The 2026 World Cup has been running for nearly a week now. What have you observed so far?','tags':['football','World Cup','sports']},{
I see the strength that justifies France’s status as the top favorite, if not jointly with Spain. Even though their first match didn’t feature Lamine Yamal and Nico Williams—two key wingers—as starters against the underdog Cape Verde Islands, their quality was evident.
(They are not called Cape Verde in English; FIFA uses the official Portuguese name.)
I’m even more uncertain about the team I’ve supported since childhood along with my father: Brazil. Although I trust Don Carlo (coach Carlo Ancelotti), once inside MetLife Stadium—or rather, to avoid sponsor names during the World Cup, New York-New Jersey Stadium, home to the NFL’s New York Giants and Jets—official FIFA press work begins.
Even though Morocco deserves respect for reaching the semifinals four years ago and could be a potential surprise again this time, the game’s conclusion was that the Samba team needs to improve in every area.
Veteran midfielder Casemiro was consistently slow, and right back Roger Ibanez got a yellow card visibly by halftime. By the start of the second half, Coach Ancelotti (whom Thai fans affectionately call P’Jay) substituted both out immediately.
Which positions else? The chosen striker, Igor Thiago from Brentford, last season’s Premier League second top scorer, seemed overwhelmed and couldn’t make a significant impact—missing six golden chances in the first half, including a close-range header. Historically, Brazil’s World Cup-winning teams have had world-class strikers, like Bebeto and Romário in 1994 in the US, or Ronaldo (R9) in 2002.
When the World Cup is held nearby, South American teams tend to be energized. Brazil has strong fan support; recently, someone walking near the famous Times Square saw yellow-clad supporters fill the area, with police controlling the crowd to prevent overcrowding.
It remains uncertain whether the team will adjust and reach the level expected by many, including a significant number of longtime fans here at home.
Writing this column today after watching France start their tournament, they lived up to their status as favorites. And it wasn’t just against a minor team like Cape Verde; Senegal, a top African champion team (at least they consider themselves so), was unlucky to score no goals despite creating many chances in the first half.
Frankly, in the first half France had no shots on target or off target, only one blocked shot. This raised doubts about the midfield duo of Aurelien Tchouaméni and Adrien Rabiot, who seemed rather ordinary—perhaps due to comparisons with the control style of Vitinha and João Moutinho at PSG.
There’s also suspicion whether Ballon d’Or winner Ousmane Dembélé held back with the coach, playing close in midfield despite PSG’s tactical dominance and Dembélé being the focal point upfront, even if he roamed freely across the attack.
After a brief break for coffee and the restroom in the press room, I returned to see Didier Deschamps maintaining the same starting lineup, which was no surprise. Goalkeeper Mike Maignan, who conceded the opening goal from a close-range shot, was lucky twice—once when Nicolas Jackson’s shot hit the post and then the Milan keeper’s foot, and another offside chance in the second half. Spurs fans might be concerned.
The defensive line of Jules Koundé, Dayot Upamecano, William Saliba, and Theo Hernandez, along with midfielders Tchouaméni and Rabiot, make up a team currently showing the most threatening potential.
In the second half, four key attackers shifted: Michael Olise, who had a hot season with Bayern Munich, came in to play as number ten, swapping places with Dembélé. On the left wing was Desiré Doué, one of PSG’s key success players.
Who says Deschamps is just lucky to have many star players or only good at managing the team but not tactically? I saw this moment and thought otherwise. We must respect Deschamps’ tactical skills as well.
If France plays in the second-half form against Senegal, they will be very hard to stop.
Michael Olise was crucial in changing the game; his movement allowed us to see his effectiveness more clearly. Although the first goal was a clever cross, spotting a teammate’s run and delivering a precise ball from the wing.
Kylian Mbappé became a different player in the second half, scoring two beautiful goals to become the French player with the most World Cup goals, surpassing his grandfather’s generation player Just Fontaine. After Lionel Messi opened his World Cup with a hat trick, Mbappé now trails only Messi and Miroslav Klose (16 goals) by two goals on the all-time World Cup top scorers list.
In his 99th international match, Mbappé scored his 58th goal, overtaking Olivier Giroud as France’s all-time leading scorer by one. The next game—will he break more records?
In Qatar, Argentina started with a shocking loss to Saudi Arabia; Spain’s “tiki-taka” style lost their opening match to Switzerland before winning the World Cup in South Africa. Going back to my childhood, in the 1982 World Cup, Italy drew all three group stage matches.
Therefore, I don’t want to judge Spain, Brazil, or other teams too quickly.
If you ask me now, France is more complete than anyone, even Argentina, where Messi still plays remarkably well at 38, scoring a hat trick in the World Cup.
Playing against the Albiceleste, you know you must stop Messi. The ball leaves Messi’s feet only to come back to him again, as with the final goal against Algeria.
But for France’s attack, you can already see...
No need to substitute, just a slight position change and it works immediately.
Or when they brought on the sharp substitute Bradley Barcola, within two minutes there was a beautiful goal and a speedy run in the next play.
I am an impatient type, so I predict France will return to play at MetLife Stadium in the final. If I’m wrong, no need to remember this, my friend—ha-ha.
Little Joe