World Cup

MANY of the Argentina players’ Wags enjoyed dinner together before Tuesday night’s World Cup semi-final.Lionel Messi and Co booked their place in Sunday’s final when they beat Croatia 3-0 at the Lusail Stadium.
(L-R) Mandinha Martinez (Emi Martinez), Daniela Rendon (Armani), Rocio Esposito (Rulli), Barbara Occhiuzzi (Molina), Celeste Rey (Otamendi), Karen Cavaller (Romero), Muri Lopez Benitez (Lisandro Martinez), Agustina Bascerano (Pezzella), Caro Calvagni (Tagliafico), Julia Silva (Acuna), Guadalupe Wada Ramon (Rodriguez), Valentina Cervantes (Fernandez), Camila Mayan (Mac Allister), Yesi Frias (Palacios), Linda Raff (Gomez), Alanis Poza (Almada), Sabrina Di Marzo (Correa), Agustina Gandolfo (Lautaro Martinez), María Emilia Ferrero (Alvarez)Credit: Instagram
The Wags took to the streets of Doha for a meal before the semi-finalCredit: Instagram
They appeared to be soaking in every moment of their time in QatarCredit: Instagram
Lionel Messi’s wife Antonela Roccuzzo was not at the dinner but is in QatarCredit: Getty
But while Lionel Scaloni’s squad continued their final preparations for the big game, their partners were living it up in Qatar.
And a total of 19 of them posed for snaps ahead of a meal in Doha on Tuesday evening.
Among them were the partners of Emi Martinez, Nicolas Otamendi, Cristian Romero, Lautaro Martinez and Julian Alvarez.
But Messi’s wife, Antonela Roccuzzo, was one of the few Wags who could not make the pre-game meal.
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However, she is out in Qatar supporting her husband and was expected to be at the match.
Argentina booked their place in the last four with a penalty shootout victory over Holland on Friday.
The South Americans raced into a two-goal lead but were then pegged back in dramatic fashion as Wout Weghorst’s late double sent the game to extra time.
It then went to spot kicks, before keeper Martinez was the hero as he saved two to keep Messi’s dream of a World Cup triumph alive.
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Meanwhile, Croatia stunned pre-tournament favourites Brazil to reach the semis for a second successive time.
Neymar thought he had sealed the five-time world champions’ place in the last four with a goal in the first period of extra time.
But Bruno Petkovic equalised in the 117th minute, before Croatia went on to win on penalties.
But Argentina had too much for them in the semi-finals with the South Americans now set to play one of Morocco or France in Sunday’s final.
She was in the stands for Argentina’s win over Holland on FridayCredit: Getty
She has been with Lionel Messi since he was a teenagerCredit: Instagram @antonelaroccuzzo More

KARIM BENZEMA will be available for France selection for the World Cup final, it has been revealed. It comes despite the Real Madrid ace picking up an injury prior to the tournament starting which saw him sent home before a ball was kicked in Qatar.
Karim Benzema is set to be available for France selection in the World Cup finalCredit: AFP
But Benzema could make a shock return to the France squad with a view to playing a part in the World Cup final.
And it could not have come at a better time, with a sickness bug ripping through the France squad.
After getting injured in training days before Les Bleus opener, a three-week timeline was set for Benzema to return to fitness despite Didier Deschamps ruling out his return to Qatar.
But Marca report he has returned on time and has in fact been training without issue since last Saturday.
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And this means he could make a return to the fold if needed due to never being replaced in the French team.
The strong form of Olivier Giroud means such a return is unlikely, however, with the AC Milan star’s goals so far proving vital for his nation in Qatar.
None of his goals were more important than his late winner against England, with Harry Kane missing a penalty which allowed France to progress into the semi-final.
The 2018 champions now face a test against a stubborn Morocco side which has already claimed the scalps of Iberian neighbours Spain and Portugal in consecutive rounds.
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Of course, all eyes will be on Paris Saint-Germain star Kylian Mbappe, but as proven in the quarter-final, even when he is kept quiet the rest of the team can prove dangerous.
Benzema missed out on 2018 World Cup glory due to his ongoing issue with compatriot Mathieu Valbuena, which kept him out of the national set-up until 2021.
It means the 34-year-old’s only World Cup performance to date has been in 2014 when France crashed out during the quarter-finals. More

