These teams qualified to enter ROUND OF 16:
Group A : Netherlands ๐ณ๐ฑ ; Senegal ๐ธ๐ณ .
Group B : England ๐ด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ ; United States ๐บ๐ธ of America.
Group C : Argentina ๐ฆ๐ท ; Poland ๐ต๐ฑ.
Group D : France ๐ซ๐ท ; Australia ๐ฆ๐บ.
Group E : Japan ๐ฏ๐ต ; Spain ๐ช๐ธ;
Group F : Morocco ๐ฒ๐ฆ ; Croatia ๐ญ๐ท.
Group G : Brazil ๐ง๐ท ; Switzerland ๐จ๐ญ.
Group H : Portugal ๐ต๐น ; Republic Korea ๐ฐ๐ท.
Which side needs what to qualify?
Permutations explained
•France are the first team to progress, while Qatar and Canada are out
•Brazil and Portugal have the chance to qualify in their second fixtures
•These calculations will be updated after every match
Who needs what to make it through to the Round of 16 at the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™?
And who could soon be on their way home?
With Matchday 2 now under way, FIFA+ has analysed all the key scenarios going forward.
Group A
Ecuador-Senegal (29 November, 18:00 local time)
Netherlands-Qatar (29 November, 18:00 local time)
•Netherlands need to win or draw to qualify. They will still qualify if they lose, provided Ecuador beat Senegal.
•Ecuador need to win or draw to qualify. They remain in contention to qualify if they lose and Qatar beat Netherlands.
•Senegal need to win to qualify but remain in contention if they draw and Qatar beat Netherlands.
•Qatar are eliminated.
Group B
•Wales-England (29 November, 22:00 local time)
•IR Iran-USA (29 November, 22:00 local time)
•England will qualify with a win or draw. Depending on goal difference, the Three Lions could also make it through in defeat.
•Wales must win to have any chance of progressing.
•IR Iran are guaranteed to progress if they beat USA.
•A draw will also take the Iranians through provided Wales do not beat England (in which case goal difference will come into play).
•For USA, it's simple: win and they are through. Lose or draw and they will be heading home.
Group C
Saudi Arabia v Mexico (30 November, 22:00 local time)
Poland v Argentina (30 November, 22:00 local time)
•Poland will be through with a win or a draw, but would be knocked out by a defeat coupled with a Saudi Arabia victory. If Poland lose and Saudi Arabia draw, the two teams will have to be separated by goal difference. If Poland lose and Mexico win, their fate will also be decided on goal difference.
•Argentina must win to be sure of progressing, while a draw would be enough if Mexico and Saudi Arabia also draw. However, a draw coupled with a Saudi Arabia victory would see La Albiceleste knocked out, and a draw coupled with a Mexico win takes the group to goal difference. Argentina are out if they lose.
•Saudi Arabia will reach the Round of 16 if they win. A draw would be enough if Poland defeat Argentina, but if both matches are tied, they will go out. Should Argentina defeat Poland and Saudi Arabia draw, progress will be decided on goal difference between the European and Middle East sides. Defeat would see them knocked out.
•Mexico must win to have any chance of staying in the competition. They will be sure to go through if Poland win. If they win and Argentina and Poland draw, it will come down to goal difference with Argentina. Should Argentina win, goal difference will be required to separate Mexico and Poland.
Group D
Tunisia-France (30 November, 18:00 local time)
Australia-Denmark (30 November, 18:00 local time)
•France are already qualified and will top the group unless they lose to Tunisia and Australia beat Denmark, which would leave them tied on six points with the Aussie Socceroos.
•Victory will see Australia qualify, while a draw would be enough unless Tunisia beat France, which would see the North African side go through on goal difference.
•Denmark must win against Australia and, if they do so, will be certain to qualify unless Tunisia beat France, which would leave them tied on four points with the Carthage Eagles.
•Tunisia must beat France and hope Denmark avoid defeat by Australia to be in contention to qualify.
Group E
Costa Rica-Germany (1 December, 22:00 local time)
Japan-Spain (1 December, 22:00 local time)
•Spain will qualify for the Round of 16 with a win or a draw. Defeat to Japan will leave them relying on their currently superior goal difference to progress, unless Costa Rica beat Germany, in which case Luis Enrique’s side will be out.
•Japan can go through with victory against Spain, while a draw, coupled with deadlock in the Costa Rica v Germany clash, will ensure they progress. They will go out if they are beaten by Spain, or if the match ends in a draw and Costa Rica triumph against Germany. Goal difference will be required to decide their fate if they draw and Germany are victorious.
•Costa Rica can reach the last 16 by defeating Germany. A draw for Luis Fernando Suarez’s side would also guarantee a spot in the next phase if Spain overcome Japan, but if the current group leaders are beaten then goal difference comes into play. A draw in both games or a defeat for Costa Rica puts them out.
•Germany must pick up three points to stay in contention. Victory over Costa Rica coupled with a win for Spain against Japan will see them qualify. A draw between Luis Enrique’s side and the Samurai Blue, or a win for Japan, would take the equation to goal difference. All other results would see Hansi Flick’s men out of the competition.
Group F
Canada-Morocco (1 December, 18:00 local time)
Croatia-Belgium (1 December, 18:00 local time)
•Croatia are through if they win or draw. Defeat would leave them needing eliminated Canada to overcome Morocco, in which case goal difference would be required to separate Zlatko Dalic's side from the Atlas Lions.
•Morocco are through if they win or draw. Defeat would leave them needing Belgium to overcome Croatia, in which case goal difference would be required to determine if they or the 2018 runners-up progress to the last 16.
•Belgium will qualify for the Round of 16 with victory over Croatia. Defeat will see them knocked out. A draw will only be enough if Morocco are beaten by Canada, with goal difference then set to determine where Roberto Martinez’s side and Walid Regragui’s outfit finish in Group F.
•Canada are already eliminated after losing their opening two fixtures.
Group G
Cameroon-Serbia (28 November, 13:00 local time)
Brazil-Switzerland (28 November, 19:00 local time)
•A defeat would knock Serbia out if Brazil fail to win against Switzerland.
•A win would see Brazil through if Cameroon fail to win against Serbia.
•A defeat would knock Cameroon out if Switzerland fail to win against Brazil.
•A win would see Switzerland through if Serbia fail to win against Cameroon.
Group H
Korea Republic-Ghana (28 November, 16:00 local time)
Portugal-Uruguay (28 November, 22:00 local time)
•A win would see Portugal into the Round of 16.
•A defeat would put Ghana out.
•Uruguay and Korea Republic can neither qualify nor be eliminated on Matchday 2.
Tiebreaker information
If two or more teams in the same group are equal on points after the completion of the group stage, the following criteria, in the order below, shall be applied to determine the ranking:
• Step 1:
(a) greatest number of points obtained in all group matches;
(b) superior goal difference in all group matches;
(c) greatest number of goals scored in all group matches.
• Step 2:
If two or more teams in the same group are equal on the basis of the above three criteria, their rankings will be determined as follows:
(d) greatest number of points obtained in the group matches between the teams concerned;
(e) superior goal difference resulting from the group matches between the teams concerned;
(f) greatest number of goals scored in all group matches between the teams concerned;
(g) highest team conduct score relating to the number of yellow and red cards obtained;
(h) drawing of lots by FIFA.
