--Clint Smith
NEW YORK CITY -- First of all, let us salute the brave and marvelous Croatians.
The gods were definitely loving and enjoying the match.
Like ordinary mortals, they “watched” the beautiful game’s finale, a fantastic championship match for 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia between France and Croatia in Moscow July 15 that had soccer fans in the entire planet on the edge of their seats for 95 minutes.
The Frenchmen were crowned world champions after clobbering an underdog Croatian team, 4-2, and capturing its second World Cup title and its first since it hosted the 1998 tournament 20 years ago.
Didier Deschamps, Les Bleus manager, jittery with five minutes left before the end of the match, was the captain in 1998 when his team toppled Brazil in Paris, and on Sunday he became the third to ever win the World Cup as a player and coach.
Jason Burt saw it the other way around. Writing for The Telegraph, Burt surmised that “maybe even the Gods were angry. Or maybe they just did not want this glorious World Cup to end. France are champions, and deservedly so as they were the best team and the most efficient team at what was probably the best ever World Cup, but this was a final marked by controversy, firsts, brilliant interventions and blunders as the incredible resilience and belief of Croatia was finally defeated.”
There was thunder and lightning with heavy clouds ringing the Luzhniki Stadium here in Moscow as France scored from a free-kick that they should not have earned and a penalty for handball that was evidently not a clear and obvious error to give them a half-time advantage that was a travesty.
Not that they will care.
They have won the World Cup for the second time, and the first time for 20 years, with coach Didier Deschamps becoming only the third man ever to take the trophy as a player and a coach after Franz Beckenbauer and Mario Zagallo.
And that is exalted company while Deschamps will feel utterly vindicated in overhauling his squad after the disappointing of losing the Euro 2016 final and also determinedly going for a more pragmatic style which demanded greater discipline from the likes of Paul Pogba and compromising some of France’s attacking flair. That debate does not matter amid the celebrations.
Even so for almost an hour Croatia were the better team, by far the better team, before first Pogba - thereby becoming the first Manchester United player to score in a World Cup Final - and then Kylian Mbappe scored.
Mbappe, at 19, became the first teenager since Pele to strike in a World Cup Final. The scoreline then was 5-2 and this was the joint highest score since - aided by a terrible goalkeeping mistake by Hugo Lloris who gifted Croatia their second goal as he attempted to play the ball around the relentless Mario Mandzukic who stuck out a leg and diverted it into the net.
That gave Croatia hope when it seemed hope had gone and surely the tiredness and pain of going to extra-time, and twice to penalties, in all three of their previous knock-out ties at this World Cup would finally catch up on them.
But they never, ever gave up in what was their first final and one that they can look back upon with remarkable pride at the achievement.
Antoine Griezmann had been involved in both of France’s first-half goals as he cheaply won the free-kick - it appeared like a dive and Marcelo Brozovic was furious - which he swung in.
The ball skimmed off the head off Mandzukic and flew beyond goalkeeper Danijel Subasic. Even then there was drama as it appeared Pogba had been in an offside position as he challenged Mandzukic who scored the first ever own goal in a World Cup Final.
That was as nothing to the controversy with France’s second goal which came from a hotly-disputed, VAR encouraged penalty.
It came from a near post Griezmann corner which flew over Blaise Matuidi and struck the left hand of his marker Ivan Perisic who was close behind him. Referee Nestor Pitana bizarrely gave a goal-kick but the French players, led by Lucas Hernandez and Olivier Giroud, angrily demanded a penalty.
Pitana was eventually told by the VAR, Italian Massimiliano Irrati, to review it and ran over to the touchline.
It seemed an eternity but he finally returned, pointing to the spot with Griezmann calmly stroking the ball home. It seemed harsh - Perisic did not attempt to move his hand, could not see the ball - but Croatia were behind again.
NEW YORK CITY -- First of all, let us salute the brave and marvelous Croatians.
The gods were definitely loving and enjoying the match.
Like ordinary mortals, they “watched” the beautiful game’s finale, a fantastic championship match for 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia between France and Croatia in Moscow July 15 that had soccer fans in the entire planet on the edge of their seats for 95 minutes.
The Frenchmen were crowned world champions after clobbering an underdog Croatian team, 4-2, and capturing its second World Cup title and its first since it hosted the 1998 tournament 20 years ago.
Didier Deschamps, Les Bleus manager, jittery with five minutes left before the end of the match, was the captain in 1998 when his team toppled Brazil in Paris, and on Sunday he became the third to ever win the World Cup as a player and coach.
Jason Burt saw it the other way around. Writing for The Telegraph, Burt surmised that “maybe even the Gods were angry. Or maybe they just did not want this glorious World Cup to end. France are champions, and deservedly so as they were the best team and the most efficient team at what was probably the best ever World Cup, but this was a final marked by controversy, firsts, brilliant interventions and blunders as the incredible resilience and belief of Croatia was finally defeated.”
There was thunder and lightning with heavy clouds ringing the Luzhniki Stadium here in Moscow as France scored from a free-kick that they should not have earned and a penalty for handball that was evidently not a clear and obvious error to give them a half-time advantage that was a travesty.
Not that they will care.
They have won the World Cup for the second time, and the first time for 20 years, with coach Didier Deschamps becoming only the third man ever to take the trophy as a player and a coach after Franz Beckenbauer and Mario Zagallo.
And that is exalted company while Deschamps will feel utterly vindicated in overhauling his squad after the disappointing of losing the Euro 2016 final and also determinedly going for a more pragmatic style which demanded greater discipline from the likes of Paul Pogba and compromising some of France’s attacking flair. That debate does not matter amid the celebrations.
Even so for almost an hour Croatia were the better team, by far the better team, before first Pogba - thereby becoming the first Manchester United player to score in a World Cup Final - and then Kylian Mbappe scored.
Mbappe, at 19, became the first teenager since Pele to strike in a World Cup Final. The scoreline then was 5-2 and this was the joint highest score since - aided by a terrible goalkeeping mistake by Hugo Lloris who gifted Croatia their second goal as he attempted to play the ball around the relentless Mario Mandzukic who stuck out a leg and diverted it into the net.
That gave Croatia hope when it seemed hope had gone and surely the tiredness and pain of going to extra-time, and twice to penalties, in all three of their previous knock-out ties at this World Cup would finally catch up on them.
But they never, ever gave up in what was their first final and one that they can look back upon with remarkable pride at the achievement.
Antoine Griezmann had been involved in both of France’s first-half goals as he cheaply won the free-kick - it appeared like a dive and Marcelo Brozovic was furious - which he swung in.
The ball skimmed off the head off Mandzukic and flew beyond goalkeeper Danijel Subasic. Even then there was drama as it appeared Pogba had been in an offside position as he challenged Mandzukic who scored the first ever own goal in a World Cup Final.
That was as nothing to the controversy with France’s second goal which came from a hotly-disputed, VAR encouraged penalty.
It came from a near post Griezmann corner which flew over Blaise Matuidi and struck the left hand of his marker Ivan Perisic who was close behind him. Referee Nestor Pitana bizarrely gave a goal-kick but the French players, led by Lucas Hernandez and Olivier Giroud, angrily demanded a penalty.
Pitana was eventually told by the VAR, Italian Massimiliano Irrati, to review it and ran over to the touchline.
It seemed an eternity but he finally returned, pointing to the spot with Griezmann calmly stroking the ball home. It seemed harsh - Perisic did not attempt to move his hand, could not see the ball - but Croatia were behind again.
