2022 Qatar World Cup Review

Well there you have it, quite simply the most beautiful way to end the 22nd edition of the FIFA World Cup. Your 2022 World Champions are Lionel Messi's Argentina! Let's take a look at how the tournament unfolded right from the very start, just under a month ago.

So, we all knew of the negative connotations surrounding this World Cup before a ball had even been kicked, but it has to be said that on the pitch, this tournament will go down in history as one of the best. 172 goals were scored throughout the 64 games, meaning a new record was achieved for most goals at the World Cup, beating 171 in 1998 and 2014. Morocco became the first African side to reach the Semi-Final and Asia had more teams in the knockout rounds than South America for the first time ever.

Group A:

The first match of the tournament was held between Qatar and Ecuador in Group A. Ecuador had a disallowed goal in the opening minutes, but eventually won 2–0 with two goals from Enner Valencia. Qatar became the first host nation to lose its opening match at a World Cup. The other starting match in group A was won by the Netherlands 2–0, against Senegal. Cody Gakpo scored the opening goal in the 84th minute and Davy Klaassen added a second in stoppage time.

Senegal faced Qatar in the third match of the group with Boulaye Dia capitalising on a slip by Boualem Khoukhi to put Senegal 1–0 ahead. Famara Diedhio scored a second with a header, before Mohammed Muntari scored Qatar's first-ever goal at a World Cup to reduce the deficit back to one. Senegal eventually won the match 3–1 after an 84th-minute goal by Bamba Dieng. With this result, Qatar became the first team to be eliminated from the tournament, as well as becoming the first host nation to ever be knocked out of the tournament after two games. Gakpo scored his second goal of the tournament as the Netherlands led Ecuador; however, Valencia scored an equaliser in the 49th minute.

The Netherlands won 2–0 against Qatar following goals by Gakpo and Frenkie de Jong to win the group, while Qatar attained the distinction of being the first home nation to lose all three group matches. Senegal faced Ecuador to determine the second knockout round qualifier. At the end of the first half, Ismaila Sarr scored a penalty kick to put Senegal ahead. In the 67th minute, Brighton's Moises Caicedo scored an equaliser, but shortly after, Kalidou Koulibaly gave Senegal the victory. The win was enough to qualify Senegal as the runners-up of Group A.

Group B:

England completed a huge 6–2 victory over IR Iran in the opening game of Group B. Iranian keeper Alireza Beiranvand was removed from the game for a suspected concussion before England scored three first-half goals. Mehdi Taremi scored twice in the second half to reduce the six goal deficit. Timothy Weah, of the United States, scored a first-half goal against Wales, however the match finished as a draw after a penalty kick was won and scored by Gareth Bale.

IR Iran defeated Wales 2–0 following a red card to Welsh goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey after he committed a foul outside of his penalty area. Substitute Rouzbeh Cheshmi scored the first goal eight minutes into stoppage time, followed by Ramin Rezaeian scoring three minutes later. England and the United States played to a 0–0 draw, with only four shots on target between them both.

England did win the group though, following a 3–0 win over Wales with a goals made in Manchester by Phil Foden and two from Marcus Rashford. Christian Pulisic scored the winning goal as the United States defeated IR Iran 1–0 to qualify for the Round of 16.

Group C:

Argentina took an early lead against Saudi Arabia after Lionel Messi scored a penalty kick just ten minutes in, however, second-half goals by Saleh Al-Shehri and Salem Al-Dawsari won the game 2–1 for Saudi Arabia, a result described as "the biggest upset in the history of the World Cup." The match between Mexico and Poland ended as a goalless 0–0 draw after Guillermo Ochoa saved Robert Lewandowski' penalty kick attempt.

Lewandowski scored his first career World Cup goal in a 2–0 win over Saudi Arabia four days later and broke down into tears. Argentina defeated Mexico 2–0, with Messi scoring the opener and teammate Enzo Fernandez scoring his first international goal in stunning fashion.

Argentina won their last game as they played Poland with goals by Alexis Mac Allister and Julian Alvarez which was enough to win the group. Mexico scored two goals against Saudi Arabia and with the Argentina leading 2–0 over Poland, they only required a single goal to qualify as the runner-up based on the tie-breaker of number of goals scored in all group matches but after Al-Dawsari scored a goal in stoppage time for Saudi Arabia, they were out. Despite losing by two goals to Argentina, Poland qualified for the knockout stage on goal difference.

Group D:

The match between Denmark and Tunisia ended as a goalless draw with both teams having goals disallowed by offside calls. Danish midfielder Christian Eriksen made his first major international appearance since suffering a cardiac arrest at the UEFA Euro 2020 championship. Defending champions France, went a goal behind to Australia after a Craig Goodwin goal within ten minutes. France, however, scored four goals through Adrien Rabiot, Kylian Mbappe and two by Oliver Giroud to win 4–1. The goals tied Giroud with Thierry Henry as France's all-time top goalscorer.