ROUND OF 16 Matches:- begin here
Saturday, 3rd December 2022, 8pm.
DAY 14.
Match 49 of 64. Round Match#1 of 16.
RM#1:
Winners of Group A
[ Netherlands ๐ณ๐ฑ ]
3
⚽️
1
Runners-up of Group B
[ United States ๐บ๐ธ of America ]
(Khalifa International Stadium, Al Rayyan; kick-off 8 pm)
Memphis DEPAY (๐ณ๐ฑ) scored at 10' ;
Daley BLIND (๐ณ๐ฑ) scored at 45'+1' ;
Weston McKENNIE was substituted by
Haji WRIGHT at 67' ; Haji WRIGHT (๐บ๐ธ) scored at 76' ;
Denzel DUMFRIES (๐ณ๐ฑ) scored at 81' .
Watch the highlights here
https://www.fifa.com/fifaplus/en/watch/5XHGn2t9YobJ1GAFZKMDAT
22nd Edition World Cup total goals scored update : _124_ ⚽️ after match 49 of 64.
Saturday, 3rd December 2022, 8pm.
DAY 14.
Match 50 of 64. Round Match#2 of 16.
RM#2 :
Winner of Group C
[ Argentina ๐ฆ๐ท ]
2
⚽️
1
Runner-up of Group D
[ Australia ๐ฆ๐บ ]
(Ahmed Bin Ali Stadium, Al Rayyan; kick-off 8pm)
Lionel MESSI (๐ฆ๐ท) scored at 35' ;
Julian ALVAREZ (๐ฆ๐ท) scored at 57' ;
Enzo FERNANDEZ (๐ฆ๐ท) scored own goal (OG) at 77' .
Watch the highlights here
https://www.fifa.com/fifaplus/en/watch/5hQ8DJM14tBciQZrOqq1hR
22nd Edition World Cup total goals scored update : _127_ ⚽️ after match 50 of 64.
DAY 1 , TOTAL 02 GOALS.
DAY 2 , TOTAL 12 GOALS.
DAY 3 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 4 , TOTAL 11 GOALS.
DAY 5 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 6 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 7 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 8 , TOTAL 10 GOALS.
DAY 9 , TOTAL 14 GOALS.
DAY 10 , TOTAL 09 GOALS.
DAY 11 , TOTAL 07 GOALS.
DAY 12 , TOTAL 12 GOALS.
DAY 13 , TOTAL 11 GOALS.(120)
DAY 14 , R#1&2 TOTAL 07 GOALS.(127)
Sunday, 4 December 2022, 4pm.
DAY 15.
Match 51 of 64 . Round match #3 of 16.
RM#3.
Winner of Group D
[ France ๐ซ๐ท ]
3
⚽️
1
Runner-up of Group C
[ Poland ๐ต๐ฑ ]
(Al Thumama Stadium, Doha; kick-off 4pm.)
Olivier GIROUD (๐ซ๐ท) scored at 44' ;
Kylian MBAPPE (๐ซ๐ท) scored at 74';
Kylian MBAPPE (๐ซ๐ท) scored at 90'+1;
Robert LEWANDOWSKI (๐ต๐ฑ) scored at 90' + 9'.
Watch the highlights here
https://www.fifa.com/fifaplus/en/watch/64SmxbyL5NcHO462P6j10tk
22nd Edition World Cup total goals scored update : _131_ ⚽️ after match 51 of 64.
Sunday, 4 December 2022, 8pm.
DAY 15.
Match 52 of 64. Round match #4 of 16.
RM#4.
Winner of Group B
[ England ๐ด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ ]
3
⚽️
0
Runner-up of Group A
[ Senegal ๐ธ๐ณ ]
(at Al Bayt Stadium, Al Khor)
Jordan HENDERSON (๐ด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ) scored at 38';
Harry KANE (๐ด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ) scored at 45'+3' ;
Bukayo SAKA (๐ด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ) scored at 57' .
Watch the highlights here
https://www.fifa.com/fifaplus/en/watch/1KduI591JSXhLPnU99xpiO
22nd Edition World Cup total goals scored update : _134_ ⚽️ after match 52 of 64.
DAY 1 , TOTAL 02 GOALS.
DAY 2 , TOTAL 12 GOALS.
DAY 3 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 4 , TOTAL 11 GOALS.
DAY 5 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 6 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 7 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 8 , TOTAL 10 GOALS.
DAY 9 , TOTAL 14 GOALS.
DAY 10 , TOTAL 09 GOALS.
DAY 11 , TOTAL 07 GOALS.
DAY 12 , TOTAL 12 GOALS.
DAY 13 , TOTAL 11 GOALS.
DAY 14 R#1&2, TOTAL 07 GOALS.(127)
DAY 15 R#3&4, TOTAL 07 GOALS.(134)
Monday, 5 December 2022, 4pm.
DAY 16.
Match 53 of 64. Round Match#5 of 16.
RM#5:
Winner of Group E
[ Japan ๐ฏ๐ต ]
1
⚽️
1
Runner-up of Group F
[ Croatia ๐ญ๐ท ]
(Al Janoub Stadium, Al Wakrah; kick-off 4pm)
Daizen MAEDA (๐ฏ๐ต) scored at 43' ;
Ivan PERISIC (๐ญ๐ท) scored at 55' ;
Full time 90', Draw: 1 – 1.
Extra Time 30' :
Nikola VLASIC (๐ญ๐ท) scored at 122 ' ;
Marcelo BROZOVIC (๐ญ๐ท) scored at 123' ;
Takuma ASANO (๐ฏ๐ต) scored at 124' ;
Mario PASALIC(๐ญ๐ท) scored at 126'.
ExtraTime Result
[ Japan ๐ฏ๐ต ]
1
⚽️
3
[ Croatia ๐ญ๐ท ]
Watch the highlights here
https://www.fifa.com/fifaplus/en/watch/24omCQte8BW85haAm9hFut
22nd Edition World Cup total goals scored update : 140 ⚽️ after match 53 of 64.
Monday, 5 December 2022, 8pm.
DAY 16.
Match 54 of 64. Round Match#6 of 16.
RM#6:
Winner of Group G
[ Brazil ๐ง๐ท ]
4
⚽️
1
Runner-up of Group H
[Republic Korea ๐ฐ๐ท. ]
(Stadium 974, Doha; kick-off 8 pm)
VINICIUS JR (๐ง๐ท) scored at 7' ;
NEYMAR (๐ง๐ท) scored at 13' ;
RICHARLISON (๐ง๐ท) scored at 29' ;
LUCAS PAQUETA (๐ง๐ท) scored at 36' ;
HWANG Inbeom was substituted in 65' by PAIK Seungho; in 76' PAIK Seungho (๐ฐ๐ท) scored .
Watch the highlights here
https://www.fifa.com/fifaplus/en/watch/6J1vG4ELULSQz0YSIQIQGz
22nd Edition World Cup total goals scored update : _145_ ⚽️ after match 54 of 64.
DAY 1 , TOTAL 02 GOALS.
DAY 2 , TOTAL 12 GOALS.
DAY 3 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 4 , TOTAL 11 GOALS.
DAY 5 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 6 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 7 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 8 , TOTAL 10 GOALS.
DAY 9 , TOTAL 14 GOALS.
DAY 10 , TOTAL 09 GOALS.
