Morocco blocked up France pretty well, but once Mbappe found the goal (sweet rip!) and then Dembele followed soon after (sneaky touch!), that was it for Morocco. They had the right idea and both of the goals were really nice, so they held on as best they could, but it never felt like they were going to score, so they had to get to PK's to make it work. Outside of that 8-or-so minute stretch, Morocco was hanging.
Spain 2-1 Belgium
Worth noting that both of Spain's goals were off sloppy rebounds, as dominant as their possession is and as much as we want to anoint Yamal as the next super stud, their goal scoring is shaky at best. Belgium was savvy enough to keep it close, get the first goal back, perhaps if their goalkeeper hadn't gone out for injury, maybe they survive into overtime. But it wasn't to be, Spain was too good at keeping Belgium out of any offensive rhythm and got enough luck to move on.
England 2-1 (OT) Norway
Strange game. Neither Harry Kane (England) nor Erleng Haaland (Norway), two of the bust out stars of this Cup, did much of anything in this match. Norway took the lead on a sweet sneaky strike--Norway's achilles' heel in this match was using Haaland as a decoy rather than a for-real target and though it got the their first goal, it didn't get them any more than that. But Jude Bellingham had a moment of brilliance to bring the score back level. Norway's lethargic offense was on display for the first 20 minutes or so, but after the hydration break, they went balls to the wall for about the next 60 minutes. But the Miami heat just kinda wore them down and when Bellingham stuck in a rebound in the extra frame, it felt like the dagger. Both teams were dragging hard by the end. Norway had a good run, Haaland was definitely one of this year's stand-outs, but their offense was just too creaky to get any further than this.
Argentina 3-1 (OT) Switzerland
Argentina stole the lead early on a header in the first 10 minutes, my immediate thought was "okay, this game ends one nothing." And it felt like that for the rest of the 1st half. But Switzerland equalized after halftime, pretty quickly followed by a screwy red card: Swiss had the ball, appeared to be fouled by the Argentine defender, ref gives Argentine a yellow card, replay shows that Swiss guy flopped, so the ref--because he gave out an initial yellow--felt the need to give the flopper a yellow, which was the dude's second and he got tossed. So, look, it was a pretty ordinary looking foul, I didn't think it warranted a yellow card, but when he flipped his call, now he had to give the other guy, which was even less warranted. This basically forced the Swiss to bunker and counter, which they otherwise probably wouldn't have done. Argentina was totally uninspiring for 90 minutes but when Alvarez had an opening, he drilled it (*). They added another as the Swiss went into sell out mode. Argentina is just lolling along, I don't understand how they've been able to get this far, even Messi is starting to slow down and this team just isn't that impressive.
Semifinals
Spain - France
Okay, Spain, it's Yamal time! I have no doubt that Spain can hang with France, but if they're gonna beat France they're going to have to score--probably more than once! And Yamal is the only one with that level of danger. Spain can stifle the French, they can make the French work, they can dodge and parry and counter, but to win they're gonna need goals, because France just needs a minute to light up the scoreboard. If this gets to OT, I think that favors France; if it gets to PKs, that probably still favors France. Spain needs to win it in regulation and that requires keeping France at bey (which they can do) and putting the ball in the net (which....I don't know if they can do that). I can totally see a game where Spain dominates possession for 85 minutes and loses 2-0. Again, France has too many advantages for Spain to keep up with. Gotta go with France.
Argentina - England
Argentina has been the most frustrating side to watch in this Cup. Outside of Messi being Messi, this team is so unimpressive, they're so not particularly good at anything, they're so lucky in the front and the back. I know they have pedigree, they're loaded with int'l talent and yet, outside of Messi, they're not interesting to watch and they don't seem reliable in any way. England is dangerous up front, just good enough in the back, but can they control the midfield against Argentina? I think they can and I think they have more all-round scoring punch than Argentina. Gotta go with England.
(*) I knew it was in before he took the shot. Needed the right touch but he had the opening and he nailed it. Hell of a shot.
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