Belgium and Germany depart on yet another day of VAR inspired madness
World Cup Diaries: Day 12.
World Cup Diaries: Day 12.
CROATIA 0
BELGIUM 0
So Belgium are out. Quelle surprise! Throughout all the pre-game shenanigans and tabloid headlines of bickering and infighting within the camp, there’s only one person to blame and that’s old father time himself. Belgium did indeed have that worn out cliché of a “Golden Generation”. You’ll get no arguments from me in this respect. But then again, you may also agree with me that Brazil, Germany, France and England can all lay claim to that tired, if truthful, moniker, and if you’re English like me you’ve heard this claim at least twice in the last two decades! All four of these powerhouse national football nations also keenly understand that they may well coast through their qualifying groups to reach the World Cup, be as unbeaten or near unbeatable as both Belgium and Argentina have been on their respective courses toward Qatar even, but once you’re at the World Cup itself you simply have to win it. The same goes for the Euro and Copa America tournaments. Golden generation or not, if you throw the unexpected triumphs of Greece and Portugal next to Spain’s trio of European and World success, there’s very little left to win. Spain had a 24 carat gold generation.
And they won the lot.
As I posited in my diary entry following Belgium’s 2–0 defeat by eventual Group F winners Morocco, this squad of players, this generation of players, got so very close, but ultimately failed. There’s no shame and there shouldn’t be any recriminations. Their wave has been flatlining for some time. This evening they had arguably the perfect opposition to play an in effect knock-out game. Croatia were more than happy with the pre-game draw that also guaranteed them qualification to the last 16 and the knock-out stages and they too are an ageing team who aren’t a particularly pacey or quick team and Belgium would enjoy more possession and time on the ball. That they did, especially so in a second half where they should have scored, perhaps scored again and qualified comfortably for the knock-out stages, but they didn’t and a golden generation of talented Belgian footballers are going home.
A dreadful first half was dominated by a penalty that never was, but was, before being rescinded due to an offside decision that the obnoxious VAR system isn’t designed for! Alas. But I’ll save my ire for this football killing system for later. Of more immediate concern is Belgium’s entirely and expected early departure from the World Cup and the genuine sorrow I have for their talismanic midfielder Kevin De Bruyne. Considering De Bruyne’s past and present connections to Chelsea and Manchester City I shouldn’t have such sorrow, but I do as he’s a world class generational talent in a golden generational team. In the absence of Eden Hazard, De Bruyne captained his team magnificently. Not only was he involved in nearly every promising goal scoring chance or opportunity for his team, he led his flagging team from the front and never stopped running or trying to influence the game and squeeze his bedraggled team into the Last 16.
Despite the argued positive aspects that a once formidable Belgium team could have exploited this evening, their ageing team didn’t, preferring to keep an already tight game even tighter and hoping to sneak a late second half goal. To this end, manager Roberto Martinez introduced Romelu Lukaku at half-time and their record goal scorer had three, possibly four clear goal scoring chances and rattled the inside of a post on the hour mark when he should have scored. The big striker fumbled and bumbled over two easy late chances on the cusp of full-time, but having only played a handful of minutes for Inter Milan leading into the World Cup he’s barely fit and badly, badly out of sorts.
So Croatia progress in large part to their masked giant of a central defender Josko Gvardiol who was magnificent all evening and at 20 years of age will surely be poached from his current club RB Leipzig following the World Cup.
Croatia now face Japan in a World Cup story yet to be told this coming Monday.
And Belgium are out. Quelle surprise. Their ageing squad will be dismantled. A new manager will presumably soon be installed to guide their next younger batch of generational talent to major tournament glory. This “Golden Generation” came so close, so very, very close, but it’s not easy winning the Euros or a World Cup.
Just ask Spain.
JAPAN 2 (Doan 48, Tanaka 51)
SPAIN 1 (Morata 11)
That tired old footballing cliché and truism of a “Game of Two Halves” has never been more starkly demonstrated. Spain were their usual incredible footballing selves in a first half they completely and utterly dominated and whilst revelling in a 1–0 lead given to them by a striker actually playing as a striker, Alvaro Morata, they caressed and cajoled the ball around a baffled Japan in a game described on UK commentary as having an “air of a practice match”. I was primarily focussed on the individual display from their little genius in the number 26 shirt, Pedri, and whilst he was effective in the all Barcelona midfield alongside Gavi and Sergio Busquets, he was little more than that in a, dare I say, disappointing overall individual performance? He rescued his captain Busquets on just 5 minutes after the Barca water carrier supreme made an uncharacteristic mistake and was always within the middle third of a pitch constantly dominated by his team, even when 2–1 down in the second half. But I’ve watched this incredible playmaker avidly now throughout the World Cup and he simply hasn’t shone at all.