DAY 11 , TOTAL 07 GOALS.
DAY 12 , TOTAL 12 GOALS.
DAY 13 , TOTAL 11 GOALS.
DAY 14, R#1&2 TOTAL 07 GOALS.
DAY 15, R#3&4 TOTAL 07 GOALS.(134)
DAY 16, R#5&6 TOTAL 11 GOALS.(145)
Tuesday, 6 December 2022, 4pm.
DAY 17.
Match 55 of 64. Round Match#7 of 16.
RM#7:
Winners of Group F
[ Morocco ๐ฒ๐ฆ ]
0 (3)
⚽️
0 (0)
Runners-up of Group E
[ Spain ๐ช๐ธ ]
(Education City Stadium, Al Rayyan; kick-off 4pm)
Full Time , result draw 0 –0.
Extra 30 minutes time : 0 – 0.
Penalty-shoot-out:
Abdelhamid SABIRI (๐ฒ๐ฆ) scored at 122' ;
Hakim ZIYECH (๐ฒ๐ฆ) scored at 124' ;
Achraf HAKIMI (๐ฒ๐ฆ) scored at 127 ' ;
Morocco wins 3 - 0 on penalties.
[ Stadium Attendance : 44667]
Watch the highlights here
https://www.fifa.com/fifaplus/en/watch/2ZqLZ2FFPV6urFL8A9fIBl
22nd Edition World Cup total goals scored update : _148_ ⚽️ after match 55 of 64.
56s ago (22:22 GMT)
Singing and dancing on streets of Doha after Morocco’s victory
It’s now well past midnight and the crowds in Musherib near Souq Waqif in Doha’s old downtown are in no mood to stop celebrating.
Jubilant Morocco supporters have gathered around a group of people singing with a tambourine and drum and are following wherever the singers go.
If this is the celebration when Morocco advances to the quarter-finals, it’s hard to imagine what the scenes on the streets of Doha will look like if the Moroccan side goes even further in the World Cup tournament. Watch YouTube here
Some more fans celebrations worldwide
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=MmwPFrqysvs&feature=emb_imp_woyt
Tuesday, December 6, 8 pm.
DAY 17.
Match 56 of 64. Round Match#8 of 16.
RM#8:
Winners of Group H
[ Portugal ๐ต๐น ]
6
⚽️
1
Runners-up of Group G
[ Switzerland ๐จ๐ญ ]
(Lusail Stadium, Lusail; kick-off 8 pm)
GONCALO RAMOS (๐ต๐น) scored at 17' ;
PEPE (๐ต๐น) scored at 33' ;
GONCALO RAMOS (๐ต๐น) scored at 51' ;
RAPHAEL GUERREIRO(๐ต๐น)scored at 55';
Manuel AKANJI (๐จ๐ญ) scored at 58' ;
GONCALO RAMOS(๐ต๐น) scored hattrick at 67' ;
BRUNO FERNANDES substituted by RAFAEL LEAO in 87'; RAFAEL LEAO(๐ต๐น) scored at 90'+2' .
90 + 5 ' Full Time.
Watch the highlights here
https://www.fifa.com/fifaplus/en/watch/455vYaPWEajPryVIbadHKh
22nd Edition World Cup total goals scored update : _155_ ⚽️ after match 56 of 64.
DAY 1 , TOTAL 02 GOALS.
DAY 2 , TOTAL 12 GOALS.
DAY 3 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 4 , TOTAL 11 GOALS.
DAY 5 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 6 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 7 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 8 , TOTAL 10 GOALS.
DAY 9 , TOTAL 14 GOALS.
DAY 10 , TOTAL 09 GOALS.
DAY 11 , TOTAL 07 GOALS.
DAY 12 , TOTAL 12 GOALS.
DAY 13 , TOTAL 11 GOALS.
DAY 14 , R#1&2, TOTAL 07 GOALS.
DAY 15 , R#3&4 TOTAL 07 GOALS.
DAY 16 , R#5&6 TOTAL 11 GOALS.(145)
DAY 17, R#7&8 TOTAL 10 GOALS.(155)
*QUARTER-FINALS* Q-F
Friday, 9 December 2022, 4 pm.
DAY 18.
Match 57 of 64. Round Match#9 of 16. Q-F#1 of 4.
RM#9.
Winners of RM#5
[ Croatia ๐ญ๐ท ]
1 (4)
⚽️
1 (2)
Winners of RM#6
[ Brazil ๐ง๐ท ]
Penalty-shoot-out Result:
Croatia wins 4 - 2 on penalties.
(Education City Stadium, Al Rayyan; kick-off 4pm)
During Extra Time ,
NEYMAR (๐ง๐ท) scored in 105'+1' ;
Bruno PETKOVIC (๐ญ๐ท) scored in 117'.
Penalty-shoot-out:
Nikola VLASIC(๐ญ๐ท) converted goal in 121' ;
Lovro MAJER(๐ญ๐ท) converted goal in122';
CASEMIRO (๐ง๐ท) converted goal in 123';
Luka MODRIC (๐ญ๐ท) converted goal in124';
PEDRO (๐ง๐ท) converted goal in 124' ;
Mislav ORSIC (๐ญ๐ท) converted goal in 125'.
Watch the highlights here
https://www.fifa.com/fifaplus/en/watch/01G90yf5UsTdYICgqacSzF
22nd Edition World Cup total goals scored update : _163_ ⚽️ after match 57 of 64.
Q-F to Final Total Goals : 8 ⚽️
Friday, 9 December 2022, 8 pm.
DAY 18.
Match 58 of 64. Round Match#10 of 16. Q-F#2 of 4.
RM#10:
Winners of RM#1
[Netherlands ๐ณ๐ฑ]
2 (3)
⚽️
2 (4)
Winners of RM#2
[Argentina ๐ฆ๐ท]
(Lusail Stadium, Al Daayen city; kick-off 8pm)
Nahuel MOLINA (๐ฆ๐ท) scored in 35' ;
Lionel MESSI (๐ฆ๐ท) (took penalty spot) scored in 73' ;
Wout WEGHORST (๐ณ๐ฑ) scored in 83' ;
Wout WEGHORST (๐ณ๐ฑ) scored in 90'+11';
FT 2-2 ; Extra Time 2-2;
Penalty-shoot-out:
Lionel MESSI(๐ฆ๐ท) converted goal in 122';
Leandro PAREDES(๐ฆ๐ท) converted goal in 123' ;
Teun KOOPMEINERS (๐ณ๐ฑ) converted goal in 124' ;
Gonzalo MONTIEL (๐ฆ๐ท) converted goal in 125" ;
Wout WEGHORST (๐ณ๐ฑ) converted goal in
125' ;
Luuk DE JONG (๐ณ๐ฑ) converted goal in 127' ;
Lautaro MARTINEZ (๐ฆ๐ท) converted goal in 128' ;
Argentina wins 4-3 on penalty-shoot-out.
Watch the highlights here
https://www.fifa.com/fifaplus/en/watch/66evf9qAjJh9fF7GeYBmtd
22nd Edition World Cup total goals scored update : _174_ ⚽️ after match 58 of 64.
Q-F to Final Total Goals : 19 ⚽️
Penalty shoot out dramatic:
• 1st (๐ณ๐ฑ)Virgil Van Dijk (captain) had an okay take but Argentinian goalkeeper Emi Martinez guessed right. SAVED.
