Day three of the 2022 World Cup: the failure of Argentina and the brillianc

The third day at the World Cup in Qatar turned out to be a day of contrasts, in which suddenness and predictability, bright and dull, were mixed.

Argentina - Saudi Arabia - 1:2

The Argentines are rightfully considered the favorites of the 2022 World Cup, and it’s not at all a fact that this defeat will be their last in the tournament. But the sensation is not even that albicelesta lost to the national team, which the Russian team defeated four years ago with a score of 5:0. The fact is that in the second half, the Argentines were not too superior to the Saudis. In the first, yes, the sky-whites dominated and had to decide the outcome of the match in their favor, but limited themselves to the only goal of Lionel Messi, and even from a penalty kick.

The Arabs opposed the Argentines with a tough game, three times surpassed them in fouls and 6-0 on yellow cards. But the most important thing is that they managed their chances perfectly: for some reason, the South Americans did not defend the area in front of the goal enough and paid the price - both scoring combinations ended from there: in the 48th minute, Saleh Al-Shehri scored a beautiful blow, and in the 53rd - Salem Al -Davsari. And after that, goalkeeper Mohammed Al-Uwais showed himself a couple of times. Argentines need to learn responsibility in any match and composure. And the whole of Saudi Arabia, in honor of the victory, received a day off from the king - for her team this world championship was already a success.

Denmark - Tunisia - 0:0

The Danes confirmed the title of the favorite of the match, especially in the second half. It seemed that a goal was about to take place: the Scandinavians were combining well, building attacks mainly through Christian Eriksen, but some smallness was missing, and the goalkeeper of the Tunisia national team Aymen Damen did not doze off - already in stoppage time he pulled the ball out of the top nine, launched by Jesper Lindström. The Africans, on the other hand, hit the target only once and clearly agreed to a draw.

Mexico - Poland - 0:0

One could have expected a cannonade from this game, but it turned out to be a rather uninteresting, mostly defensive game. It seems that the Poles were afraid of the team actions of the Mexicans, and those, in turn, of Robert Lewandowski.

And Lewandowski, the Mexicans once still laid on the lawn in their own penalty area - in the 56th minute after the video review, a penalty was awarded. But goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa jumped into the same bottom corner where the Pole was aiming. As a result, it was this episode that became the main one in the duel. The Polish national team has not been able to take penalties at the World Championships for 44 years already: in 1978 Kazimierz Deyna missed, in 2002 Maciej Zhuravsky, and now it's Lewandowski's turn.

France - Australia - 4:1

When in the ninth minute the ball was in the goal of Hugo Lloris after hitting Craig Goodwin, it seemed that on this game day the matter would not be limited to one sensation. But no. True, for the first half hour there was a feeling that the French had not yet understood where they were. But in the 27th minute, Adrien Rabiot equalized, and in the 32nd minute, Olivier Giroud brought the tricolors ahead.

Well, in the second half, the French team reigned on the field and could, perhaps, score much more. But she limited herself to two goals - Kylian Mbappe in the 68th minute and Giroud's brace in the 71st. The game of the current world champions pleased - in its best samples it remained the same assertive, attacking and beautiful. Yes, and Giroud, who actually replaced the injured Karim Benzema in the tactical formation, showed himself in all his glory. In a word, France did not question the title of the favorite.