Pep Guardiola frequently says he considers himself “a great thief” as everything that he does he’s seen it somewhere and took it for himself and his teams. Well Pep, if that’s the case bud, keep going because it’s working pretty darn good.
As a neutral, I’m a big fan of this back and forth between Jurgen Klopp and Sergio Ramos. I hope it continues forever. After Klopp labeled Ramos “ruthless” and “brutal” a couple weeks ago during Liverpool’s preseason tour, Ramos duly responded by saying: “He will be wanting to explain not winning the final, but it’s not the first that he has lost. Some of us have been operating at a very high level for many years — I’m not sure he can say the same.”
No club has enjoyed a better World Cup than Atletico Madrid. For the most part its players have performed well, but what's transpired off the pitch has been far more significant. Antoine Griezmann's decision to remain at the club, the Thomas Lemar transfer and a few key contract extensions highlight the strong summer Atletico has enjoyed.
A goal in football is always followed by a wild celebration. These celebrations are often a player’s signature, and they include pointing to the sky and thanking the footballing gods, the always cool knee slide or the epic running explosion while screaming in unison with the fans. The World Cup goal celebrations at the 2018 tournament have been no different.
This year’s World Cup provides an opportunity for the planet to see a variety of signature celebrations. Below are some of the best World Cup goal celebrations that we’ve seen so far.
With the first round of matches completed at the World Cup, some players have already stood out on their teams. Whether it be scoring crucial goals to gift their team a victory or keeping the goals out at the other end of the pitch, these players were the best World Cup players of the first round. So, without further ado, here is our starting lineup of the best performers of Round 1 at the World Cup. We’ve gone with a 4-4-2 formation to keep it nice and simple as well.
For anyone who paid the slightest bit of attention to Argentina throughout the CONMEBOL World Cup qualifying cycle, Spain’s resounding 6-1 defeat of La Albiceleste comes as no surprise. Without Messi, Argentina has zero business being at this World Cup. The statistics, again, bear repeating:
Without Messi, Argentina played eight matches in qualifying. They won one. They scored 0.75 goals per game. They lost to Ecuador, Paraguay and Bolivia. They drew with Venezuela. Tata Martino was sacked and so was his successor, Edgardo Bauza.
Oh Diego, how we missed you. Diego Costa made his long-awaited return to La Liga on Saturday as Atletico Madrid hosted Getafe at the Wanda Metropolitano. After the mercurial striker scored five minutes into his return with Atletico on Wednesday in the Copa del Rey, Costa had six more minutes of madness that perfectly encapsulate the best and worst he has to offer.
Atletico Madrid gave themselves an unassailable four-goal advantage heading back to Madrid for the second leg of their Copa del Rey Round of 16 encounter with third division side Lleida Esportiu on Wednesday. Diego Godin and Fernando Torres opened the scoring in the first half, and then Lleida had to contend with second half substitute appearances from both Diego Costa and Antoine Griezmann, both furthering Los Colchoneros’ advantage.