[ad_1]
The quarter-finals of the World Cup will start in Russia with two games on Friday and two more on Saturday.
Friday's action features the toughest side of the game, Uruguay facing France early in the game. The two winners will face each other in Tuesday's semifinal
None of the four teams playing Friday would seem out of place in the World Cup final, unlike the other side of the table. is significantly lower with England and Croatia. , Russia and Sweden.
The key story for Uruguay is the physical condition of the striker Edinson Cavani . He was superb against Portugal but he had a hamstring and he is unlikely to be ready in time.
His lining is a veteran Cristhian Stuani which is a big drop in quality. Stuani has never been a great striker for Uruguay, although he is enjoying a good season in Spain with Girona. He will mainly seek to create space for Luis Suarez .
The key player for France is Kylian Mbappe who is a teammate of Cavani at Paris Saint-Germain. The 20-year-old was sensational against Argentina. Can he do it again?
The defense of Uruguay was strong, led by Diego Godin and Jose Giminez . A key match could be Godin wrestling in the air with the French striker Olivier Giroud . Uruguay will also need great defensive play from its young midfielder, in particular Lucas Torreira and Matias Vecino . Blaise Matuidi
The second game offers a bit of a rebound. I usually talk about Brazil's offensive flair against European disciplined defense. This time it is Brazil with strong defense and Belgium that brings flair.
Thiago Silva and Miranda were outstanding on a Brazilian defense that only granted one goal in the tournament and only five shots on goal. They are confronted with a powerful attack led by Belgium Eden Hazard, Romelu Lukaku and Kevin De Bruyne .
Brazil has many options of attack on its own. Philippe Coutinho has always been good, while Willian on the right is better and better. Young Gabriel Jesus was disappointing, so we could see a start for Roberto Firmino . And then there is Neymar .
Obviously, Neymar is a special player who can do magic with the ball, but his flop and roll are so useless. People who understand the game can see further, but I'm worried about the typical North American sports fan who watches the World Cup and sees the shameful antics of Neymar.
This is where I would like to see FIFA crack down with video game review. Distribute suspensions for ridiculous play, and players will get the message
As for Belgium, Thibaut Courtois is an excellent goalkeeper, but Vincent Kompany and Jan Vertonghen's defense seemed vulnerable. Belgium has the talent to surpbad most teams, but Brazil is not like most teams. This team from Belgium seems very heavy and this imbalance could be exposed in this game.
Bob Lenarduzzi is president of Vancouver Whitecaps FC. For tickets visit: whitecapsfc.com/tickets
CLICK HERE to report a typo
Is there more to this story? We would love to hear from you about this or other stories you think you need to know. Email [email protected]
Source link