ILLNESS has swept through the France World Cup camp on the eve of their semi-final.The reigning champions face Morocco at the Al Bayt Stadium on Wednesday evening.
The France squad has been hit with a sickness bugCredit: Reuters
Adrien Rabiot and Dayot Upamecano both missed training on TuesdayCredit: AP
But their preparations have been hit with a major blow with a bug spreading within the squad.
Dayot Upamecano and Adrien Rabiot were both forced to sit out of training today.
And they are said to be serious doubts for the clash with Morocco.
Upamecano has a sore throat while Rabiot is also under the weather.
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It means Liverpool’s Ibrahima Konate and Youssef Fofana are on standby in case the first-choice duo cannot recover in time.
Konate and Fofana were drafted in against Tunisia while William Saliba, Matteo Guendouzi, Eduardo Camavinga and Jordan Veretout are alternative options for Deschamps.
Rabiot has played in all five matches while Upamecano was rested for the defeat to Tunisia after qualification for the knockout rounds was already secured.
They both played the full 90 minutes of Les Bleus’ 2-1 quarter-final win over England on Saturday and Deschamps wanted to keep an unchanged XI.
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Upamecano came under criticism for his poor defending against Harry Kane throughout the match.
Rabiot, meanwhile, caused controversy by claiming Kane’s penalty miss was “justice”.
The Juventus man said: “First of all, I’m not sure that it’s really a foul.
“We’ve seen hundreds of actions like that that aren’t given.
“Of course, when he’s missed, we were happy, it was justice because there was no penalty.”
France went into their title defence without N’Golo Kante, Paul Pogba or Karim Benzema and lost Lucas Hernandez to an ACL injury in their opener against Australia.
They are yet to keep a clean sheet in Qatar – while tomorrow’s opponents Morocco have conceded just once, including a penalty shootout.
That was an own goal against Canada before knocking Spain and Portugal out to become the first African side to reach the semi-finals of a World Cup.
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IT IS Argentina vs Croatia – it is Lionel Messi vs Luka Modric.A place in the World Cup final is up for grabs when the two nations face off this evening.
Lionel Messi is desperate to add the World Cup to his incredible trophy cabinetCredit: The Mega Agency
Luka Modric is securing his status as one of the great midfieldersCredit: Getty

And for both sets of fans, their hopes of glory largely rest on their iconic talisman, their influential captain and their idolised figurehead.
But for the two veterans and global stars, they know this is likely their last shot at World Cup glory with their respective nations.
So, how do Messi and Modric compare?
Modric is the slightly older of the two – 37 to 35 – and an inch taller than the 5ft 7ins superstar.
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But despite being slightly younger, Messi has played more matches in his professional career with 1,001 (831 club matches and 170 international caps) whereas Modric is on 945 (785 + 160).
Of those, 26 have been against each other – 22 of them El Clasicos but also in the Champions League last year and at the World Cup in Russia.
Modric has 12 wins, Messi has nine with five draws.
Unsurprisingly, the Argentine forward is way ahead on career goals scored compared to the Croatian midfielder.
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Messi’s penalty against Holland in the quarter-final was his 95th international goal and 790th overall – while Modric is way back on 120.
The left-footed wizard boasts 11 league titles (ten for Barcelona, one for Paris Saint-Germain) while Modric’s six are evenly split across Dinamo Zagreb and Real Madrid.
Messi also has more domestic cups (7-3) but former El Clasico rival Modric boasts more Champions League winners medals with five to Messi’s four.
And with both men desperate to lead their side to World Cup glory in Qatar, it would be Modric’s first-ever international trophy with Croatia whereas Messi won the Copa America at long last in 2021.
Croatia’s run to the 2018 World Cup final and Champions League glory in the same year saw Modric crowned Ballon d’Or winner.

That ended the ten-year duopoly between Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo but normal service resumed in 2019 and 2021 with the ex-Barca superstar collecting his sixth and seventh crowns, extending his record haul.
And that status as one of the greatest footballers of all time is reflected in his wages and social media popularity.
Modric earns around £315,000 per week at the Bernabeu but Messi’s reported wages are more than double, if not treble, that figure at PSG.
And the Argentina legend has more than 14 times the number of Instagram followers with a whopping 388m compared to Modric’s 26.5m.
But all the stats, numbers and history can be put to one side at 7pm this evening when the two legends of football step out at the Lusail Stadium in front of 88,000 supporters knowing they will lead their adoring nations into the World Cup final with a win.
For Messi, it is the one trophy missing from his eye-watering collection.
He has already said this will be his last World Cup and after losing the 2014 final to Germany, this could be his perfect farewell.
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For Modric, he too has tasted defeat in the biggest match in the game as France were crowned champions four years ago.
In his forties by the time the 2026 World Cup kicks off in North America, even for the ageless midfield maestro this will be his last chance to promote himself as one of the best midfielders to grace the grass.
Messi and Modric faced off at the World Cup in 2018Credit: Getty Images – Getty
Argentina won the Copa America at long last in 2021Credit: AFP
Modric was on the losing side in the 2018 World Cup finalCredit: Reuters More