Argentina:–
Netherlands: X
• 1st (๐ฆ๐ท) Messi has no issues. It's his second penalty past Netherlands goalkeeper Andries Noppert in this match. GOAL.
Argentina: ✅
Netherlands: X
• 2nd(๐ณ๐ฑ)Emi Martinez is unreal! A second save and he's in the Netherlands' head Berghuis had no chance. SAVED.
Argentina:✅
Netherlands: XX
• 2nd(๐ฆ๐ท) Leandro Paredes has no issue!
Argentina are rolling. GOAL.
Argentina:✅✅
Netherlands: XX
• 3rd(๐ณ๐ฑ)Teun Koopiemiers finally has the Netherlands on the board! Finally, they get one past Argentina goalkeeper Emi Martinez . GOAL.
Argentina:✅✅
Netherlands: XX✅
• 3rd(๐ฆ๐ท) Gonzalo Montiel nails his spot kick. GOAL.
Argentina:✅✅✅
Netherlands: XX✅
• 4th(๐ณ๐ฑ)The Netherlands are doing what they can. It's a good take from Wout Weghorst. GOAL.
Argentina:✅✅✅
Netherlands: XX✅✅
• 4th(๐ฆ๐ท) Oh no Enzo Fernandez. It's a moment to learn from for the young Argentine. OUTSIDE.
Argentina:✅✅✅X
Netherlands: XX✅✅
• 5th(๐ณ๐ฑ)Luuk de Jong keeps the shootout going. Do the Netherlands have a chance? GOAL.
Argentina:✅✅✅X
Netherlands: XX✅✅✅
• 5th(๐ฆ๐ท) Lautaro Martinez ends it.
Cool as you'd like while the lights shine the brightest. GOAL.
Argentina: ✅ ✅ ✅ X ✅ (4)
Netherlands: X X ✅ ✅ ✅ (3)
DAY 1 , TOTAL 02 GOALS.
DAY 2 , TOTAL 12 GOALS.
DAY 3 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 4 , TOTAL 11 GOALS.
DAY 5 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 6 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 7 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 8 , TOTAL 10 GOALS.
DAY 9 , TOTAL 14 GOALS.
DAY 10 , TOTAL 09 GOALS.
DAY 11 , TOTAL 07 GOALS.
DAY 12 , TOTAL 12 GOALS.
DAY 13 , TOTAL 11 GOALS.
DAY 14 , TOTAL 07 GOALS.
DAY 15, TOTAL 07 GOALS.
DAY 16, TOTAL 11 GOALS.
DAY 17, TOTAL 10 GOALS.(155)
DAY 18, Q-F#1&2 TOTAL 19 GOALS.(174)
Saturday, 10 December 2022, 4 pm.
DAY 19.
Match 59 of 64. Round Match#11 of 16.
Q-F#3 of 4.
RM#11:
Winner of RM#7
[Morocco ๐ฒ๐ฆ]
1
⚽️
0
Winner of RM#8
[Portugal ๐ต๐น]
(Al Thumama Stadium, Doha; kick-off 4 pm)
Youssef EN NESYRI(๐ฒ๐ฆ) scored in 42' .
Watch the highlights here
https://www.fifa.com/fifaplus/en/watch/4se3MdPEAeiq5n0e9eT14w
22nd Edition World Cup total goals scored update : _175_ ⚽️ after match 59 of 64.
Q-F to Final Total Goals : 20 ⚽️
Saturday, 10 December 2022, 8pm.
DAY 19.
Match 60 of 64. Round Match#12 of 16. Q-F#4 of 4.
RM#12:
Winners of RM#4
[ England ๐ด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ ]
1
⚽️
2
Winners of RM#3
[France ๐ซ๐ท]
(Al Bayt Stadium, Al Khor; kick-off 8pm)
Aurelien TCHOUAMENI(๐ซ๐ท) scored in 17';
Harry KANE (๐ด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ) penalty kick scored in 54";
Olivier GIROUD (๐ซ๐ท) scored in 78'.
Watch the highlights here
https://www.fifa.com/fifaplus/en/watch/783zSqR6RRJrx6UiakMYc4
22nd Edition World Cup total goals scored update : _178_ ⚽️ after match 60 of 64.
Q-F to Final Total Goals : 23 ⚽️.
Team captain Harry Kane missed a late penalty as England crashed out of the World Cup quarterfinals with a 2-1 defeat to reigning champions France.
Aurelien Tchouameni put France ahead through a sweet strike in the 17th minute before Kane drew the two sides level with a 54th minute penalty, but Olivier Giroud scored what proved to be a decisive header in the 78th minute.
Kane had the chance to become England's outright record goalscorer from the spot in the 84th minute, but it was yet more penalty woe for the Three Lions as the Tottenham Hotspur striker ballooned his second spot-kick over the bar.
It meant Gareth Southgate's side failed to reach a second successive World Cup semifinal, while France march on to the last four, where they will face Morocco on Wednesday.
France got off to the perfect start when Tchouameni shook off a tackle from Declan Rice and struck a brilliant effort from distance which Jordan Pickford was powerless to stop. GOAL. France ๐ซ๐ท 1, England ๐ด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ 0.
There were calls for an England penalty in the 25th minute when Dayot Upamecano tangled with Kane on the edge of the area, but referee Wilton Sampaio waved away those appeals after a VAR review.
Southgate's team were given a way back after a strong start to the second half when Tchouameni brought down Saka for a penalty. Kane stepped up and sent Hugo Lloris the wrong way, equalling Wayne Rooney's all-time England record with his 53rd international goal. GOAL. England ๐ด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ 1, France ๐ซ๐ท 1.
England almost took the lead for the first time in the 70th minute when Harry Maguire rose highest from a free-kick, but his header skimmed the post with Lloris stretching.
France spurned a fine chance of their own seven minutes later when Giroud's volley was acrobatically turned away by Pickford, but the France striker made up for that with a thumping header from Antoine Griezmann's cross to put his side ahead. GOAL. France ๐ซ๐ท 2, England ๐ด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ 1.
It looked as if that lead would not last long when England were awarded a penalty for Theo Hernandez's barge on substitute Mason Mount following a VAR review. This time, however, Kane skied his effort in uncharacteristic fashion. MISSED PENALTY SHOT. England ๐ด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ 1, France ๐ซ๐ท 2.
90'+11' MATCH END -The final whistle sounds.
DAY 1 , TOTAL 02 GOALS.
DAY 2 , TOTAL 12 GOALS.
DAY 3 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 4 , TOTAL 11 GOALS.
DAY 5 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 6 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 7 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 8 , TOTAL 10 GOALS.
DAY 9 , TOTAL 14 GOALS.
DAY 10 , TOTAL 09 GOALS.
DAY 11 , TOTAL 07 GOALS.
DAY 12 , TOTAL 12 GOALS.
DAY 13 , TOTAL 11 GOALS.
DAY 14 , TOTAL 07 GOALS.
DAY 15, TOTAL 07 GOALS.
DAY 16, TOTAL 11 GOALS.
DAY 17, TOTAL 10 GOALS.
DAY 18, TOTAL 19 GOALS.(174)
DAY 19, Q-F#3&4 TOTAL 4 GOALS.(178)
*SEMI-FINALS* S-F
Tuesday, 13 December 2022, 8pm.
