Lionel Messi and Robert Lewandowski go into the matchup between Argentina and Poland on Wednesday with the possibility that this will be their last World Cup experience. Both two of the greatest stars of European club football could neglect to fit the bill for the knockout stages in Qatar and end their vocations without tasting glory at the most esteemed tournament of all.
Messi has already scored twice in his previous attempt to win the World Cup for Argentina as Diego Maradona did. He is trying to get the Albiceleste out of Group C after they were knocked out by Saudi Arabia in their first match.
Argentina salvaged their campaign by defeating Mexico by a score of 2-0. Only a win will ensure that Messi, 35,’s campaign in Qatar continues into December.
Fans in Argentina and a worldwide army of Messi fans who are eager to see him win the World Cup would be devastated by an Argentine exit.
It would also be a fitting way to end the career of one of the greatest football players ever, but coach Lionel Scaloni thinks it’s unnecessary to have such an argument.
After his team’s victory over Mexico to get their challenge back on track, he said, “It’s hard to make people understand that the sun will rise tomorrow, win or lose.“
“How you do things is what matters.“
When Lewandowski scored his “childhood dream” of scoring his first World Cup goal in his fifth match at the finals, a 2-0 victory over the Saudis, it brought him to tears.
If the Poles lose the tournament on Wednesday, the Barcelona forward is aware that he may not get another chance at this stage.
Lewandowski has a better chance of making the last 16 because Poland will advance with a win or a draw, and even if they lose, they will only be eliminated if Saudi Arabia defeats Mexico.
Despite the inevitable focus on the two big stars, Poland coach Czeslaw Michniewicz insisted that it wasn’t just a contest between the forwards.- USA knocks Iran out – On Tuesday, the United States defeated Iran 1-0 in geopolitical foes to advance to the knockout stage and set up a meeting with the Netherlands in the second round.
The Iranians were defeated in Doha by Christian Pulisic’s victory in the 38th minute.
Iran’s Football Federation demanded on Sunday that FIFA penalize US Soccer for posting a modified version of their country’s flag on social media prior to the bitter ideological rivals’ meeting.
Iran’s campaign came to an end with this defeat. Every move they made in Qatar was scrutinized to see if they were supporting the mass anti-government protests that have shaken the Islamic republic.
Carlos Queiroz, the coach, declared, “The dream is over.”Sadly football generally rebuffs the group that doesn’t score.“
After Gareth Southgate’s team defeated Wales 3-0 in a one-sided “Battle of Britain,” which was decided by a Marcus Rashford brace and another strike from Manchester City star Phil Foden,
Rashford said that his double at the Ahmad bin Ali Stadium, which included a stunning free-kick to open the scoring in the 50th minute, was “what I play football for.”
England will play Senegal on Sunday after Chelsea defender Kalidou Koulibaly won a 2-1 victory over Ecuador to knock out the South Americans and finish second in Group A behind the Dutch.
After guiding the Lions of Teranga into the round of 16 for the second time in their history, Koulibaly declared that he would present the man-of-the-match award to the family
Cody Gakpo his third goal of the competition as the Netherlands booked their place last 16 as gathering champs with a clear 2-0 victory over Qatar.
The worst World Cup performance ever by a host nation sees Qatar, which spent $200 billion to host the tournament, exit with zero points and just one goal scored.