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This World Cup keeps on getting better. We thought we’d seen it all after the round of 16 had seen the back of Argentina, Spain and Portugal, and Germany hadn’t made it past the group stages, but this World Cup just keeps on producing memorable moments.
France found their way past a strong Uruguay defence, winning 2-0 in Nizhny Novgorod. The second goal was almost entirely down to a horrible error from ‘keeper Fernando Muslera, but they were the better side, and fully deserving of their spot in the semi-finals.
The big surprise of the round was the exit of Brazil, and that came at the hands of Belgium, who produced perhaps the best team performance of the tournament so far. Roberto Martinez’s men gave a masterclass in counter-attacking football, and are now looking forward to their first World Cup semi-final since 1986.
On Sunday, it was England who ended their 28-year wait for a World Cup semi-final. They comfortably beat Sweden 2-0 in Samara, and Gareth Southgate’s decision to leave players out for the final group game against Belgium, meaning they finished second in group G, is looking like a good one.
The final saw the end of the road for hosts Russia, who surprised everyone by reaching the quarters. They gave their chance one final chance when Mario Fernandes equalised late on in extra time, but it was a chance they couldn’t take, as they bowed out on penalties.
There have been some fine individual performances in the quarterfinals, and here are five of the best.
#5 Antoine Griezmann
Griezmann didn’t make the best start to the tournament, and neither did France. They were slow and unconvincing in their opening few games, and it was Kylian Mbappe who shined, not Griezmann. France have such an outstanding array of attacking talent available to them, but the Atletico Madrid man is the star, and he finally made his mark in the quarter-final against Uruguay.
He was the star of the show against the South American side. He set up the opening goal for Raphael Varane with a well-delivered free-kick and then secured victory with a strike from outside the area, that really should have been kept out by Muslera in goal. It wasn’t just the goal and assist though. He linked well with his fellow attackers and was a constant threat for what has been an almost insurmountable Uruguay defence to this point.
#4 Kevin de Bruyne
Much like Griezmann, de Bruyne hadn’t really hit his top form at the World Cup, after a superb Premier League campaign. He was deployed slightly deeper in this Belgium side in each of their first four games, meaning he didn’t have much of an opportunity to have an impact.
Roberto Martinez changed things up against Brazil and deployed de Bruyne as part of a front three alongside Eden Hazard and Romelu Lukaku. It gave him the chance to make more of an impression in the final third and he made the most of it. Fernandinho and Paulinho couldn’t get close to him in the centre of the park, and he rounded off his performance with a magnificent strike to double Belgium’s lead.
#3 Thibaut Courtois
Courtois had a pretty quiet tournament before the quarterfinals. He wasn’t tested too much against Panama or Tunisia and only made one or two saves in the game with England’s second choice XI. In fact, the only time he’s really been mentioned in this tournament was with regards to comments he made about Jordan Pickford’s height.
He made a good save in the first half to keep out Coutinho, and a deflected cross from Marcelo. He saved the best till last though and had to be at full stretch to keep out Neymar in injury time, securing his side a place in the semi-final. It was the sign of a great goalkeeper. He has had very little to do over the last couple of weeks, but when his side needed him, he produced.
#2 Jordan Pickford
Who would play in goal was one of the big questions for England in the run-up to the World Cup. It looked like he had put those worries to bed against Colombia though. He made a sensational save in normal time from Mateus Uribe, which sadly proved in vain as England conceded from the resulting corner. He was the hero in the penalty shootout though, saving from Carlos Bacca as England progressed through.
He took the confidence from that game into the quarter-final with Sweden and produced a man of the match display. He was almost unbeatable in goal. He made two brilliant saves from Marcus Berg and another one from Viktor Claesson, as he silenced his critics, and helped send England through to their first World Cup semi-final since 1990.
#1 Luka Modric
Croatia’s quarter-final tie with Russia was not an easy watch. It was low on quality, and it was more a case of two teams who were afraid to lose the game than two teams who were desperate to win it. Only when Domagoj Vida put Croatia ahead in extra time did Russia really come out and look to get a goal, and that’s when the game became exciting.
However, in a game with so little quality, it was Modric who provided it after a tough round of 16 game with Denmark. He had a penalty saved by Kasper Schmeichel in extra-time but had the nerve to step up and score in the shootout.
He ran the show in the centre of the park against Russia, and it’s good to see a player of his quality finally getting the credit that he deserves. Once again, he had the nerve to step up in the shootout and score, but only just. He deserves the opportunity in a World Cup semi-final.