DAY 20.
Match 61 of 64. Round Match#13 of 16. S-F#1 of 2.
RM#13:
Winner of RM#9
[ Croatia ๐ญ๐ท ]
0
⚽️
3
Winner of RM#10
[ Argentina ๐ฆ๐ท ]
(Lusail Stadium, Al Daayen city; kick-off 8 pm)
Lionel MESSI (๐ฆ๐ท) penalty kick scored in 34' ;
Julian ALVAREZ (๐ฆ๐ท) scored in 39 ' ;
Julian ALVAREZ(๐ฆ๐ท) scored in 69' .
Watch the highlights here
22nd Edition World Cup total goals scored update : 181 ⚽️ after match 61 of 64.
DAY 1 , TOTAL 02 GOALS.
DAY 2 , TOTAL 12 GOALS.
DAY 3 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 4 , TOTAL 11 GOALS.
DAY 5 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 6 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 7 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 8 , TOTAL 10 GOALS.
DAY 9 , TOTAL 14 GOALS.
DAY 10, TOTAL 09 GOALS.
DAY 11 , TOTAL 07 GOALS.
DAY 12, TOTAL 12 GOALS.
DAY 13, TOTAL 11 GOALS.
DAY 14, TOTAL 07 GOALS.
DAY 15, TOTAL 07 GOALS.
DAY 16, TOTAL 11 GOALS.
DAY 17, TOTAL 10 GOALS.
DAY 18, TOTAL 19 GOALS.
DAY 19, TOTAL 04 GOALS.(178)
DAY 20, S-F#1 TOTAL 03 GOALS. (181)
*SEMI-FINALS*
Wednesday, 14 December 2022, 8pm.
DAY 21.
Match 62 of 64. Round Match#14 of 16.
S-F#2 of 2.
RM#14 :
Winners of RM#11
[Morocco ๐ฒ๐ฆ]
0
⚽️
2
Winners of RM#12
[ France ๐ซ๐ท ]
(Al Bayt Stadium, Al Khor; kick-off 8pm)
Theo HERNANDEZ (๐ซ๐ท) scored in 5' ;
Randal KOLO MUANI (๐ซ๐ท) scored in 79'
(Ousmane DEMBELE substituted by
Randal KOLO MUANI in 78')
Watch the highlights here
https://www.fifa.com/fifaplus/en/watch/7HxpGAqmze4vGWm6dxD3tz
22nd Edition World Cup total goals scored update : _183_ ⚽️ after match 62 of 64.
DAY 1 , TOTAL 02 GOALS.
DAY 2 , TOTAL 12 GOALS.
DAY 3 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 4 , TOTAL 11 GOALS.
DAY 5 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 6 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 7 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 8 , TOTAL 10 GOALS.
DAY 9 , TOTAL 14 GOALS.
DAY 10 , TOTAL 09 GOALS.
DAY 11 , TOTAL 07 GOALS.
DAY 12 , TOTAL 12 GOALS.
DAY 13 , TOTAL 10 GOALS.
DAY 14 , TOTAL 07 GOALS.
DAY 15, TOTAL 07 GOALS.
DAY 16, TOTAL 11 GOALS.
DAY 17, TOTAL 10 GOALS.
DAY 18, TOTAL 19 GOALS.
DAY 19, TOTAL 04 GOALS.
DAY 20, TOTAL 03 GOALS.(181)
DAY 21, S-F#2 TOTAL 02 GOALS.(183)
THIRD PLACE PLAY-OFF
Match 63 of 64. Round Match#15 of 16.
Saturday, 17 December 2022, 4pm.
DAY 22.
RM#15:
Loser of semi-finals #1
[ Croatia ๐ญ๐ท ]
2
⚽️
1
Loser of semi-finals #2
[ Morocco ๐ฒ๐ฆ ]
(Khalifa International Stadium, Al Rayyan; kick-off 4 pm)
Josko GVARDIOL (๐ญ๐ท) scored in 7' ;
Achraf DARI Josko (๐ฒ๐ฆ) scored in 9' ;
Mislav ORSIC (๐ญ๐ท) scored in 42' .
3rd place : Croatia ๐ญ๐ท
4th place : Morocco ๐ฒ๐ฆ
Watch the highlights here
https://www.fifa.com/fifaplus/en/watch/5BAGunqVa9YUoPdZxI8MTm
22nd Edition World Cup total goals scored update : _186_ ⚽️ after match 63 of 64.
DAY 1 , TOTAL 02 GOALS.
DAY 2 , TOTAL 12 GOALS.
DAY 3 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 4 , TOTAL 11 GOALS.
DAY 5 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 6 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 7 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 8 , TOTAL 10 GOALS.
DAY 9 , TOTAL 14 GOALS.
DAY 10 , TOTAL 09 GOALS.
DAY 11 , TOTAL 07 GOALS.
DAY 12 , TOTAL 12 GOALS.
DAY 13 , TOTAL 11 GOALS.
DAY 14 , TOTAL 07 GOALS.
DAY 15, TOTAL 07 GOALS.
DAY 16, TOTAL 11 GOALS.
DAY 17, TOTAL 10 GOALS.
DAY 18, TOTAL 19 GOALS.
DAY 19, TOTAL 04 GOALS.
DAY 20, TOTAL 03 GOALS.
DAY 21, TOTAL 02 GOALS.(183)
DAY 22, 3rd&4th placing TOTAL 03 GOALS.(186)
FIFA WORLD CUP QATAR 2020,
FINAL MATCH
Sunday, 18 December 2022, 4pm.
DAY 23.
Match 64 of 64. Round Match#16 of 16. F#1 of 1.
RM#16:
The 2022 World Cup Final
[ Argentina ๐ฆ๐ท ] ⚽️ [France ๐ซ๐ท]
(Lusail Stadium, Al Daayen; kick-off 4 pm)
2022 CHAMPION TEAM :
2ND Place:
Match 64 of 64 : FINAL MATCH
18 December 2022, Sunday.
Watch the highlights from the FINAL match here
22nd Edition World Cup total goals scored update : _?_ ⚽️ after match 64 of 64.
DAY 1 , TOTAL 02 GOALS.
DAY 2 , TOTAL 12 GOALS.
DAY 3 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 4 , TOTAL 11 GOALS.
DAY 5 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 6 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 7 , TOTAL 08 GOALS.
DAY 8 , TOTAL 10 GOALS.
DAY 9 , TOTAL 14 GOALS.
DAY 10 , TOTAL 09 GOALS.
DAY 11 , TOTAL 07 GOALS.
DAY 12 , TOTAL 12 GOALS.
DAY 13 , TOTAL 11 GOALS.
DAY 14 , TOTAL 07 GOALS.
DAY 15 , TOTAL 07 GOALS.
DAY 16, TOTAL 11 GOALS.
DAY 17, TOTAL 10 GOALS.
DAY 18, TOTAL 19 GOALS.
DAY 19, TOTAL 04 GOALS.
DAY 20, TOTAL 03 GOALS.
DAY 21, TOTAL 02 GOALS.
DAY 22, TOTAL 03 GOALS.(186)
DAY 23–FINAL MATCH, TOTAL _?_ GOALS. ( )
End of World Cup 2022 Matchday.
