Author: cimi

Which strikers stole the show when it mattered most in the World Cup group stages?

Well, that’s what we’re about to find out. With all the storylines now played out and focus turned to the heavyweight football that comes with the knockout stages, it’s time for some power rankings for the top 10 strikers of matchday three.

Cometh the hour, cometh the man.

Hwang popped up at the death and fired South Korea to a shock victory over Portugal, that also secured them a place in the last 16. Goals don’t get bigger than that.

Lacked the spark that has made him stand out so far in Qatar in Spain’s defeat to Japan, but Olmo can still be counted on to deliver in the knockout stages.

It all came too late for Serbia, but we got a glimpse of what they were capable of against Switzerland – and it was glorious.

Mitrovic scored an absolute peach of a header by getting on the end of a stunning cross. Give this man service and he will provide.

Watching Vlahovic’s performance against Switzerland leaves you scratching your head as to why Serbia didn’t go with a two-striker system from the off.

The guy is an absolute animal and marked his only start in Qatar with a tru striker’s finish. Elite.

The teenager couldn’t stop Germany from crashing out of a second successive World Cup, but he did show the world what he’s capable of.

It’s scary to think how good Musiala could be by the time 2026 rolls around.

Afforded a rare star by Gareth Southgate, and made the absolute most of it with a brilliant brace.

Rashford is in a terrific groove right now since being revived at Manchester United and is strutting his stuff for club and country. Could be a huge asset if England go deep into the tournament.

Yes, he missed a penalty. But we know Messi isn’t very good at those.

We can probably let him off, considering just how good he is and was against Poland, even without scoring. It was like a flashback to the past. Messi looked well and truly on it.

Mbappe sits out and France lose. Do the maths.

Defeat in matchday three serves as a reminder to Les Bleus that they are in fact human after all. To be in with a chance of doing the unthinkable, they need the near superhuman Mbappe leading the charge.

Three games, three goals. Left foot, right foot, header.

The group stages couldn’t really have gone any better for Gakpo, who looks to be doing everything in his power to incite a bidding war for his services in January.

Who would’ve thought? Probably not even Morata himself.

The man who has been scapegoated just about wherever he has been is firing his way to a World Cup golden boot charge. For all of the beautiful football Spain try to play, Morata is the anti-hero that they need.

With the big guns separated from the weak links as the World Cup knockout stages are established, it’s time to do some power ranking.

Some massive defensive displays were needed for teams to book their spot in the last 16, and we got exactly that. So, without further ado, here are the 10 most impressive defenders in Qatar after matchday three.

Simply put, Upamecano didn’t play as France lost 1-0 to Tunisia. That reflects well on him, though, and highlights just how important he is for Les Bleus.

Ecuador couldn’t find a win against Senegal in matchday three, but defeat isn’t a total reflection of Estupinan’s tournament so far; the Brighton full-back has been solid.

Granted it was against Qatar, you can only play what’s in front of you, and Timber did that brilliantly in matchday three.

A performance that highlighted exactly what he can offer when he’s in top form.

A positive World Cup campaign is perfect for Aguerd, who has seen his 2022/23 campaign disrupted by injuries.

Morocco only conceded once in the group stages and the West Ham man has been key to that.

Maguire hasn’t been headline-stealing levels of good, but he’s consistently been fine for England.

And when you consider all the noise around him heading into the tournament, you can’t really ask for much more. Not put a foot wrong yet.

A masterful performance against Canada thrusts Hakimi into the rankings firmly in the middle of the pack.

Morocco have been mighty thus far, but the Paris Saint-Germain man needs to keep up this level if they want to go deep into the tournament.

Okay, no more Moroccan entries after this one, we promise.

Truth be told, though, their defence has just been that good. And Saiss has played his part in that. A composed display sees him keep fourth spot.

Stoke City are massive. Quite literally, when talking about their very own Australian defender Souttar.

The towering centre-back has been absolutely vital in helping his nation qualify for the knockout stages and took his fine form into the final group stage contest. The Potters on tour.

A true leader’s display fires Koulibaly into the rankings in second place.

He put in an imperious showing against Ecuador and deserves the chance to shine in the knockout stages.

If the world didn’t already have an eye on Gvardiol, they certainly do now.

He was key in helping Croatia keep a clean sheet in their goalless draw against Belgium and is very quickly establishing himself as one of the best young defenders in the game. His price continues to rise.

With the group stages settled, we’ve had plenty of time to digest a flurry of masterful midfield performances.

So, what better time than now, ahead of the knockouts, to judge those best performing midfielders? Let’s tuck into some power rankings.

For all the sides tipped to be dark horses at the 2022 World Cup, Morocco have been massively overlooked.

Amrabat has been key to that, and keeps his spot in the top 10 heading into the knockout stages.

He couldn’t find a goal against Belgium, but it wasn’t for the want of trying.

Kovacic was classy yet again for Croatia, and is key to them going deep in the tournament once more.

Gavi endured a night to forget against Japan in matchday three, completely unable to get himself into the game.

He wasn’t the only one, though, and will no doubt bounce back given just how supremely talented he is.

A really classy display from De Jong in matchday three.

Yes it was only Qatar, but he still had to show up. As the tournament progresses, you can see him continuing to grow in confidence and subsequently influence for the Oranje.

It was a similar story to Gavi for Pedri against Japan.