Regardless, Spain were fantastic and had the game and qualification as Group winners in the palm of their hand at half-time before crumbling into pieces before our collectively astonished eyes. Make no mistake, Spain really did crumble. The first half zest and verve that was bubbling along, if not entirely boiling, fizzled out after going 2–1 down and they created very little even with their World Cup future on the line. Individual errors, repeatedly loose passes and a general lack of cohesion they could have sold a billion times over from their first half display. They look rattled and most worrying of all, they didn’t appear as though they had an answer.
Meanwhile, Japan manager Hajime Morijasu deserves enormous kudos for seeing the blindingly obvious (his team needed an injection of pace and an attacking thrust) and combined with an inspirational half-time team talk and more than a little luck, his team replicated their quick fire comeback in overcoming and defeating Germany earlier in the Group stages to repeat the trick even more impressively this evening. Germany are now out of the World Cup and we'll return to the repercussions (or otherwise) of this shortly, but from being completely outplayed to the point of chasing shadows in the first half, the introduction of Ritsu Doan and Kaoru Mitoma turned the game on its head, and the enthusiasm, energy, feel good factor as well as their magnificent fans sees Japan winning Group E, defeating two ex World Cup winning nations in the process, and they now face Croatia on Monday for a place in the quarter-finals of the World Cup.
And so to that spectre of footballing death that is VAR. Japan are worthy winners both this evening and of their qualifying group. Spain were cast iron certainties to win the group but they didn’t, and now face Morocco on Tuesday for a place in the quarter-finals. Germany are out and like Belgium, they’re on their way home, despite beating Costa Rica 4–2 this evening in a topsy-turvy game befitting a team desperate for goals and a longer stay in the competition. The rub of course is that all of these possible permutations and eventualities were thrown into a chaotic mess by the autocratic and energy killing Video Assistant Referee (VAR) system.
Please cast your eye to the image headlining this article — Substitute Kaoru Mitoma (9) squares the ball across the Spain 6 yard area for Ao Tanaka (out of picture) to bundle home his 51st minute goal, but is the ball out of play? The image would seem to suggest so, as did the one (and only) replay we were all shown in real time but, according to those ghouls, killjoys and goblins at VAR, the curvature of the ball was overhanging the line and so goal Japan!
I despise VAR with every fibre of my footballing soul and should you ever delve into my football archives you’ll see the above statement is tame in comparison to my other thoughts on this soul sucking, energy draining, deliberate dumbing down of my and your sport. Then the footballing establishment take this affront to live sports, give the watching world next to zero feedback on what they, and they alone, are deciding on, and then they still get a horrible decision horribly wrong. Brilliant!
They are, in effect, telling us as a watching audience to not believe our own eyes. There are serious and sinister undertones and it’s beyond madness.
VAR — The death knell of “The Beautiful Game”.
So much for all that.
Belgium and Germany are going home. Croatia will beat Japan on Monday (though I’ll be cheering on the feel good boys) and Spain will overcome Morocco. But…….Pedri isn’t firing, their goalkeeper isn’t the outfield player he wishes he is and I don’t think Spain are good enough, yet, to replicate their “total football” success of a decade’s past. I see marvellous and wondrous football played on football’s greenest grass. I also see a goalkeeper and a defensive unit prone to a footballing rick and a costly mistake ahead that may eliminate Spain before this particular golden generation is ready to rule again.
Back tomorrow with a special diary entry on Brazil versus Cameroon.
Thanks for reading. In addition to the delights that can be found within the cave of wonders that is my archives, I’m penning a day to day diary of the World Cup, and here are days 9 through 11:
Magnificent Mac Allister steers Argentina into the Last 16
World Cup Diaries: Day 11medium.com
Two captains performances see the “Lions of Teranga” and the USA through to the last 16
World Cup Diaries: Day 10medium.com
Portugal’s progress is made in Manchester as Uruguay’s demise is a relic to a footballing past
World Cup Diaries: Day 9medium.com