FINAL 2022 WORLD CUP TOURNAMENT STANDING:
1 WINNER :
2 RUNNER-UP :
3 THIRD PLACE :
4 FOURTH PLACE :
We meet again next in World Cup 2026 at CANADA, MEXICO & USA.
TRIBUTES: Remember the Blue And Yellow Team Ukraine ๐บ๐ฆ
http://www.espn.com/video/clip?id=4828882
"Football is something that can move the emotions of the whole country and the people who fight for all of us. So football is essential for us individually, as a team, not only for Shakhtar but also for the entire Ukrainian Premier League. It helps to continue living and shows the world that football goes on."
Ukraine Premier League restarts with no fans, police guard and tributes to war dead.
With two teams playing in an empty stadium hundreds of miles from their hometowns, the Ukrainian soccer league started its new season Tuesday after a poignant ceremony paying tribute to those fighting in the war with Russia.
The opening match at Kyiv's 65,500-seat Olympic stadium -- where spectators were not allowed in -- saw two teams from the war-torn east of the country, Shakhtar Donetsk and Metalist 1925 Kharkiv, play out a 0-0 draw. The result, though, was always going to be an afterthought.
It was the first top-level soccer match played in the country since Russia's invasion in February, and the decision to restart the league has been hailed as a defiant sign that Ukrainians are ready to restore some sense of normal life. Although this game felt far from normal.
Ukraine remains under martial law, and large public gatherings have been banned in the capital ahead of the Independence Day holiday Wednesday due to fears of potential Russian bombardment.
Police stood guard in front of the turnstiles, where weeds have grown after stadiums were closed six months ago, but no fans showed up to the arena. Three more league games were scheduled for later Tuesday.
"This is work ... to show the world that life in Ukraine does not stop but continues," Shakhtar coach Igor Jovicevic said before the opening game.
"Football is something that can move the emotions of the whole country and the people who fight for all of us. So football is essential for us individually, as a team, not only for Shakhtar but also for the entire Ukrainian Premier League. It helps to continue living and shows the world that football goes on."
His thoughts were echoed by midfielder Mudryk, who added, "they [the watching world] should remember what events are happening in Ukraine, because a lot of time passes and perhaps the world forgets about it.
"Our goal is to use the games to remind the whole world that nothing is over and of the atrocities that are happening here in Ukraine."
Shakhtar qualified automatically for the group stages of this season's Champions League, having been top of the table when the 2021-22 UPL campaign was suspended.
They now await Thursday's draw and will play their home games in Poland.
On Tuesday, players from the two teams entered the field with blue and yellow Ukrainian national flags draped over their shoulders and observed a minute of silence while the names of Ukrainian cities where people had died in the war were displayed on a large screen.
Players raised a Ukrainian flag at the stadium that once belonged to Danylo Myhal, a Canadian of Ukrainian descent. At the Montreal Olympics in 1976, Myhal ran onto the field carrying the flag during a match between the Soviet Union and East Germany. Wearing an embroidered shirt, he danced a Ukrainian folk dance before being detained.
"[Myhal] always dreamed of bringing his flag to Ukraine and today it's finally happened," President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a televised address before kickoff. "It's being raised today at the opening of the Ukrainian soccer championship."
The team history must not forget: Ukrainian soccer's fight to carry on
OLEKSANDR PETRAKOV LOOKED around the airplane at his boys with both love and disgust. He sat in 1A, front left, his usual head coach seat, as he and the Ukrainian national soccer team flew from Glasgow to Yerevan, Armenia for their next match. They'd lost 3-0 to Scotland a few hours before, just his second loss as the national team manager, but whatever hurt inside him did not pass his lips. That was normal. He's the son of a hard-drinking Soviet factory worker and came up in the USSR athletics machine. Once he dispatched an eight-question press conference in 37 words.
"I'm a simple man," he said.
The plane's pilots, both Ukrainian, took a looping route through Eastern Europe to skirt the dangers of Ukrainian airspace. It was late September. Eleven times since the war began Petrakov's team had taken the field, every one of them in a foreign country. Nobody on the plane played cards or sang. The players sat in silence. They'd failed tonight but at least they'd done it together.
After seven hours, the team landed and took a bus to a Radisson hotel in Yerevan. The players went to bed and the staff went to work. Their head security guy, an unsmiling brick of a man named Andriy, took down a Russian flag flying on a pole in front of the hotel, ripping it off the rope. Someone called the cops and after a showdown, the flag was returned to the pole alongside all the other national flags on display.
A few hours later players filtered down through the hotel, which the support guys had turned into yet another base camp while they slept. They checked their phones to find that Russian president Vladimir Putin had instituted a draft and fighting-age Russian men were fleeing their country. Reports said flights were completely booked for days to every country that didn't require a visa and there were miles-long lines of cars at the Russian borders. Some deserters were sleeping in tents in forests. Reports from the front showed Ukrainian troops advancing towards the Oskil River while repelling Russian attacks. The players smiled.
Laminated signs directed them to the kit room (Hayq the Small), or to the meeting room (Hayq the Great), or to the place where they shared meals, always the same: pasta, chicken, fruit. Taras Stepanenko, the oldest player on the team, stopped and looked from the first floor lobby down into the hotel bar a level below and watched a replay of the previous night's loss.
The team's communication chief, Alex, leaned up against the railing, too. Some Ukrainian journalists were fiercely criticizing Petrakov for the Scotland loss, he said.
"If the team wins next two games, he'll stay," he said. "If not..."
A bright red bus waited outside to take the team to practice at a nearby stadium. The blue sky of morning had turned bruised and swollen. Snowcapped Mount Ararat vanished in the thunderheads. Trees swayed. Black clouds moved across the valley. Just before 6 p.m., as the players took the field, the sky opened. The temperature dropped and the horizon looked like an illustration in a children's Bible. Swirling winds spun raindrops into strange balls of water that glittered beneath stadium light stanchions. Petrakov stood on the pitch and screamed at his team about their lazy play the day before. They ran laps in the rain. They kept their heads down, their shoulders folded forward. He began to run with them and looked up at the sky. A wide smile crossed his face -- the first real smile from him all day. An idea formed as water ran down his nose. He seemed happy. Order and purpose emerged from their disappointment. He wagged a finger at his boys.
"There is no punishment without guilt!" he bellowed.
IT WAS MY last chance to see this Ukrainian team. Every national squad has a life cycle, depending on scheduling and tournaments, and these players were at the end of theirs. Perhaps no team in history had been asked to do so much, banding together while their lives were under siege, trying to win the biggest matches of their lives while missiles fell from the sky back home. They've all been forever changed by the experience. They've learned things about humanity and their truest selves.
That was clear from my first meeting with Petrakov back in May, when he had hope he could lead Ukraine to the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. Everyone focused on the results then, including me, but Petrakov seemed to see something deeper about a nation at war, something primal, tuned to the ways the fight creates in you the person you'll have to live with for the rest of your life. He already knew then that every wartime decision revealed either strength or weakness. He told a story about the morning of Feb. 24, the day Russia invaded Ukraine. He and his wife slept in their apartment when it began. They switched on the lights. Explosions rocked their city. His daughter came to the door with her husband. The telephone rang. It was his son.
"Dad, we have to get out of Kyiv," his son told him.
"No," Petrakov said. "I won't go anywhere."