The 20-year-old didn’t enjoy his best game, but will continue to prove a key asset for La Roja throughout the knockout stages.

The sooner Gareth Southgate realises England’s best midfielder is Bellingham, the better.

He’s far from perfect just yet, but trust him and he will fly. Absolutely dynamite.

The Leeds United man is putting together a seriously impressive tournament as captain of the USMNT.

So much so, that if he can take this level back into the domestic season, you wouldn’t be surprised to see top level sides sniff around for his services.

After a rampant performance in matchday two, Fernandes sat out as Portugl lost to South Korea.

He’ll be looking at that game thinking he could’ve been the difference.

The Brighton man continues to excel and bagged his first goal for Argentina against Poland.

Striking low past Wojciech Szczesny was the highlight from yet another incredibly exciting performance. His future is bright.

He’s just absolutely immense, isn’t he?

For all the flair Brazil have, they need a Casemiro to sweep up accordingly and add some bite to the side. He does that in the very best way possible. This man is thriving on the world stage.

And just like that, the World cup group stages have come to an end.

We’ll forever cherish the beauty of the three games per day format. Waking up to football and then having an excuse not to leave the couch for the rest of the day? Football heritage, right there.

Oh yeah, the football. That was pretty good too. Particularly the goalkeepers. Here are the top 10 best performing stoppers from the final round of group stage action, in the eyes of 90min.

Simon was, admittedly, woeful as Spain fell to a shock defeat against Japan.

When you want your goalkeeper to take risks on the ball, you should expect errors, but Simon was so poor. Constantly misplacing passes and putting teammates under pressure, and then failed to keep out a straightforward shot.

No calamities from Gonda as his side further established themselves as the giant killers in Qatar, but Spain being Spain meant he was actually rather quiet.

Simply not tested enough.

A moment’s silence, please, for Mexico and therefore Ochoa’s World Cup exit.

The man who spawned in only to appear at the World Cup once every four years and turn into prime Lev Yashin has probably played in the tournament for the final time. It’s been one hell of a ride, Guillermo.

They lost on the day and ultimately finished last, but Al-Owais and his Saudi Arabia teammates exit the World Cup with their heads held high.

He produced 11 saves against Mexico to keep the score down to just 2-1.

No movement for Milinkovic-Savic, who put together an impressive campaign for himself between the sticks for Serbia despite their early exit. There’s only so much one man can do.

Arsenal have got themselves quite the keeper, haven’t they?

Not his most exciting hour against Iran, but Turner crucially claimed another clean sheet and continues to solidify himself as a very, very handy asset and key to the fortunes of the USMNT.

Mendy produced four saves to ensure Senegal saw off Ecuador in Group A and advanced to the last 16. He’ll need to continue his impressive resurgence if they are to get past England.

The ultimate World Cup superhero story continues.

Noppert is consistently performing in a composed manner for the Netherlands, which is all you can ask of the man who was never meant to be on this stage. Exceptional.

He couldn’t stop Belgium from crashing out of the World Cup, but Thibaut Courtois is one of very few in the squad who can leave with his head held high.

If it wasn’t for the Real Madrid stopper against Croatia, they would’ve been comfortably beaten.

Not only does Szczesny now boast two penalty saves in as many games, the most recent one came against none other than Lionel Messi.

An absolutely monstrous performance to deny the Argentine and help Poland into the knockout stages. Showing his class.

Cristiano Ronaldo has received a huge contract offer from Saudi Arabian side Al Nassr, but he is also being tempted by the chance to join Chelsea following their summer interest. (Calcio Mercato)

Barcelona are interested in signing Brazil midfielder Bruno Guimaraes, but their plans have already been scuppered because Newcastle consider him untouchable and are not in need of the money. (Fichajes)

Liverpool‘s search for midfield reinforcements could see them make a move for Morocco star Sofyan Amrabat, who came close to joining Tottenham last season before they signed Rodrigo Bentancur. (Sky Germany)

Real Madrid would be willing to reignite their interest in Kylian Mbappe sometime in the future, but a number of conditions would have to be met – for example, he would have to reach out to them to initiate a transfer. (Sport)

Mbappe stayed at PSG this summer and met with Robert Lewandowski in an attempt to convince him to sign from Bayern Munich. The Poland striker would end up joining Barcelona. (Le Parisien)

Barcelona have pulled out of the race to sign 16-year-old wonderkid Endrick from Palmeiras, leaving Real Madrid, PSG and Chelsea to battle for him. (Marca)

Scott Saunders hosts Graeme Bailey in the latest episode of Talking Transfers, discussing Cristiano Ronaldo’s interview and his future, Man Utd’s interest in Cody Gakpo, plus the latest on Endrick and Rafael Leao. Available on all audio platforms.

If you can’t see the podcast embed, click here to download the episode in full!

Manchester City are open to selling Jack Grealish in order to help balance the books and go all out to land Jude Bellingham ahead of Liverpool and Real Madrid. (Football Insider)

Manchester United and Chelsea have both registered an interest in Bayer Leverkusen and Netherlands right-back Jeremie Frimpong, but Real Madrid are currently leading the race to sign him. (Defensa Central)

In terms of outgoings at the Santiago Bernabeu, Marco Asensio is wanted by Arsenal with his contract set to expire in the summer. Milan and Juventus are also thought to be interested. (CalcioMercatoWeb)