England made a resounding debut in their World Cup by crushing 6-2 Iran, whose players refused to sing the national anthem in solidarity with the victims of the revolt movement in their country.
In the process, the Netherlands ended up dominating Senegal in the last minutes (2-0). In the evening, the United States and Wales separated with the score of 1-1, the first draw of the competition.
Before the entry of the English in the tournament, we did not really know where they were after a difficult period, and there will be more complicated opponents than Iran, but we will have to count on England.
Argentine star Leo Messi and the French world champions, who enter the fray on Tuesday, have been warned, as has the Brazilian Neymar: the favorites should not neglect the Three Lions and their offensive armada.
Thanks in particular to their sparkling young generation, the English did not drag things out. Jude Bellingham, 19 (35e) and Bukayo Saka, 21 years old (43e62e) scored first, then the more experienced Raheem Sterling (45+1), Marcus Rashford (71e) and Jack Grealish (90e).
“We are very happy to start like this, especially with our attacking game […] I didn’t like the end of the match and the way we took the two goals, it was unworthy of our level. We will have to be better than today against the United States. It’s a very good start and a good base to build on, but we have to be better if we want to go far, ”launched Gareth Southgate.
In a match with 24 minutes of added time (14 in 1D period and 10 in the second), due to injuries, Iran reduced the score thanks to a double from Mehdi Taremi (65e90 + 13 sp), but suffered its worst defeat in the World Cup, more painful than the 4-1 against Peru in 1978.
This match gave some smiles after the sad opening match on Sunday between very weak Qataris and Ecuador (0-2).
Ronaldo speaks
In the wake of England-Iran, the first real big poster of the tournament opposed Senegal, champion of Africa, to the ambitious Netherlands of coach Louis van Gaal. It turned to the advantage of the Oranje, who snatched a precious victory (2-0) at the end of the match, first by Cody Gakpo (84e) then Davy Klaassen in added time (90+9).
The evening match delivered its first verdict without a winner of the tournament (1-1), Gareth Bale, the Welshman, responding from the penalty spot (82e) at the opening of the score of the Americans by Timothy Weah (36e).
Without playing but speaking, Cristiano Ronaldo and Messi have been talked about again.
The Portuguese hopes to put behind him his high-profile conflict with his club, Manchester United: these disputes “will not shake” Portugal, who enter the scene Thursday against Ghana, he assured Monday morning.
As for the Argentine striker Lionel Messi, he reaffirmed in a press conference that the 2022 World Cup in Qatar would “surely” be his last World Cup, after the four editions he has already played with Argentina in 2006, 2010 , 2014, and 2018, without ever winning one.
“It will surely be my last World Cup, my last opportunity to achieve this great dream that we all have,” said Messi (35) at a press conference on the eve of Argentina’s first match in the competition. , against Saudi Arabia, scheduled for Tuesday.
But in this World Cup, it’s not just about football, and politics is never far away. This was again the case during England-Iran.
The Iranian players knew they were scrutinized! Were they going to show their solidarity with the victims of the revolt in their country? From the first notes, the answer came. The players remained frozen, their faces impassive, refraining from singing the national anthem.
During the week, their captain, Alireza Jahanbakhsh, explained that the players would decide “collectively” whether to sing or not. And in the stands occupied by the Iranians, a banner in English “Women Life Freedom” was briefly deployed.
No cuff
This pre-match was the only moment of “political” protest at the Khalifa stadium, while we could expect a second, on the English side this time.
The English, like six other European countries, had announced their intention to wear the colored armband ” one Love », symbol of inclusion. But after discussions with FIFA, they gave up, a few hours before kick-off.
“FIFA has been very clear, they will impose sporting sanctions if our captains wear the armbands on the pitch. As national federations, we cannot ask our players to risk sporting sanctions, including yellow cards,” the federations wrote. A decline that has been widely criticized in England.
On the Canadian side, Atiba Hutchinson will wear the official FIFA armband which reads “ No Discrimination during the match against Belgium on Wednesday. Canada had remained silent so far, while other countries hinted that they would wear the armband ” one Love “.
This decision would have been made by the whole team, according to a representative of Soccer Canada.
Since its appointment to organize the event in 2010, Qatar has been the target of strong criticism on the issue of human rights, in particular those of LGBTQ+ people.
Davies’ health still under scrutiny
With The Canadian Press