Mpasi offered his body to science but it was not enough

Lionel Mpasi stopped everything except Kane. Congo almost achieved a surprise against England.

Publicado 4 days ago el 2 de julio a las 14:46 | 2 mins reading |518 vistas | por Miguel Torres

A wall in the arch

Atlanta, USA. — Lionel Mpasi stopped almost everything. With the right hand, with the left, even below the waist. Jude Bellingham hugged him in respect as the goalkeeper lay on the grass with the ball safe.

But in the end, he couldn’t beat Harry Kane. The English striker scored two goals in the final minutes, the winning one in the 86th, as England won 2-1 and advanced to the round of 16. Thus one of the biggest surprises in the history of the World Cup was cut short.

“I offered my body to science,” Mpasi said with a wry smile. “We knew that Harry Kane is a super striker and that we had to focus on him. It’s a shame that twice we paid a little less attention to him.”

The 31-year-old goalkeeper, born in France but representing the country of his parents, finished with five saves. The most painful came near the end of the first half, when he dived to deflect a shot from Kane after a cross to the far post. He received the impact between the waist and thigh.

“It’s my job to help the team and make saves,” he declared in French. “Luckily, I was able to make a few. I would have loved to have stopped the two that ended in a goal.”

Congo had already made history by qualifying for its second World Cup — the first was in 1974, when it was still called Zaire and lost 9-0 to Yugoslavia. This time there was no shame. Much of the credit went to Mpasi, a former high-performance athlete in athletics in his youth, today a goalkeeper for French clubs.

“I’m just proud: proud of my country, proud of my team,” he said. “We fought until the end of the game.”

Mpasi’s performance reminded the world of the potential of Congolese football. Although he did not achieve victory, his dedication left its mark.

Sports

Belgium leaves the United States out of the 2026 World Cup

The local team did not know how to respond to the Belgian power and said goodbye in the round of 32.

Publicado 4 hours ago el 6 de julio a las 22:38 | 2 mins reading

The defeat of the United States against Belgium

The United States, the last host of the 2026 World Cup that was still in competition, was left out of the tournament after losing 4-1 to Belgium in the round of 32, played in Seattle.

The Stars and Stripes team did not show the same level of the group stage. Belgium took advantage of the spaces and defensive errors to clearly win.

Just in the 9th minute, Charles de Ketelaere opened the scoring by finishing alone in the six-yard box a pass that the local defense failed to cut. It seemed that the United States could not harm Thibaut Courtois’ goal, but in the 31st minute, Malik Tillman took a free kick that deflected off the barrier and sealed the tie.

However, two minutes later, De Ketelaere came back with a header to make it 2-1. In the second half, a mistake by goalkeeper Matt Freese when clearing outside his area left the ball to Hans Vanaken, who scored 3-1 in the 57th minute. Already in stoppage time, Romelu Lukaku sealed the score 4-1.

Belgium knew how to withstand the American push, which generated few dangerous arrivals. Now, the Belgian team will face Spain in the quarterfinals on Friday in Los Angeles.

Sports

Cristiano Ronaldo says goodbye to his last World Cup

The Portuguese star says goodbye to the World Cup after losing to Spain in the round of 16.

Publicado 5 hours ago el 6 de julio a las 21:39 | 2 mins reading

A farewell with unshed tears

With his gaze lost between the stands and the applause of the fans, Cristiano Ronaldo walked towards the locker room. He knew that he had just played his last game in a World Cup. Hours earlier he had assured that he would leave in peace, proud of his career.

The dream of qualifying Portugal among the eight best ended in agony. A solitary goal from Spain sealed the score at 1-0 and eliminated the Portuguese team in the round of 16.

Six World Cups and an indelible legacy

In his sixth World Cup participation, the Portuguese striker says goodbye with 11 goals and a place among the tournament’s greatest legends. His time at the World Cups left unforgettable moments:

2006: Portugal 2-0 Iran
2010: Portugal 7-0 North Korea
2014: Portugal 2-1 Ghana
2018: Portugal 3-3 Spain and 1-0 Morocco
2022: Portugal 3-2 Ghana
2026: Portugal 5-0 Uzbekistan and 2-1 Croatia

The images of his goodbye spread around the world in minutes. Thousands of fans mourned the farewell of a footballer who marked an era. Experts and followers expressed respect and admiration for a career full of achievements.

Cristiano Ronaldo leaves in peace, but the emotion of the moment could not hide the weight of a final farewell.

Sports

Mexican team dissolves after elimination in World Cup

Javier Aguirre and Rafael Márquez lead the CAR's exit after the defeat against England.

Publicado 5 hours ago el 6 de julio a las 21:12 | 1 min reading

The Mexican National Team left the High Performance Center (CAR) in the first hours after the defeat against England in the round of 16. The concentration, which began on May 6 with the hope of making history, ended with the team’s early goodbye.

The first to retire were Javier Aguirre and Rafael Márquez. This was Aguirre’s last game as coach of Tri. In the absence of an official presentation, Márquez will take the reins of the team heading into the next process.

Tri’s farewell

For 61 days, the players formed what they called “a family” in each interview. The good atmosphere was reflected in the training sessions and the playing field. After the elimination, each footballer took their path.

Of the 26 summoned, some left in vans with relatives; others used the Organizing Committee’s private transportation. They will now have two weeks of vacation before reporting to their clubs.

The illusion of reaching the quarterfinals for the first time was cut short. The squad, which spent two months concentrated, broke ranks and put an end to the World Cup adventure.