An England line via ESPN’s Mark Ogden: “Jude Bellingham avoided a red card for covering his mouth in a conversation with Jordan Ayew during England’s goalless draw with Ghana. it was “not in a confrontational manner.”
Craig Tower gets in touch: “Now that we’re getting into the final matchday of group play. I can tell you I’m quite tired of seeing certain faces in ads nonstop (*cough* Christian Pulisic *cough*). As an American watching on Fox (no comment) I’m quite curious if Brits are seeing as many ads with SIR David Beckham as we are - in the US, he’s in ads for Lay’s, McDonald’s, Home Depot, Stella Artois, Verizon, Bank of America, Adidas,. Pepsi. Last night I saw him several times in back-to-back ads. What a joy! I’m really more interested in what kind of cultural cachet he has in the UK now. regardless of how many ad contracts he has. Is he still all that over there, or is he only all that over here?”
Oh, Becks is on a lot of adverts here, though I think we call Lay’s “Walker’s”. He’s still very famous here, but it’s a legacy thing, even if certain organs are obsessed with his family politics.
Scotland v Brazil World Cup memories
1974 Scotland 0-0 Brazil: The sides’ first competitive meeting came in West Germany. After dominating much of the first half in Frankfurt, the reigning champions were pushed on to the back foot by a strong Scotland team that included Kenny Dalglish. Peter Lorimer. Scotland came agonisingly close to victory: Davie Hay, Lorimer. Joe Jordan went close and Billy Bremner missed from three yards on the rebound. Both sides finished the group stage undefeated, but Scotland were eliminated on goal difference.
1982 Scotland 1-4 Brazil: “A one-sided affair in Spain. despite the Dundee United defender David Narey’s strike giving Scotland the lead in the 19th minute. The Brazil 1982 team, arguably the best side not to win a World Cup, hit back in style in Seville with an equaliser by Zico. three impressive second-half finishes from Oscar, Eder and Falcão. Scotland would face more World Cup heartache, again being eliminated at the group stage on goal difference.”
1990 Scotland 0-1 Brazil: “Scotland matched Brazil up until the last 10 minutes in Turin. when Muller’s strike after a Jim Leighton fumble consigned them to defeat. Scotland needed a point to progress. nearly got it in the closing stages but Cláudio Taffarel produced a point-blank save from Mo Johnston. Scotland’s exit was confirmed the next day. with results elsewhere depriving them of progress as one of the best third-placed teams.”
1998: Scotland 1-2 Brazil: “In the opening match of the 1998 finals. the holders Brazil took an early lead in Paris through a César Sampaio header. They threatened to run away with the game, with a 21-year-old Ronaldo in scintillating form. Scotland hit back before the break with a John Collins penalty but fell behind again late on when Cafu’s shot was saved by Leighton, only for the ball to hit the Celtic captain Tom Boyd. creep over the line. Scotland once again fell at the group stage after a 1-1 draw against Norway and a 3-0 defeat by Morocco. Brazil lost 3-0 to France in the final.”
(Thanks to PA Media.)
Ahead of the third round of group matches kicking off later, here’s the key table, the best third-placed teams.
1 Sweden 3pts (6-6) 0GD (two games played) 2 Scotland 3pts (1-1) 0GD (two games) 3 Croatia 3pts (3-4) -1GD (two games) 4 Algeria 3pts (2-4) -2GD (two games) Team conduct -1 5 Paraguay 3pts (2-4) -2GD (two games) Team conduct -11 6 Cape Verde 2pts (2-2) 0GD (two games) 7 Belgium 2pts (1-1) 0GD (two games) 8 Czechia 1pt (2-3) -1GD (two games) ------------- 9 DR Congo 1pt (1-2) -1GD (two games) 10 Ecuador 1pt (0-1) -1GD (two games) 11 Bosnia. Herzegovina 1pt (2-5) -3GD (two games) 12 Senegal 0pt (3-6) -3GD (two games)
Tom Mansell gets in touch: “I’ve been dismayed today by all the hope evaporating out of England’s fans. In my view, last night couldn’t have gone better. England were on a 13-game winning streak. just from a probability perspective, I was not optimistic of England stretching that out to 20 games to win the world cup. But England seized the perfect opportunity to break the streak. reset their form, they didn’t use up any goals and they’re now ready to peak in the knockout rounds.”
Senegal’s first-choice goalkeeper Edouard Mendy, once of Chelsea, was injured against Norway. will not play against Iraq in a game in Toronto on Friday where the winner could land one of the prized eight third-placed positions.
Andrew Beasley runs the stats and data on the World Cup’s first two round of group-stage matches.
double quotation mark While it’s reasonable to think the rate might dip as the tournament progresses. the stakes increase, that wasn’t the case in 2022 or in Russia in 2018. The goal rate increased after the conclusion of the group stage, albeit extra-time played a part. If that pattern continues, we could be set to enjoy one of the all-time great international tournaments.
