Wednesday, June 17, 2026

The World Champions have checked in

Defending world champions often struggle to defend their title, but for Argentina tonight this was not the case. A solid 3-0 victory over Algeria, but most notably with an incredible Lionel Messi, who at his tender 38 years appeared to be everywhere on the pitch, and scored all three Argentine goals, equaling Miroslav Klose as the most scoring player in a World Cup.

Argentina also appeared solid in defense although I find it hard to assess how good the Algerians were. They passed the ball well and at times managed to put pressure on Argentina, but never really appeared to threaten the South American goal. At the same time they played slowly, something that only appeared to make the Argentineans comfortable. But it all may be to the credit of solid defense by Argentina.

While Spain grossly disappointed with 0-0 against Cape Verde, France won 3-1 over Senegal on a great second half and two Mbappé goals. Three of the biggest favourites for the title have started at different levels, but one thing is sure; everyone will be watching for Messing to break yet another historic record in his 6th World Cup.

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