World Cup Group stage: A celebration of heart, grit, and the beautiful game

It's 58 minutes into the match. Both teams have had their fair share of attempts at each other’s goalposts. France has four men lined up in defence only a few meters ahead of their goalie Steve Mandanda. Tunisia’s Aissa Laidouni meanwhile has flicked a loose ball over to his skipper Wahbi Khazri. The 44,000-odd attendees at Qatar’s Education City stadium — whether in the French blue or in the Tunisian red and white — will spend the next few seconds in shock and awe, as Khazri breaks into a blitz, ghosts past the French defence, and tucks away a beautiful, grounded shot into his opponent’s net. Mandanda has no chance. It’s the lightest of touches, at the uncanniest of angles.

For the rest of the match, France would hammer on at the Tunisian goalpost. Kylian Mbappe the menace that he can be, made incessant forays into his tired opponent’s penalty box. Antoine Griezmann even managed to capitalise and send one into the nets, only to be denied by an offside ruling. But all said and done, the Carthage Eagles walked out of the World Cup on stubborn legs, heads held high.  Before their gritty victory against the defending champions, they had lost to Australia and tied with Denmark in their earlier group games.

The Tunisia-France upset was very much in sync with the mood of the week at the FIFA World Cup 2022. It was a week of upsets and hard-fought ties as national teams played out the final leg of their group matchups. Whether it be Ecuador’s heartbreaking loss to Senegal, Morocco’s blistering attack on Canada, or Japan’s 2-1 rout of Spain which sent Germany home — traditionally minnow-ranked teams set up a display of shear heart and grit, as the big guns failed to fire.

Here's a look at the top three group matches this week.

Senegal outclasses Ecuador

In Group A, while the Netherlands cantered to a two-nil victory over Qatar, all eyes turned to Senegal and Ecuador — two teams that had won hearts with their gritty play in the previous matches. Heading into the tie, the Tricolours were the favourites, albeit by mere inches, having trounced Qatar two-nil and held the Netherlands to a 1-1 draw. Senegal on the other hand had begun their campaign with a loss against the Dutch but had pulled out a 3-1 win over the hosts.  

Heading into the game, the Lions of Teranga were on the attack from the start. Idrissa Gana Gueye, Boulaye Dia, and the rest of their attack squad battered on against the Ecuadorian defense. It was Ismailia Sarr’s 44th-minute penalty that broke the deadlock. But if Senegal ended the first half on a triumphant note, Ecuador was quick to pull one back in the second half with a beautiful set-piece finish by Moises Caicedo in the 67th minute. However, the Ecuadorian joy was short-lived as the Senegalese captain and defense mainstay Kalidou Koulibaly converted a free kick into the winning goal for his team.

The match ended with heart-breaking scenes for the Ecuadorian fans as members of their team could be seen on the verge of tears, exhausted and crestfallen, even before the final whistle sounded.

Morocco dream run continues

The Atlas Lions have been roaring from the beginning of this world cup. They finished top of their group, with a solid victory over Canada in their last group match. The match began with a Canadian calamity as goalie Milan Borjan’s heavy touch on receiving ball sent the possession to Morocco’s Hakim Ziyech, who rocketed one straight back into the Canadian goalpost. And there was no respite; within twenty minutes, Youssef en-Nesyri had charged through the Maple defence and bolted a second shot right past Borjan. While Canada’s Nayef Aguerd did pull one back at the 40th minute, it was the Moroccon defense and midfield that took the accolades away at the Al Thumama stadium, with their constrictive grip on the passes and the play.

Morocco’s final group stage match however is remarkable for its position in the series of performances that the North African nation has put forth. Their stubborn performance against the last world cup’s runners-up Croatia, and their thumping win over in-form Belgium, had set the mood for their triumphant campaign so far.

Japan, the giant killers of ‘22

They struck the first nail, and they were also the ones to hammer the final one into Germany’s world cup coffin. The Asian giants, who have now proved themselves the giant killer of Group E, Japan have so far defeated two of the last three world-cup-winners in their group matches. While their first victory against Die Mannschaft came as a shocker, their rout of la Furia Roja was pure class and a bit of controversy.  

Spain looked in complete control after Alvaro Morata headed the 2010 champions in front after just 11 minutes and they finished the first half with almost 80% possession. But the Samurai Blues roared back to life at the start of the second half, scoring two goals in the first six minutes. Half-time substitute Ritsu Doan smashed home the first at 48 minutes from outside the box as Spain was caught playing out of the back and goalkeeper Unai Simon failed to get enough on his attempted save to keep it out.

The second goal, initially disallowed with the ball appearing to roll out of play, was ultimately awarded after a VAR review. Kaoru Mitoma appeared to have deftly cut the ball back for Ao Tanaka to bundle in a close-range sneaker.

Japan's win knocked out Germany on points despite their 4-2 win over Costa Rica.

Time for knockout

As football’s quadrennial carnival heads into the Super-16 stage, all but 4 slots have been filled. The final four matches in Groups G and H will determine the last entrants into the knockout stage. Brazil and Portugal have all but qualified from their respective groups, with Switzerland and Ghana fast on their respective heels.

The group stages have so far proved to be a highly contested leg of the World Cup with several upsets, and tussles of human will on the green spread. With the form South Korea and Ghana are in, Group H is set up for a pitched battle for second place. Portugal takes on the Asian Tigers while the Black Stars will clash with Uruguay. In Group G, Switzerland needs a win if they want to sail on comfortably, while Cameroon will look to upset the equation with their own win.

Set Piece

End of the Martinez era

His eyes welling up, Belgium coach Roberto Martinez said his goodbyes and left, his next whereabouts unknown. It is the end of an era for Belgium's golden generation.

A return to club football is on Martinez' horizon after his six years in charge of Belgium ended in elimination at the group stage in Qatar with a goalless draw against Croatia on Thursday.

"I know some people only see a legacy by winning a major tournament. I see it in a different way," said Martinez, who was appointed in 2016. The silver-lining in his stint – a third-place finish at the 2018 World Cup.