Mitchell Duke scored the only goal as Australia won against Tunisia. This was their first World Cup win since 2010. Mbappé scored a brace as France defeated Denmark 2–1. This was enough for France to qualify for the knockout round (the first time since Brazil in 2006 that the defending champions progressed through the opening round).

Mathew Leckie scored the single goal when Australia defeated Denmark 1–0, qualifying for the knockout round as runners-up with the win. Wahbi Khazri scored for Tunisia against France in the 58th minute. Although Antoine Griezmann equalised in stoppage time, it was overturned for offside. Tunisia finished third in the group, as they required a draw in the Denmark and Australia game.

Group E:

Group E began with Japan facing 2014 champions Germany. After an early penalty kick was converted by Germany's Ilkay Gundogan, Japan scored two second-half goals by Ritsu Doan and Takuma Asano in a 2–1 upset win. In the second group match, Spain defeated Costa Rica 7–0. First-half goals by Dani Olmo, Marco Asensio and Ferran Torres were followed by goals from Gavi, Carlos Soler, Alvaro Morata and a second by Torres. This was the largest defeat in a World Cup since Portugal's victory over North Korea in the 2010 event by the same scoreline.

Costa Rica defeated Japan 1–0, with Keysher Fuller scoring with Costa Rica's first shot on target of the tournament. Germany and Spain drew 1–1, with Morata scoring for Spain and Niclas Fullkrug scoring for Germany.

Morata scored the opening goal for Spain against Japan as they controlled the first half of the match. Japan equalised through Doan before a second goal by Kaoru Mitoma was heavily investigated by VAR for the ball seemingly being out of play. The goal was awarded and Japan won the group following a 2–1 win. Serge Gnabry scored on ten minutes for Germany against Costa Rica and they lead until half-time. Germany required a win and for Japan to not win their match to qualify. In the second half, goals by Yeltsin Tejeda and Juan Vargas gave Costa Rica a 2–1 lead, which would have qualified them into the knockout stages ahead of Spain. Germany scored three further goals, two by Kai Havertz and a goal by Fullkrug, ending in a 4–2 win for Germany. This was not enough to qualify them for the final stages, for the second tournament in a row. Japan won the group ahead of Spain.

Group F:

Group F's first match was a goalless draw between Morocco and Croatia. Canada had a penalty kick in the first half of their match against Belgium which was saved by Thibaut Courtois. Belgium won the match by a single goal thanks to Michy Batshuayi.

Belgium then lost 2–0 to Morocco. Goals from Zakaria Aboukhlal and Romain Saiss helped Morocco to their first World Cup win since 1998. The match sparked riots in Belgium, with residents fires and fireworks being set off. Alphonso Davies scored Canada's first World Cup goal to give Canada the lead over Croatia but goals from Marko Livaja, Lovro Majer and two from Andrej Kramaric saw Croatia complete a 4–1 victory.

Morocco scored two early goals through Hakim Ziyech and Youssef En-Nesyri in their game against Canada and qualified following a 2–1 victory. Croatia and Belgium played a goalless draw which eliminated Belgium, whose team is ranked second in the world, from the tournament.

Group G:

Breel Embolo scored the only goal in Switzerland's 1–0 defeat against Cameroon, the place where he was actually born. Richarlison scored two goals, including a stunning acrobatic kick, as Brazil won against Serbia, with star player Neymar receiving an ankle injury.

Cameroon's Jean-Charles Castelletto scored the opening goal against Serbia, but they were quickly behind as Serbia scored three goals from Strahinja Pavlovic, Sergej Milinkovic-Savic and Alexander Mitrovic either side of half time. Cameroon, however, scored goals through Vincent Aboubakar and Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting, completing a 3–3 draw. An 83rd-minute winner by Casemiro for Brazil over Switzerland was enough for them to qualify to the knockout stage.

Having already qualified, a reserved Brazil side were unable to win their final group game, as they were defeated by Cameroon 1–0 following a goal by Aboubakar. He was later sent off for removing his shirt in celebrating the goal. Cameroon, however, did not qualify, as Switzerland defeated Serbia 3–2 in a thrilling encounter.

Group H:

Uruguay and South Korea played out a goalless draw in their opening game but in the other Group H opener, Portugal and Ghana through up a cracker. Cristiano Ronaldo gave Portugal the lead from the spot and in scoring the goal, he became the first man to score in five World Cups. Ghana responded with a goal by Andre Ayew before goals from Joao Felix and Rafael Leao put Portugal 3–1 ahead. Osman Bukari scored in the 89th minute to trail by a single goal, while Inaki Williams had a chance to equalise for Ghana ten minutes into stoppage time, but slipped before shooting. The match finished 3–2 to Portugal.

Mohammed Salisu opened the scoring against for Ghana against South Korea, with Mohammed Kudus following it up. In the second half, Cho Gue-sung scored a brace for South Korea, levelling the score. Kudus scored again in the 68th minute, winning the match 3–2 for the lowest rated side in the entire tournament. Portugal defeated Uruguay 2–0 with two goals from Bruno Fernandes, advancing them to the knockout stage.

