DOHA, Qatar (AP) — After 64 games, 172 goals and one of the best finals in history, 2022 World cup it’s over.
Argentina is champion for the third time after beating France on penalties. Lionel Messi he finally has in his hands the golden trophy that had eluded him for a long time.
Here’s a look at some of the highlights of the tournament, and the low points:
BEST PLAYER
Lionel Messi won the Ballon d’Or as the best player of the tournament. He has never played better at a World Cup, scoring seven goals, providing three assists and being Argentina’s star player in all seven games. He also made a record 26 World Cup appearances to break Lothar Matthaus’s record. Messi definitively joins Pele and Diego Maradona in the pantheon of great soccer players.
THE BIGGEST FAILURE
Considering his name and profile, and the drama he had created with an explosive pre-tournament interview, Portugal superstar Cristiano Ronaldo could hardly have had a worse tournament. OK, he converted a penalty against Ghana to become the first man to score in five different World Cups, but nothing else went right for the player currently without a club. He tried, and failed, to claim a header against Uruguay, he showed a bad attitude after being substituted against South Korea at the annoyance of his coach, then was benched against Switzerland and Morocco in the round of 16. he cried after Portugal’s 1-0 loss to Morocco that ended his World Cup career, and finished the tournament with a single goal.
BEST GOAL
Brazil striker Richarlison had his back to goal when he used a touch to launch the ball into the air near the penalty spot, then spun and jumped off the ground to fire a spectacular acrobatic shot into the net. They sealed a 2-0 victory over Serbia in the group stage and made the Brazilians forget about the injured Neymar for a moment.
BEST SAVINGS
There were 20 seconds left in stoppage time in extra time in the final when French striker Randal Kolo Muani cleared past Argentine goalkeeper Emi Martínez. The win, the title, was there for France, but Martinez stuck out his left leg to keep the ball out. It was a save as important as all of Messi’s goals.
BEST MATCH
Argentina participated in the two best. First, the team’s quarterfinal match against the Netherlands he had it all: goals, prowess, late drama via an 11th-minute stoppage-time goal to make it 2-2, a penalty shootout, a world-record 17 yellow cards and a red card after the whistle. There was even the sight of Lionel Messi interrupting their post-match pitch interview to yell insults at a Dutch player: “What are you looking at, stupid?” Then came the final at the same Lusail Stadium, which could have surpassed it.
MOST DISAPPOINTING TEAM
Belgium came in as the second ranked team and with some of the most famous players in the world. They scored a goal, they didn’t leave their group and the coach Roberto Martínez left his position. Germany, coming out of the group stage for the second consecutive World Cup, is a close second.
BEST MOMENT
It’s a packed field at a World Cup that holds so many upsets, but nothing compares to the moment the Netherlands stunned Argentina with a daring free kick in the 11th minute of stoppage time in the second half of their wild quarterfinal game. final to take it to extra time. Instead of firing from the edge of the box in virtually the last pass of the game, Teun Koopmeiners fired a short pass into the center of the box, Wout Weghorst took a touch and held his marker before scoring a shot. in the stretch
BEST FANS
That of Morocco because of the noise, that of Argentina because of pure passion, and that of Japan for the way they order what they dirty.
REVELATION
At 31, Antoine Griezmann reinvented himself as a midfielder for France, having played as a forward for his entire career. He was one of the tournament players.
BEST DATE
“I had a feeling this was the one.” — Lionel Messi after winning the World Cup for the first time.
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Steve Douglas is at https://twitter.com/sdouglas80
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AP World Cup coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/world-cup and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
