Gold Cup twice, remaining the only nation to win the Gold Cup outside of the United States and Mexico. They reached the semifinals of the last Gold Cup, which was last year, losing 2-1 to Mexico. Canada's recent history and their rivals in the region make their World Cup qualification ...