Russian cruise missiles detonated close enough that his windows rattled. His wife went to a bunker. Petrakov stayed in their apartment. One day, early in the invasion, he went outside to buy bread. As he walked near his usual subway station he heard a whoosh above his head. He looked up. Seconds later, he felt the jolt of an explosion. The blast killed a girl and a boy, a father and a mother. Petrakov was 64 years old. He wanted to join the fight. As a young man, he'd served in the Soviet Army. Now he went to a local Territorial Defense Forces recruiting office to volunteer. The soldiers told him that he could serve the nation best by coaching his team.
"Just win," they said.
At sandbag and concrete checkpoints near his apartment, Petrakov brought food and cigarettes to soldiers standing watch. He asked about them, about their homes. Petrakov loves Kyiv. Sometimes he has let himself imagine what it will be like after the fighting stops. His eyes and smile seem lit from within when he narrates the future. One day many years from now, if he's lucky, he will walk down the sidewalk on one of Kyiv's wide avenues and he'll pass a cafรฉ and see some of his former players sharing a toast. They will crowd around a small table and remember bygone days of football and war.
The national team coaches and players first came together seven weeks after the invasion began, playing matches in Scotland, Wales, Ireland, Poland and Armenia. They've become brothers. They've fought together to win and leaned on each other when they lost. They've taken the field long after the world's attention moved on to other things. They've played in games without visible stakes. They've trained miles from home and hungered for updates from family and friends.
Now in Armenia, they were aware their efforts might soon slip into the realm of memory. And so each game, each moment, meant all the more to them. "At first, the Ukrainian anthem before the game did not cause me any feelings," Petrakov said one afternoon as he wiped tears from his eyes. "But now when the anthem plays at the beginning of the game, I feel like a real Ukrainian. This has never happened to me before. Then I'm ready to tear everybody apart on the field."
It was Thursday. Two more games remained, one Saturday in Armenia and another Tuesday night in Krakow, Poland. Then the players would scatter to their clubs around Europe and the coaches and staff would return to Ukraine. They wouldn't gather again until March 2023 -- at the end of what they knew would surely be the worst winter in their nation's history.
PETRAKOV WORKED OUT alone in the stark hotel gym and then moved through the halls in a practiced orbit, emotional quantum mechanics, checking on players and coaches. The best coaching he's done with this team has had little to do with football strategy. When he looks down his roster, he sees a map of scattered families. He knows who has a brother in the army or parents trapped in occupied basements. The whole world has seen his boys stand at attention for the national anthem, but Petrakov alone has looked into their eyes just before they take the field and as they return to the privacy of their changing room. He knows their birthdays. Only two of his players -- his captain Andriy Yarmolenko and Stepanenko -- were born before the collapse of the Berlin Wall. Most of his team have only lived in a free Ukraine and don't remember the past. Petrakov tells them of the world before independence. He has seen a country simply cease to exist.
They pledged to reject all Western values in the Soviet days, but his cool older brother knew the local speculator who could score black market Beatles albums and Levi's. Petrakov loved Donna Summer and ABBA. Today his players chuckle when he dribbles a ball around before practice or takes a shot on goal. They wouldn't have laughed when he was a young man, a feared defender who made opponents pay for even approaching the goal.
He was born in 1957, four years after the death of Josef Stalin and four years before Yuri Gagarin completed the first manned orbit of earth. He lived through the peak and the decline of the Soviet empire. His playing career declined with it. In 1990, the last full year of the Soviet Union, he returned to Kyiv after finishing a run with a professional side in Budapest. "When I returned from Hungary, it was a new country, there was nothing in the shops," Petrakov said. "No one knew what to do. Everyone lived for the day. There were no prospects. There were no jobs. The professors were selling cars. PhDs would take any job to support their families."
He found work as a player for a semipro team near Chernobyl -- five years after the nuclear meltdown -- before injuries pushed him off the field and onto the sideline. In 1991, the year Ukraine declared independence, Oleksandr Petrakov became a football coach. He was 34 years old and remembers struggling to make enough to feed his two children. But he also remembers clearly the day of Ukrainian independence.
"We talked about football," he said.
OVER THE YEARS, Petrakov found his niche with youth teams and his career seemed to peak when his team won the U-20 World Cup in 2019. Ukrainian football was on the rise. The men's national team reached the quarterfinals of the 2020 Euros, coached by the greatest Ukrainian player, Ballon d'Or winner Andriy Shevchenko -- whose poster hung on the wall of nearly every child's bedroom in the country.
Shevchenko and federation president Andriy Pavelko got into a public battle and Shevchenko resigned. As fans howled at the loss of such a legend, Pavelko looked desperately for a new coach. He turned to Petrakov, who'd never held a job near the level of the one he was being offered now. Petrakov said yes. Then he went home and looked around his flat in a modest building near the Kyiv Zoo.
"It was night," he said. "I sat down thinking, 'What have I done?'"
He told that story in Ukrainian. The war has made language itself a battlefield. "Since Aug. 17, the day I started, I've spoken Ukrainian," Petrakov said. "I had never spoken it before."
No Ukrainian coach had ever spoken Ukrainian in public.
The Soviet Union waged a cultural war on every part of the nation's identity and so Russian was the native tongue of every member of the Ukrainian national team. When Russia annexed Crimea and invaded portions of Ukrainian territory in 2014, language and culture became increasingly politicized. By trying to destroy a culture, Putin helped create one. Traditional Ukrainian food experienced a renaissance in the bistros of Kyiv. Lifelong Russian speakers searched their grade school memories for fragments of Ukrainian vocabulary.
At practice one afternoon I watched Petrakov yell instructions to the team in Russian. Then a camera crew arrived.
"In Ukrainian, please," he reminded his team.
Now the entire team speaks Ukrainian in public. Many of their fellow citizens do, as well. One morning in a team hotel, the unified heavyweight champion of the world, Oleksandr Usyk, ate breakfast with his young sons. They'd come to town for a game. His boys would ask him questions in Russian but he never failed to reply, even to them, in Ukrainian.
Yarmolenko, Petrakov's captain, looks like a star, with trendy shoes and a carefully managed beard, but he always seems pitched slightly forward, aggressive, ready. Whenever he hears someone speak Russian, in say, London or Dubai, he will start speaking Ukrainian. Loudly. Almost begging them to start a fight.
The war is being contested over territory, yes, but also over identity. In the main squares of Kyiv, sandbags cover statues and monuments to protect them from Russian attack. Putin has written about his theory that there is no such thing as Ukraine, that the nation was created by the West to fracture Russian power and regional control.
"Russians and Ukrainians were one people -- a single whole," he wrote last year.
He blames the West for everything wrong with his nation. He criticizes Lenin. He praises Stalin. The fragile web of irrelevant facts and misrepresentations, the basis for every good conspiracy, is laughed at by historians but taken as gospel by many Russian citizens. Putin calls Kyiv the "mother of all Russian cities" and his assault on the capital isn't just about oil or shipping routes, but about grievance and pride. If Ukrainians exist then Russians don't have a divine right to control their corner of the world.
"All evil things in the world come from short people," Petrakov said with a sneer.
We sat in a cafรฉ on an off day.
