Who played with whom?. Brazil beat Haiti 3:0 – Matheus Cunha scored twice, Vinicius scored again (he has eight goals in his last 10 matches for Real Madrid and the national team!). Paraguay unexpectedly beat Turkey (1: 0), USA – Australia 2: 0, Morocco – Scotland 1: 0.
Tournament layouts. In Group D, the United States secured first place ahead of schedule, and Turkey, after two dramatic defeats (65 shots on the opponent’s goal and no goals scored!) lost its chance to reach the qualifiers. In Group C, nothing is clear yet (except that Haiti will not qualify for the qualifiers either), while Brazil and Morocco are in the lead – each with four points.
A separate fact from the fans. Paraguayan Miguel Almiron became the first football player in history to receive a red card for covering his mouth while insulting an opponent. This is a new rule introduced just before the World Cup: if a player covers his mouth during a verbal confrontation, he will be sent off immediately. The reason is the February scandal in the Champions League, when Vinicius accused one of his opponents of making racist remarks. He covered his mouth with a shirt when he cursed the Brazilian, and it was clear that the accusations could not be proven. Therefore, FIFA simply prohibited doing so.
What are they talking about?. For three days, fans around the world have been discussing Ronaldo’s lackluster performance in the first match of the World Cup. Many analysts and fans believe it is time for 41-year-old Cristiano to curb his ego and take a backseat. Others object: everyone has bad games, the rest of the team didn’t play well either – and it’s wrong to blame Ronaldo.
Loyal fans, in turn, are convinced: he is to blame for all this, but not Cristiano. After the match, they left hundreds of comments on social media for Bruno Fernandes and Joao Neves, accusing them of not playing enough for the captain. Ronaldo’s sisters have also made their mark: one complained that his partners “forgot how to play”, and the second even described them as “ungrateful ignorants”.
Non-football picture of the day. Fans watch the USA-Australia match on the Overlook Walk pedestrian bridge on the Seattle waterfront.
Next in the program. In the evening, several major teams play: Netherlands – Sweden (20:00 Moscow time), Germany – Ivory Coast (23:00). At night Ecuador – Curacao and Tunisia – Japan.