One Year After FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022/ World Stunned by Surprises, Results
Doha, November 22 (QNA) - The FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 saw a great deal of surprises, unprecedented outcomes and impressive records achieved that no other World Cup has witnessed before, affirming Qatar's edition of the event as the best in all aspects.
One year after Qatar held the World Cup, the first time in the region, football enthusiasts are still talking about the unexpected outcomes of the World Cup 2022. The vibes exuded enthusiasm, brought results that made the tournament one of its kind and gave it a lead position when it comes to quality in the history of the World Cups.
Saudi Arabia beating Argentina was one of the most remarkable surprises that occurred in the World Cup 2022. Argentina, one of the strongest football teams in the world, lost to Saudi Arabia in the opening match of Group C by 1-2. The match showcased the Gulf's football talent to the world in a new way, Saudi Arabia in particular.
Players shinned as they unmatched the talent of Lionel Messi and his teammates, such as Saleh Al Shehri, Salem Al Dawsari, Mohammed Al Owais, Saud Abdulhamid, Salman Al Faraj, Yasser Al Shahrani and others.
Argentina went on to win the title of the World Cup Qatar 2022, but Saudi Arabia's win remains a crucial moment in the event's run. It marks Saudi Arabia's first win against the Argentinian team in history, and the first time that an Asian team won against Argentina. The impressive win also came to end a 36-game unbeaten streak by Messi's team.
After the historic win by Argentina at Lusail Stadium, beating France 4-2 on penalties after a thrilling 3-3 draw, the World Cup Qatar 2022 achieved a new all-time competition record of scores made, surpassing the 171 scored in both 1998 and 2014.
Argentina winning the title and Messi donning the Qatari bisht as he raises the cup became a special moment cemented in the history of the World Cups.
The World Cup Qatar 2022 started and ended with penalties. The opening and closing matches saw Ecuadorian player Enner Valencia scoring the first goal in the World Cup with a penalty kick against the Qatari team, while French player Kylian Mbappe scored the last penalty kick against Argentina, before resulting in penalty shoot-outs to decide the winner of the World Cup 2022.
The 2022 edition also saw other surprises such as the Brazilian team being eliminated from the competition despite the big names attached and the team's previous strong performances. Croatia succeeded in eliminating Brazil from the quarterfinals on penalties after a 1-1 draw.
Croatia's goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic won it for his country, amidst the shock of the Brazilian football fans. The Brazilian players ended their run in the World Cup 2022 with tears shed on the field, notably the team's star Neymar who hoped to achieve the title.
Another team that delivered a surprise performance was the Tunisian national team in its historic win against the 2018 World Cup winners France (1-0). Despite Tunisia not advancing in the tournament, the team's win against France and defeating the title holders was an astonishing moment in the World Cup Qatar 2022.
One of the main surprises of the World Cup FIFA Qatar 2022 is the Morocco Football Team's qualification for the quarter-final to be the first Arabic and African team to have achieved that.
The Morocco team was exceptional and its results stunned the world when it managed to qualify in a difficult group, coming on top of Croatia, the second in the group which also passed to the next round. Belgium came in third position and left early along with Canada.
The Morocco team continued its success through a set of brilliant surprises as it managed to qualify for the quarter-final over Spain under the veteran coach Louis Enrique through penalties. It also was able to beat the Portuguese team, led by Cristiano Ronaldo, in the quarter-final with one goal to nil.
In the semi-final, the Morocco team lost to France, then lost against Croatia in the third-place play-off. Therefore, it finished in the fourth position, which is the best one in the history of the Arabic and African teams.
One of the surprises of the World Cup is the decision of the Portuguese coach, Fernando Santos, not to include Ronaldo in the starting XI in the quarter-final game against Morocco. Nonetheless, Ronaldo drew attention as a substitute and the loss of Portugal resulted in the firing of Santos.
Despite the fact that Ronaldo failed to win the World Cup, he managed to break another record in the tournament by becoming the first player in history to have scored in five World Cups.
Another scoring record was achieved by Kilian Mbappe, who became the first player to score 8 goals in one World Cup tournament since 2002 when the Brazilian Ronaldo did the same.
Mbappe became also the second player to score a hat trick in the World Cup final, after the English player, Geoff Hurst, scored 3 goals when his team defeated Germany 4-2 in the famous final of 1966. Moreover, Mbappe had 12 goals under his belt from just two participations in the World Cup and won the Golden Boot as the best scorer of the 2022 World Cup.
(QNA)
