Hello and welcome to another edition of Offside. Ralph Waldo Emerson popularized the term “gunshots heard all over the world” in his poem “Concord Hymn,” whose opening stanza reads: “By the crude bridge that arched the flood / Their flags unfurled in the April breeze / Here once stood the embattled peasantry / The singing peasantry.”“This refers to the opening shots of the 1775 Battles of Lexington and Concord, which launched the American Revolution and laid the foundation for the modern American nation. Now, more than 250 years later, three days before America’s great celebration, another shot rings out around the world, fired by a British man who, in his own way, exemplified American exceptionalism.England were playing against DR Congo, who were expected to have one of the World Cup’s famous shocks after beating the hapless Jordan Pickford at the near post. England have not won a knockout round since 1966, when they trailed West Germany to lift their only World Cup trophy. But England have never had a striker like this Harry Kane.His first goal came after Declan Rice switched to right-back, a position where England looked vulnerable after Thomas Tuchel decided to drop Trent Alexander-Arnold, the world’s most creative right-back. Rice passed the ball to substitute Anthony Gordon, who passed it to Kane, who had enough power to head home, beating the goalkeeper who had previously looked indestructible. But the second goal changed everything. Kane once again received a pass from Gordon, and with one touch he beat the defender and fired a shot with such force that no goalkeeper in the world could save it. There is a joke from Tang Zi’s philosophy That said, if you don’t know what you’re doing, your enemies won’t either. Kane didn’t even look up when he fired that ubiquitous shot.
Now, on the balance of evidence, it may not have come home, and despite the presence of Harry Kane, one will never know because it was an England goal that will always be remembered and relived, like Paul Gascoigne’s dentist celebration, Beckham’s free-kick against Greece or Michael Owen’s Maradona-esque dribbling across the Argentinian side. As the DRC coach said, it will take the best strikers in the world to beat them.Next up is co-host Mexico, heading to their mecca: the Aztecs.Meanwhile, the last remnants of Belgium’s golden generation pulled off one of the most insane comebacks of the World Cup to date, coming back from 2-0 down before scoring the latest goal in World Cup overtime history via a penalty that will be discussed ad nauseam in the 125th minute. Belgium were the better side and had the better chances throughout 85 minutes, and one wonders if the football gods have condemned them to die on the altar of dodgy penalties, as they did in the African Cup of Nations final.In the end, the US team survived the red card and defeated Bosnia 2-0. The score was tight at 1-0, but Tillman scored with a beautiful free kick to save the Americans. Is this a red card? It was one of those days when VAR wasn’t shrouded in glory and many were looking at three big decisions.
What is VAR?
VAR robs football of its most joyful moment: the release of pent-up energy after a player scores a goal. Now, when a player scores, he waits to see what someone in a room full of cameras is thinking before he celebrates. So when something goes wrong with VAR, it’s doubly annoying. Yesterday, three notable incidents occurred.First, Harry Kane’s Stonewall penalty was disallowed and the referee waved off the penalty. Remarkably, the referee didn’t even decide to send it for review, with ESPN’s VAR review suggesting it was a deserved penalty. Secondly, Belgium received a penalty kick in the 125th minute, and in everyone’s eyes, the first contact was outside the penalty area.Finally, Balogun’s red card also looked strange. The referee did not hand out a red card during the live game and then decided to check for an accidental or reckless tackle, although certainly not violent or malicious. Slow-motion replays made things look worse, but it was FIFA’s bureaucracy that decided his fate, as it stipulates that once a foul goes into VAR and has been reviewed by the on-field referee, a player cannot receive a yellow card. crazy? That’s exactly what it feels like.
Match day: Spain vs Austria
July 3, 12:30 AM ISTSpain are the reigning European champions, have the world’s most talented teenage prodigy in Lamine Yamar, and a team that can pass the ball in their sleep with their eyes closed while catching the morning paper or any other permutation or combination. Austria, on the other hand, is a well-coached and disciplined team led by Ralf Rangnick.