Portugal led South Korea through Ricardo Horta after 10 minutes. However, goals by Kim Young-gwon and Hwang Hee-chan saw the game finish 2–1 to South Korea. Giorgian de Arrascaeta scored two goals as Uruguay defeated Ghana 2–0. However, with South Korea winning, Uruguay required another goal to progress as they finished third on goals scored. Several Uruguay players left the pitch after the game surrounding the referees and followed them off the pitch.

Round of 16:

The Round of 16 was formed and Group A winners Netherlands got it underway against USA. Memphis Depay, Daley Blind and Denzel Dumfries scored as they won 3-1 with Haji Wright scoring a unbelievable fluke for the United States.

Messi scored his third of the tournament alongside Julian Alvarez to give Argentina a two-goal lead over Australia and despite a Enzo Fernández own goal from a Craig Goodwin shot, Argentina won 2–1.

Olivier Giroud's goal and Mbappé's brace enabled France to have a 3–1 victory over Poland, with Lewandowski scoring the lone goal for Poland from a penalty that was retaken at the death, after initially being saved by Hugo Lloris.

England beat Senegal 3–0, with goals coming from Jordan Henderson, Harry Kane and Bukayo Saka.

Daizen Maeda scored for Japan against Croatia in the first half before a leveller from Ivan Perisic in the second. Neither team could find the winner, with Croatia defeating Japan 3–1 in a penalty shoot-out.

Vinicius Junior, Neymar, Richarlison and Lucas Paqueta all scored for Brazil, but a volley from South Korean Paik Seung-ho reduced the deficit to 4–1.

The match between Morocco and Spain finished as a goalless draw after 90 minutes, sending the match to extra time. Neither team could score a goal in extra time so Morocco won 3–0 on penalties.

A hat-trick by Ronaldo's replacement Goncalo Ramos led Portugal to defeat Switzerland 6–1, with goals from Portugal's Pepe, Raphael Guerreiro, Rafael Leao and from Switzerland's Manuel Akanji.

Quarter-Finals:

The quarter-finals started when Croatia and Brazil met at the Education City Stadium. It ended 0–0 after 90 minutes and went to extra time. where Neymar scored for Brazil in the 15th minute of extra time. Croatia, however, equalised through Bruno Petkovic in the second period of extra time. With the match drawn, a penalty shootout decided the contest, with Croatia winning the shoot-out 4–2.

In the second quarter-final match, Nahuel Molina and Messi scored for Argentina before Wout Weghorst equalised with two goals shortly before the end of the game. The match went to extra time and then penalties, where Argentina would go on to win 4–3.

Morocco defeated Portugal 1–0, with Youssef En-Nesyri scoring at the end of the first half. This was a real feel good moment of the tournament, along with many others along the way.

Despite Harry Kane scoring a penalty for England, he subsequently missed another as France won 2–1 thanks to goals from Aurelien Tchouameni and Olivier Giroud. This sent them to their second consecutive World Cup semi-final and becoming the first defending champions to reach this stage since Brazil in 1998.

Semi-Finals:

Messi scored a penalty kick before Julian Alvarez scored twice to give Argentina a 3–0 victory over Croatia and send them to the first final since 2014.

Theo Hernandez scored after five minutes as France led Morocco for most of the game and later Randal Kolo Muani scored to complete a 2–0 victory for France over Morocco as they reached a second consecutive final.

Third Place Playoff:

Josko Gvardiol put Croatia ahead in the battle for bronze with Achraf Dari equalising just two minutes later. Mislav Orsic scored the winner for Croatia as the match finished 2-1. Morocco earned 4th place, a record for the team and the best World Cup finish of any African or Arab nation.

Final:

Both Argentina and France had won the event twice previously. Argentina opened up the scoring when Messi scored from the penalty spot after Angel Di Maria was fouled by Ousmane Dembele. They doubled their lead when Di Maria scored after a beautiful build-up of one touch football, saw them break the French defence. France made two substitutions in the first half, but went into half-time trailing 0–2. Despite not having a shot until after the 70th minute, France were awarded a penalty as Randal Kolo Muani was brought down in the penalty area. Mbappé scored the penalty and added a second goal less than two minutes later to equalise the scores. With the scores level, the game went to extra time. Messi scored again for Argentina in the second extra time half before Mbappé was awarded a second penalty in the 115th minute after his initial shot hit the arm of Gonzalo Montiel. Mbappé scored his third goal, becoming the second player to score a hat-trick in the final of a World Cup since Sir Geoff Hurst in 1966. With the score drawn at 3–3, the match was completed by a penalty shootout. Argentina won the final after scoring all of their penalties, winning 4–2.

Round Up:

It was simply the greatest Final ever, in any competition in world sport. It literally had everything a neutral could have asked for. You basically just witnessed the greatest player of all time win a World Cup. Incredible! It was written in the stars for the biggest star. Footballing history happening right in front of our very eyes.

We will never see a player like Messi ever again. This game and tournament will be talked about for decades to come and that must be partly credited to the show Qatar have put on. The lack of alcohol saw no fighting or unrest and brought people together better than ever. Football really is the best sport in the world and now we wait another four years, when we'll do it all over again...