FIFA DAY 6 Review

DAY 6 Friday

All FIFA Participating Teams are Full of Commitment, Desire, Hunger and Communication with Fitness -- Capable to Upset

The day began in the land of FIFA 2022 Qatar where Iran offered a powerful show of defiance on a day of jeers, tears and joy. The fans made their feelings known before the players did the country proud with a 2-0 World Cup victory over Wales.

Yes, Iran scored twice in added time to shatter Wales, whose keeper Wayne Hennessey was sent off for a violent foul on Mehdi Taremi. 

Wales aren’t out, but they need snookers now. Iran will almost certainly go through if they beat the USA and may well do so with a draw.

In the next match Senegal kept their World Cup dream alive before Qatar’s hopes ended. Qatar became the first team to be knocked out of the World Cup after a humbling defeat at the hands of Senegal. But the host team’s fans inside a half-full Al-Thumama stadium had at least some consolation: they got to see a goal. Qatar lost to Senegal 1-3. The hosts were left facing elimination from their own World Cup after a second defeat in which they failed to ignite.

Édouard Mendy, the masterpiece villain of the match against the Netherlands, had to be at his athletic best to deny first Almoez Ali from distance and then Ismaeel Mohammad from point-blank range (an attempted header that came off the wing-back’s knee). With 12 minutes remaining, the Chelsea man was helpless as the substitute Mohammed Muntari rose from a standing start to nod home Mohammad’s impressive swirling cross.

Netherlands and Ecuador drew 1-1 in the third match of the day.

The Netherlands went ahead but found themselves on the ropes for long periods as they dug in to secure a point against their South American opponents.

Ecuador can be far happier with this draw because after conceding early, Gustova Alfaro’s team played front-foot football that went close to administering a fatal blow to the Netherlands.

Cody Gakpo put the Dutch a goal up in the sixth minute, a goal that was cancelled out by Enner Valencia a few minutes after half-time. But while the scores finished level, the performances were anything but and Ecuador are likely to feel aggrieved at not taking all three points. They had their European opponents under extreme pressure for long periods, particularly throughout the second half and came close to scoring a second goal on several occasions.

In the last match of the fixture the US were the better side, but England dug in for a point that keeps them in control of Group B and all but qualifies them for knockouts.

It was a night when England succeeded in doing one thing: dousing the expectations that had built so suddenly after the thrashing of Iran in their opening World Cup tie. The stalemate means they will almost certainly qualify for the last 16 – only a heavy defeat against Wales next Tuesday would derail them – but there was precious little else to quicken the pulse.

That was all in four games on day 6 of FIFA WC 2022 worth commenting on.