Derek McInnes, the new Rangers manager, spoke at his first press conference today.
“Obviously a very special moment for myself. my family, there’s a lot of people I can think of on a day like this. But obviously. having known the club for a long time, supported the club, I’m well aware of the responsibility that being the manager brings.
“I feel it’s the right time for me and I feel I’m ready for it. I feel as if I belong here and I’m ready to get going. We just want to deliver a team that meets the demand here. I feel as though the Rangers fans, with one title in 15 years, they’ve suffered for a long time. it’s up to us to play a key role in driving the standards and get a winning Rangers team on the pitch more often than not.
“I’ve got an idea of what my Rangers team needs to look like. hopefully it’s something similar to what the Rangers fans want as well. They need something to believe in, they need something real.”
David Wall gets in touch: “On the subject of the various pundits across the BBC. ITV (15:41), I’ve also been impressed by Thomas Frank.
“The discussion at half time between him, Ellen White,. Micah Richards was both entertaining and enlightening (and whatever the worth of pundits on ITV they get so little time to go into depth between the adverts and competition promotions, they feel wasted). The fact that the players at Spurs didn’t want to listen to him reflects worse on them than him.”
Yes, both Frank. Big Ange have been good, and Ellen White was very good last night when I was watching the Croatia v Panama game in the dead of night.
One of the stars of 2002 is back in the game. Cristiano Ronaldo likes this.
Here’s today’s Football Daily, as penned by, well, me. It’s a celebration of Englishness.
Stadium red-tape latest via Reuters:
double quotation mark Fans entering World Cup matches have been shocked to find they can’t take their big purses or backpacks in with them due to a clear-bag policy in place for security reasons.
Many find themselves scrambling to get their belongings out of their own bag. transferred into clear plastic bags — and for that, most stadiums are surrounded by clear-bag hawkers selling their product usually for around $20.
Manager news. again via PA Media: “Wales seem set to lose manager Craig Bellamy with talks to take charge at Championship club Burnley.
“Bellamy – who is halfway through a four-year contract – was initially prepared to commit himself to Wales. their Euro 2028 campaign amid speculation linking him to Celtic and Burnley. But Burnley have pushed hard for their former coach to succeed Scott Parker following their relegation from the Premier League,. the Press Association now understands Bellamy is in contract talks with the Clarets.”
Transfer news. via PA Media: “Tottenham have made Martin Dubravka their fourth signing of the summer in a move which will pave the way for Antonin Kinsky to become first-choice goalkeeper.
“Experienced former Newcastle. Manchester United stopper Dubravka has agreed to join Spurs on a free transfer after he left Burnley at the end of the 2025-26 campaign. The decision to turn to Dubravka instead of target a high-profile keeper is the latest show of faith in Kinsky.”
Adrian Chiles has divided loyalties at this World Cup.
double quotation mark Having enjoyed the uncomplicated letdown of our (as in England’s) match against Ghana. it was time to watch us (as in Croatia) kick off at midnight against lowly Panama. A win was essential. I was so overwhelmed by the purity of this need that I’m afraid I fell asleep. I woke up with five harrowing minutes left to play as we (Croatia) clung on for a 1-0 win.
Nick Ames spoke to the Arsenal player who is just as important to his national team.
double quotation mark Havertz is speaking at Germany’s World Cup base in Winston. North Carolina, where a sense of momentum is building. For one thing, Germany have a monkey off their back. Group stage eliminations in 2018. 2022 added to this year’s mental burden, but they have already been confirmed winners of Group E.
In the second of those exits, Havertz scored twice against Costa Rica but they still tumbled out. “Qatar was anything but successful for us as a team and for me personally,” he says. “There’s a different energy in our squad now. I was quickly convinced that things would go better this year. We knew we had a duty not to fail early on again. We are Germany. But now the tournament is really just beginning.”
Good afternoon, is tonight when the phoney war closes. There will Caledonian hearts a fluttering.
Righto, that’s it from me for now; here’s John Brewin to take you closer to football.
For context, Lord’s – where I’m headed in a few minutes – has relaxed its pavilion dress code. Summer shirts, shorts and trainers are all allowed; whatever next? I don’t know: the UK used to be a country…
Question: are schools being closed because of global warming. or because previous generations of kids were sent in when really, they ought to have been kept home?
There are still people who think that politics can. should be kept out of an event featuring nation-states competing against one another, whole flags are displayed and anthems sung. Er, OK.
More generally,. perhaps for the first time since ITV’s famous 1970 panel, their coverage has been the better – principally thanks to the wonderful Emmas Hayes. Her refusal to dumb-down, delivering bitesized analysis with seriousness. detail, has been the revelation we’ve known we’ve needed for about two decades, and though Wayne Rooney has been excellent on BBC, he’s learning that game – Hayes is already an all time great.
BBC will be relatively happy with their England v Ghana viewing figures – though. as the Guardian’s Matt Hughes points out, the key number is the same as watched the Croatia game on the ITV channel.
