Qatar 2022: FIFA World Cup Overview
Messi and Argentina Seal Table in Incredible Final
A Look Back at an Unforgettable Tournament
The 2022 FIFA World Cup final truly featured the full spectrum of human emotion for both sets of fans. In a roller coaster ride in which they gave up 2-0 and 3-2 leads, Lionel Messi and Argentina defeated a depleted France side in penalties. The match was a microcosm for the entire tournament, which ranks among the best in the competition’s history. Messi sealed his legacy, Morocco made history and Croatia went on another run. We’ll cover the biggest storylines from the tournament in this World Cup overview.
The Greatest Final of All Time
For the better part of 80 minutes, it looked like Argentina would cruise to victory over defending champions France. La Albiceleste went up 2-0 in the first half from Lionel Messi and Angel di Maria goals. Then, they went on cruise control and France looked largely unthreatening. France coach Didier Deschamps was forced into replacing forwards Olivier Giroud and Ousmane Dembele before halftime to inject some energy into the match. Marcus Thuram and Randal Kolo Muani came on for them but it didn’t result in much, at least initially.
In the second half, Argentina still looked the better of the two sides. Then, seemingly out of nowhere, Kolo Muani won a penalty for France with just over ten minutes to go. The game suddenly sprang to life as Kylian Mbappe stepped up and confidently slotted home. Mbappe scored an incredible volley on an assist from Thuram just a minute later and France went level at 2-2. For the fifth final in the last five editions of the World Cup, the match went into extra time.
Extra Time
Argentina struck first in extra time as Lionel Messi scored his second goal of the match. Argentina players were visibly crying on the bench by this point and simultaneously fearing for the worst. Their fears came to life as France won another penalty with just a couple minutes to go in extra time. Mbappe once again scored past Emi Martinez to become just the second player ever to register a hat trick in a World Cup final.
France had a great chance at the death but Emiliano Martinez made a heroic save on a Kolo Muani volley. So, it was ultimately penalties that ended up deciding a thrilling World Cup final. Martinez came up big once again as Argentina won their third-ever World Cup. It was a fairytale ending for Lionel Messi, as the World Cup was the only major career honor he hadn’t won.
Biggest Surprises and Disappointments
Surprises:
Before becoming the FIFA world cup winner Argentina lost their first match to Saudi Arabia, 2-1. That was the first major shock of the tournament in a World Cup chock full of surprises. Some of the most memorable results from the group stage include Japan’s 2-1 wins over both Germany and Spain, Australia’s 1-0 win vs. Denmark and Morocco’s 2-0 win vs. Belgium.
The last round of group stage matches also produced a handful of upsets. Portugal, Brazil and France were already through at the time. Still, that shouldn’t take anything away from the teams that upset them. South Korea got a dramatic last minute 2-1 win over Portugal to qualify for their first knockout stage since 2010. Meanwhile, Cameroon and Tunisia got 1-0 wins over Brazil and France, respectively.
South Korea qualifying out of Group H over Uruguay was a massive surprise. The same goes for Morocco winning Group F over Croatia and Belgium and Japan winning Group E over Germany and Spain. Australia also managed to finish over Denmark in the Group D World Cup Standings FIFA. Just as there were surprises, there were also big disappointments.
Disappointments:
Belgium’s golden generation bowed out unceremoniously in the group stage. They only managed one win and one goal at the tournament. Germany sat at +1000 pre-tournament odds to win the final. Unfortunately, they failed to qualify for the knockout stage in consecutive World Cups for the first time in their history. After Denmark’s incredible performance at Euro 2020 big things were expected of them at Qatar 2022. However, Denmark earned just a solitary point and finished at the bottom of Group D.
Morocco knocked out Spain and Portugal in the round of 16 and quarterfinal, respectively.
Brazil, Spain and Portugal all qualified for the knockout stage but will be kicking themselves due to their losses. Brazil dominated vs. Croatia in the quarterfinal but couldn’t put the game away and lost in penalties. Morocco knocked out Spain and Portugal in the round of 16 and quarterfinal, respectively.
Croatia and Morocco Go on Memorable Runs:
Speaking of Morocco, our World Cup Overview would be remiss to not highlight both them and Croatia. When Morocco and Croatia met in the group stage opener and played to a scoreless draw, neither team looked inspiring. Both teams picked things up in their next few matches, though, and met again in the third place match. It was a major achievement for both Morocco and Croatia to make the semifinal of Qatar 2022.
Croatia Did it Again
Croatia set a precedent by making the final in 2018, but lost key players like Mario Mandzukic and Ivan Rakitic in the meantime. For a nation of just under four million people, Croatia’s success at World Cups is nothing short of incredible. Like in 2018, Croatia did their business in extra time and penalties and coach Zlatko Dalic deserves a lot of praise.