"Kyiv has always been called the mother of Rus cities," he said and launched into what was omitted from Putin's essays. More than a thousand years ago, a great civilization rose in Kyiv, the Kyivan Rus', which was rooted in Orthodox Christianity and ruled a huge expanse of territory stretching from the Black Sea to Scandinavia. In the 1200s, the Mongol armies sacked Kyiv and broke apart the Kyivan Rus'. The people scattered and are still dealing with the consequences of that defeat. Some drifted west and became Ukrainians. Some Belarusians. And others moved northeast and turned Moscow from a timber-walled frontier fort into the center of a new empire. For Russia, not having control of Kyiv means it can't rewrite history to put itself at the center of it. Leaders as far back as Catherine the Great tried to erase even the idea of a Ukrainian people and history, and Putin is using artillery barrages and cruise missiles and Iranian drones toward the same end. As the Ukrainian military advances toward the Russian border, the Ukrainian citizens defend the ideas that underpin their old culture and new country alike.
"From here Kyivan Rus' began," Petrakov insisted. "Not the other way around."
THE NEWLY HIRED Petrakov and his Ukrainian-speaking team started winning games in the fall of 2021, beating Finland and then Bosnia in World Cup qualifiers. They earned a spot in a playoff scheduled for March. If they beat Scotland and Wales, two difficult road matches, they'd qualify for just the second World Cup in the history of their country. As January arrived, the Biden administration began warning the Ukrainian government that a Russian invasion looked imminent. Petrakov didn't believe it. He'd played with Russian teammates. "We were like brothers," he said. "I don't know how to explain it. They lost their minds."
The war began with Russian tanks rushing across the border and Russian planes flying bombing runs on civilian targets and airborne troopers landing at strategic airports. The global military community wondered if Ukraine might fall in days under this multifront assault, but the citizen-soldiers and the Ukrainian army held firm. A band of outgunned defenders told the captain of a Russian warship to "go f---" himself.
Some national team players hid in freezing bunkers, while others sought refuge in the west part of the country. Some of the major professional teams opened up training facilities and entire families moved in for safety. Later many would describe not thinking about football for the first time in their lives. Even Petrakov found he couldn't watch matches on television. He tried to keep his team together, finding out where everyone was living, calling to check on them.
"Don't worry about football!" man after man told him. "It's a war!"
Petrakov didn't want to leave Kyiv and he didn't want to hide in a bomb shelter. The army didn't want a man of his age. That left football. UEFA floated the idea of petitioning for an automatic spot in the World Cup, but Ukrainian federation president Pavelko and Petrakov said no. They'd earn their way or stay home. Pavelko begged for the qualifying matches to be postponed and FIFA agreed. The games were moved to June. On the day they would have played their first qualifier against Scotland, raid sirens sounded all over east and central Ukraine. Heavy shelling pushed the citizens of Kharkiv further underground. The Ukrainian military destroyed 18 air targets and sank a large warship.
A week later, in early April, Ukrainian forces won the Battle of Kyiv.
In the capital, people began to stand up. Skateboarders did tricks in public squares, the air alive with the scrape of trucks on concrete and metal. Hipsters held court in shabby chic cocktail bars with names like The Cinematographer's Party. Wedding chapels couldn't keep up with the volume. Three brides before lunch on a Wednesday. Huge groups sat around tables in Georgian restaurants with plates of grilled meat and bottles of semisweet wine. Petrakov went to view the horrors in the northern suburbs of Kyiv. He saw where Russian tanks had been stopped within sight of the city. He could picture his boys as part of the resistance, an instrument of a nation standing up and fiercely getting on with life. He picked up his phone and put his team back together.
"He called everyone," goalkeeper Dmytro Riznyk said, "asking how we were doing, how our families were, where we were. He was worried about all of us."
His players arrived in camp in Slovenia out of shape a month after the Battle of Kyiv ended. The staff hooked up monitors to them during those first training sessions and were appalled at their fitness levels. Petrakov looked out from his fancy hotel room window and saw a rolling rural paradise near the training field. He stepped outside and breathed clean, quiet air and thought about those guys manning the bunker on his street in Kyiv. "Even birds are chirping," he said. "In the meantime, our warriors sleep in foxholes and trenches."
The players' minds were in worse shape than their bodies. Everyone worried. One young player said that the hotel's bland elevator music, played as a soundtrack to his thoughts of home, threatened to drive him mad. "Our cause is to play football. It's very hard," Petrakov said. "Everyone has something else in his head. Someone has relatives where the fighting is going on, someone's relatives are dying. I see it all. My guys are always calling. It is very hard. To understand that you have to be in our shoes. God forbid you ever know what war is."
They made the short trip from their hotel to the training pitch and between the lines, surrounded by old forests and towering blue skies, they got a break from the war. These short hours were the only time they didn't carry their phones. The eyes of the world were on them. A documentary crew from Japan followed them. One from America, too. A reporter from an important Spanish newspaper stood on the sidelines of training, as did one from London. Petrakov and his team did every interview. They thanked every interviewer.
The team arrived for the match in Scotland 10 days later to find a gift from President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who had just visited the front and asked soldiers there to sign a blue and yellow Ukrainian flag for the team. The flag hung in the dressing room before the game and the players quietly read the messages. Many soldiers had written "4.5.0," Ukrainian military code for "everything is fine, everything is calm." We're good.
.The team defeated Scotland 3-1, and Petrakov ran onto the pitch in the seconds after the whistle, flexing his arms and screaming in the direction of roaring Ukrainian refugees and expats. The victory set up a deciding game. Beat Wales and qualify for Qatar.
They lost.
One to nil in the driving Welsh rain, on an own goal by their captain Yarmolenko.
Petrakov walked into the postgame news conference and took all the blame. He said he'd let down the nation. When he finished, the reporters gave him an ovation. As he left, he turned back towards the room and begged everyone not to forget his nation and the people fighting there. A trip to the World Cup would have brought a lot of attention, needed attention, and he didn't want this failure to hurt the efforts of those in the foxholes and trenches. His face twisted in unnatural snarls, his body trying to expel this feeling while awakening to the knowledge that it would be with him forever.
They went back to their hotel on the south side of Cardiff after losing the biggest match they'd ever play. Yarmolenko locked himself in his room and skipped dinner. Petrakov couldn't sleep. He looked out his window and saw the Ferris wheel that rose up from the Cardiff docks. The lights flashed and changed colors and the wheel went around and around. He lost himself in the repetition. Hours passed. A strange illness swept through the team that night, with most of the starting eleven running fevers as high as 104.
For months they'd all imagined one version of glory. They'd qualify for the World Cup while Russia sat at home, banned by FIFA, and shine light on the Ukrainian cause. They'd even allowed themselves to imagine going down in history. All that was gone in an instant. If they weren't the team that defied all odds and brought honor to their country on a global stage, who were they? Petrakov stared at the Ferris wheel. He could feel the world's attention slipping away. They'd let down their fans. Their country. This moment had been coming since Feb. 24 and he faced a choice now that would define the rest of his life: Hide or fight? What happens if I, the head coach of the national team, lose heart and give up?
The team had their next match in Dublin three days later. They were playing in the Nations League, a minor tournament designed to make money for UEFA more than anything else.
Yarmolenko skipped the team lunch. Then he skipped dinner, too.
The next morning, Petrakov knocked on his captain's door.
"It is so hard for me that this happened," Yarmolenko said. "Do you understand me?"
"That day is over. It will never come back," Petrakov said. "We need to get together and start from the beginning."
Part II: Band of Brothers
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