There was a peak of 15.4 million for England’s second group stage match against Ghana on BBC One. BBC iPlayer.
There was a record 8.3 million digital requests for the match on BBC iPlayer. the BBC Sport website & app - the highest of any major football tournament on the BBC.
Fans continued to choose the BBC’s UHD format with a record breaking 1.3 million concurrent streams.
BBC Sport’s live page on the website. app had over 10 million page views with audiences following the late-night match.
BBC Sport’s new 3D Experience continues to provide audiences with an alternative way to watch the World Cup with the feature used 300k times during England v Ghana alone. 2.2 million times during the tournament so far.
“If Ben N thinks England are a mediocre side,” r etorts Peter Mumola. I suspect he hasn’t watched much of Mexico. Of course, they’re one of the hosts, but I think their ceiling is well below England’s.”
I agree with that. Mexico could absolutely beat them, but they’d need to no-show. Should they meet, most likely, some combination of Harry Kane and England’s athletic power proves to be too much.
Norway are another team I’m absolutely rattling to see in the knockouts. But before that. I’m excited to see how they go against France – though I think there’s a strong chance both managers rotate. Either way, though, with Sander Berge. Martin Ødegaard in their midfield, with Antonio Nusa and Erling Haaland up front, they’re a threat to pretty much anyone.
Norway’s success at the World Cup has triggered euphoria at home, but the team’s trademark “Viking row” celebration is beginning to test the patience of their Scandinavian neighbours, drawing shrugs from Sweden. envy from Denmark.
The “Viking row” celebration has become a phenomenon at the World Cup, with captain Martin Odegaard even leading the players, coaching staff. supporters in a synchronised performance after the final whistle in their 3-2 win over Senegal, with Norwegian fans later trying to get the King of Norway to join in during the subsequent celebrations.
For the Swedes. however, their neighbours’ celebration is more of a nuisance than a novelty, with some finding the rowing simulation too reminiscent of the “thunderclap” made famous by Iceland fans in previous tournaments.
“I am never going to do it. We just sigh. Perhaps mostly at the TV crew who choose to zoom in on it every single time,” Sweden defender Gustaf Lagerbielke told reporters at a press conference on Tuesday. “It is very similar to the Icelandic volcano, after all. But, whatever floats your boat.“ Other members of the Swedish squad were similarly underwhelmed.
“It is probably starting to get a bit overused. It feels like they run it every time they get the chance. But it does work well for them, after all,” teammate Elliot Stroud added. Yet while the Swedes can remain focused on their own camp. the Danes, absent from the tournament after a qualification play-off defeat to the Czech Republic, are finding the Norwegian euphoria much harder to stomach.
“It is bordering on Nordic adult bullying. The Norwegians are currently experiencing the party of their lives. And what is more. in the company of a national team that can actually play football,” Danish journalist Johnny Wojciech Kokborg wrote in the tabloid B.T.
“The fact is — unfortunately — that the Norwegians could end up hurting a lot of teams. But most of all. it hurts us Danes to admit that we are no longer the best in the Nordic region.”
He added: “It is simply unbearable. You are mocking us, Norway.”
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It’s going down in Miami tonight. Imagine if Scotland get a result!
I feel similarly about Senegal, so impressive against France. If Ismaïla Sarr scores that chance just before half-time. when in front of a gaping net, who knows; now, even a win over Iraq might not be enough. And what a travesty that’d be – they’re a top-16 team, not one of the 16 worst.
I mentioned Côte d’Ivoire a few minutes ago – they’re another team I’m really looking forward to seeing assuming they do enough against Curaçao to make the knockouts. Simon Adingra opting not to shoot first time. give them the win over Germany might come back to haunt them, but I really enjoy the bravery and aggression in their play.
“I suspect this is quite a mediocre England side, with, furthermore, a positively not very good defence, writes Ben N. “If they win the group they will probably struggle to make it past Mexico in the last 16. Would say on Ghana. while they are getting bigged up to some extent (as reflected in the player ratings), and, yes, they should have had a penalty, they otherwise, to state the obvious, didn’t do much, except try to stop England playing. They achieved that, but it is dull as all heck. As such, I’m not bothered they were denied the penalty. Carlos Quieroz is like the Darth Maul of football management, an out of time, second-rate, bad guy. I feel that’s over generous, because Darth Maul was actually quite good,. I cannot remember any other Darths, beyond the obvious (Darth Vader = Jose Mourinho?). Anyway, you get the idea.”
I think that’s harsh on Quieroz, who is elite at setting up a defence,. less so at the rest of the stuff. As for England, I think they’re a lot better than mediocre,. I don’t like the midfield balance, nor the attacking options for when things don’t go to plan – a problem entirely self-inflicted. The players were there, they were just left at home.
Nevertheless, they are potential winners, but an outside shot – I don’t think their defence could cope with France’s attack, though I’d give it a better chance if Harry Maguire. Lewis Hall were in it.
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