warrior watchThe obvious answer for Spain is the man who plays like he’s possessed by the ghost of Johan Cruyff and baptized by St. Messi. For Austria, their playmaker David Alaba will make sure his side don’t panic when Spain moves the ball.battle planFor Spain, it was simple: keep the ball, stretch Austria and let Yamal do his thing. But the trap is also simple: Don’t fall into a “bring the ball up the field” tactic, where every pass looks beautiful, every triangle attack is praised by coaching nerds, and Austria still has enough time to put eight bodies between the ball and the goal. Spain must move Austria from side to side quickly enough to really open up gaps and then attack those gaps before Rangnick’s red shirt resets the furniture. The key is Pedri and Fabian Ruiz. If they control the tempo, Spain can turn the game into an exercise in positional torture: a switch to the right, an overload, a Yamal isolation, and suddenly an Austrian full-back is guarding a teenager with the entire internet watching. Austria must stop the first pass into the midfield. Sabitzer and Laimer need to be close enough to allow Pedri to play backwards, forcing Fabian Ruiz to receive the ball under pressure, because once the Spanish midfielder gets forward, the press is almost dead.Austria’s best chance was to make Spain’s hold uncomfortable. Press the first attack, trap the ball out wide and commit an early foul if Yamal turns, allowing Spain to play at a pace they would not choose. They can’t simply retreat and admire the geometry, because Spain will eventually find a pass that makes the entire block look like IKEA furniture after a single screw is missing. The game basically went like this: Spain needed to keep the ball with their teeth. Austria needs time pressure. If Spain finds a rhythm, Yamal will take center stage. If Austria breaks this rhythm, Spain can become a very classy team, looking for a door that refuses to open.dining table lineYamal is God’s gift to football, but Rangnick’s system could be the anti-Christ that holds the Chosen One back.
Match day: Portugal vs Croatia
July 3, 4:30 a.m. (US Standard Time)It’s a battle between Real Madrid legends Cristiano Ronaldo and Luka Modric. One is 41, the other 40, and although the real battle will be in midfield, one will wonder if Roberto Martinez will do the obvious and drop Ronaldo. Behind him, Portugal has some of football’s greatest creators in Bruno Fernandez and Bernardo Silva. Ronaldo may be one of the greatest players in football history, but he is becoming a slowly aging weight around the neck of a talented team because no one wants to tell the Emperor that he can’t crack it anymore.warrior watch
Portugal’s Bruno Fernandez (8) kicks a ball during the World Cup Group K football match between Colombia and Portugal on Saturday, June 27, 2026, in Miami Gardens, Florida. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Bruno Fernandes is one of the few players in the world who is immune to footballing resignation and can create something out of nothing, but the people in front of him need to do better. The question for Croatia is whether they can pull another rabbit out of the perpetual motion machine, named Luka Modric.battle planPortugal does not want Croatia to dominate the midfield and needs Vitinha and Joao Neves to make plays in the midfield. Rafael Leao and Bernardo Silva would force the Croatian full-backs to drop deep and pass the ball to Bruno Fernandez. The problem, as usual, was the Ronaldo tax: if every attack became a cross against Cristiano Ronaldo, Croatia would have been fine with that all night long, as Guardiol and the centre-backs could more easily defend the penalty area than late runners.table talkFocus: Portugal has more firepower, but Croatia is the master of the dark arts in the FIFA knockout rounds.
Match day: Switzerland vs Algeria
July 3, 8:30 AM ISTThe fascinating thing about this game is that it is a Vladimir Petkovic derby. Algeria coach Petkovic coached Switzerland from 2014 to 2021 and knows the players he will face.warrior watchGranit Xhaka remains a regular for Switzerland, while former Manchester City winger Riyad Mahrez will be looking to provide the magic.battle planSwitzerland will be looking to make this a sermon for Xhaka, with Riyad Mahrez having no say. Algeria have already shown a weakness for long-range shooting, so Switzerland’s plan should be pretty obvious: park your body around the D, recover the ball through Xhaka and Freuler, and constantly pose annoying questions to the Algerian goalkeeper from 20 yards out.Algeria’s plans had to be disrupted. Petkovic knows Switzerland too well to pretend there is some secret trap door beneath their midfield. The route is simpler: block the first pass to Xhaka, crowd the center, force Akanji and the Swiss centre-backs into hasty distribution, then quickly break through Mahrez, Ibrahim Mazza, Amora and Gujiri. Switzerland loves orders. Algeria needs to make the game feel like someone changed all the traffic lights at once.The key flanks are the Algerian right and the Swiss left. If Mahrez continues to get one-on-one opportunities, Switzerland will start to age in dog years.table talkAlgeria wants history. Switzerland wants routine. Reality may differ from one of these.