After finishing in second place in Group F, Croatia faced Japan in the round of 16. The Vatreni fell behind but equalized and Dominik Livaković’s heroics in penalties led Croatia to the quarterfinal. Not many expected them to get past Brazil but Luka Modric and Croatia had other ideas. The midfield maestro was excellent as Croatia managed another victory in a penalty shootout.
Morocco’s Magical Run
Morocco weren’t supposed to be there, plain and simple. The Atlas Lions opened up at just +230 odds to make the knockout stage and at +1000 odds to win Group E. Coach Walid Regragui had just taken over a few months ago and didn’t have much time with his team. Still, Morocco were incredible defensively. With a back line of Noussair Mazraoui, Romain Saiss, Nayef Aguerd and Achraf Hakimi they conceded just one goal in the group stage. Morocco went unbeaten vs. Belgium and Croatia en route to winning Group F.
Spain seemed to take Morocco lightly in the round of 16, which turned out to be a huge mistake. Morocco goalie Yassine Bounou came up huge as the Atlas Lions advanced in penalties following a scoreless draw. Morocco’s counter attacks were deadly, as Portugal found out in the quarterfinal. Youssef En-Nesyri scored the game’s only goal and Sofiane Boufal and Hakim Ziyech were electric on the wings. The unsung heroes of the team, though, were midfielders Azzedine Ounahi and Sofyan Amrabat. They were instrumental in the Atlas Lions becoming the first African team to make a semifinal.
It was a nice consolation for Luka Modric, one of soccer’s all time greatest midfielders. Josko Gvardiol, a 20-year old center back, was also a big standout.
While Croatia and Morocco both fell in the semifinal, they had a lot to be proud of. Soccer fans had one last chance to see these teams play on Saturday and it didn’t disappoint. With a 2-1 win, Croatia won third place at the World Cup for a second time. It was a nice consolation for Luka Modric, one of soccer’s all time greatest midfielders. Josko Gvardiol, a 20-year old center back, was also a big standout.
Awards Recap
Four major awards were handed out following Sunday’s final. Coincidentally enough, all four players who won them also took part in the final.
Golden Ball:
The Golden Ball, for the tournament’s best player, was handed out to none other than the legendary Lionel Messi. Messi finished the tournament as the World Cup’s all time leader in combined goals and assists. At Qatar 2022 alone, Messi registered seven goals and three assists. Argentina’s captain was excellent and fully deserved to win an elusive World Cup title. He could retire today as one of the best three players of all time.
Best Young Player:
Messi’s teammates Enzo Fernandez and Emiliano Martinez won the Best Young Player and Golden Glove awards, respectively. Fernandez was relatively unknown just six months ago but burst on the scene at Benfica. The midfielder made his Argentina debut in September and made the most of his opportunities. He scored a stunning goal vs. Mexico in the group stage and replaced Leandro Paredes in the starting lineup going forward. Fernandez excelled alongside Rodrigo de Paul and Alexis Mac Allister and has an incredibly bright future ahead of him.
Golden Glove:
Emi Martinez languished at Arsenal for a decade, going on loan spell after loan spell. Since moving to Aston Villa and declaring his intention to become Argentina’s number one his wildest dreams have come true. He didn’t have too much to do during games most of the time but he was immense in PK shootouts. Martinez made two saves in the shootout win vs. the Netherlands and saved Kingsley Coman’s PK in the final. For his efforts, the boisterous keeper won the Golden Glove.
Golden Boot:
Last but certainly not least, Kylian Mbappe won the Golden Boot Award. The France superstar scored eight goals and registered a hat trick on Sunday. It’s unlikely anyone else will ever score a hat trick in the final and find themselves on the losing side. Mbappe nearly willed France to victory and it’s very likely the talented winger will become the World Cup’s all time leading scorer. At just 23 years old, he already has 12 World Cup goals and just needs five more to break Miroslav Klose’s record.
Team of the Tournament
Our World Cup Overview wouldn’t be complete without picking our team of the tournament. Without further ado, here’s our starting XI and subs bench:
| Players | Teams |
|---|---|
| GK: Dominik Livakovic |  |
| D: Achraf Hakimi |  |
| D: Josko Gvardiol | |
| D: Thiago Silva |  |
| D: Marcos Acuna |  |
| M: Sofyan Amrabat | |
| M: Alexis Mac Allister | |
| M: Luka Modric | |
| M: Antoine Griezmann |  |
| F: Kylian Mbappe | |
| F: Lionel Messi | |
Substitutes: GK Emiliano Martinez (Argentina), D Romain Saiss (Morocco), D Noussair Mazraoui (Morocco), D John Stones (England), D Nathan Ake (Netherlands), M Jude Bellingham (England), M Bruno Fernandes (Portugal), M Azzedine Ounahi (Morocco), F Olivier Giroud (France), F Richarlison (Brazil)
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