Chinanews.com, Beijing, December 3rd (Reporter Wang Yu) In the early morning of the 3rd Beijing time, the 2022 Qatar World Cup group stage ended all competitions.

In 13 match days and 48 duels, 32 teams representing the most powerful teams from all continents played the ups and downs of the World Cup Rhapsody in the winter of Qatar.

　　The four-year football feast schedule is over halfway.

Only 16 teams got tickets to the knockout stage, which means that the remaining teams can only stop here.

In the past 13 days, cheers, reversals, lore and tears, the world football enjoyed the joy of victory and witnessed the birth of miracles.

On December 3, Beijing time, in the third round of Group G of the World Cup in Qatar, Cameroon played against Brazil.

The picture shows the moment when a Cameroon player (green) scores a goal.

Fiery Qatar is a bit "cold"

Why is the last round so surprising?

　　As the first World Cup to be held in the northern hemisphere winter, although the local weather in Qatar is still warm and windy, the "chill" in the arena frequently hits.

After the three rounds of the group stage, no team has achieved a complete victory record, and the narrowing of the strength gap between the teams can be seen with the naked eye.

Behind the unpopularity is the counterattack of the civilian team, as well as the "elegy" of the rich.

On November 22, local time, in the first match of the first round of Group C of the World Cup in Qatar, Argentina played against Saudi Arabia. After falling behind by 1 goal in the first half, Saudi Arabia scored 2 goals in the opening 8 minutes of the second half and temporarily overtook the score.

The picture shows the moment when Saudi player Salim broke the goal.

　　The Argentine team was reversed by the Saudi Arabian team, and the loss in the first show forced the Pampas Eagles to fight with their backs in the last two rounds.

Although the Argentine team won two consecutive victories and qualified first in the group, Messi's last dance almost fell into the sand, which made many Argentine fans break out in a cold sweat.

　　The experience of the Argentine team was like a disaster, but the German chariot once again broke down in the group stage.

The first game was reversed by Japan, and Spain scored only one point in the second game. In the last game, the German team's striker finally recovered, but the late victory failed to help them get tickets to the knockout round.

But this time, the Germans will not feel alone. The Belgian team, which is deeply involved in the "infighting" rumors, will set foot on the flight home with them after watching the Morocco and Croatian teams advance.

　　In the World Cup, there is never a lack of scenes of weak teams upset. Everyone is equal before football. This is the brilliance of the World Cup and the charm of football.

Whether it is the defending champion or the traditional giants, if there is the slightest slack, the opponent will definitely seize the opportunity and give a fatal blow.

　　I believe France, Portugal and Brazil feel the same way.

Although they have secured the group qualifying spots after two rounds, either considering the next "back-to-back" 1/8 finals, or intending to preserve their strength for rotation, or the team's thinking is lax, let them play in the finals. Lost in the third game.

　　Losing a game that has nothing to do with the overall situation is harmless, but if they can't learn from it and unify their thinking, their road to promotion will be even more dangerous.

the records that were broken

The story of "Peerless Twins" continues

　　In the 92-year history of the World Cup, there have been many bizarre "curse".

One of the most impressive is undoubtedly "the defending champion is out of the group stage".

Starting from the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, the three world champion teams of Italy, Spain and Germany failed to defend their title four years later, and even failed to break into the knockout round.

　　In this World Cup, the defending champion France used two victories to lock in the qualifying places in the group.

At the same time, the curse of being out of the defending champion group was sealed in history.

Mbappe and Griezmann continued to show their talents on the front line, but they lost to Tunisia in the last round with an upset. They conceded goals in all three games.

　　The French team broke through the historical barriers as they wished, while the host Qatar was lost in the pressure and tension.

With three defeats, one goal and no points, they delivered a report card with few bright spots.

"Breaking the unbeaten record of the host's opening game" and "the worst host in history" will become embarrassing labels that the Qatar team will not be able to shake off for a long time in the future.

Caption: On November 29, local time, the third round of the 2022 Qatar World Cup Group A match between the Netherlands (yellow) and Qatar was held at the Gulf Stadium.

Photo by China News Agency reporter Tomita

　　16 years ago, Cristiano Ronaldo and Messi, the "peerless twins" of world football, both stood on the World Cup field.

During the period, the two led their respective teams to attack the Hercules Cup many times but failed.

Now they are ushering in the last dance of their career World Cup in Qatar at the same time.

　　Messi and Ronaldo, who have already received numerous personal honors, once again created their own records.

Among them, Ronaldo became the first person to score goals in five consecutive World Cups, and Messi contributed at least one assist in five consecutive tournaments.

Next, they and the team will enter a more brutal knockout round, and the story of the peerless twins is still being staged.

On December 2, Beijing time, in the third round of Group E of the Qatar World Cup group match, the Japanese team played against the Spanish team.

The picture shows the moment when a Japanese player (blue on the right) scores a goal.

Scrambling for power and "Asia and Africa" ​​all disrupting the situation

Can emerging powers control the trend of the World Cup?

　　In the World Cup, the Asian and African teams that have never won the championship trophy have never been able to enter the mainstream.

In the past, they were recognized as supporting roles, and they were the background boards for the legendary European and American teams.

Confusion and failure, over time, also become depression and fear.

But all this is history at the World Cup in Qatar.

　　7 wins, 1 draw and 10 losses, the record at a glance is not enough to describe the magnificence of Asian teams in this World Cup group stage.

2:1 in 4 games, 4 reversals of World Cup champions and European champions. While Asian teams reaped victories, they also explored a style of play that fit the team's characteristics and effectively broke the high-pressure tactics of European and American teams.

　　The fire of the World Cup has returned to the Asian continent after 20 years, and it has also rekindled the hope that Asian football will once again join the world football team.

20 years ago, the South Korean team made a historic breakthrough to the semi-finals at home, creating the best record in Asian football; 20 years later, the Asian team with a new high number of breakthroughs is expected to usher in a new peak.

On December 2, Beijing time, in the third round of Group H of the Qatar World Cup group match, South Korea played against Portugal.

The picture shows South Korean player Sun Xingmin crying after the game.

　　Among the eight teams that qualified first in the group, Morocco's name is both familiar and unfamiliar.

The TV commentary "the football there is very pure" once made them out of the circle quickly.

Today, defeating Belgium and Croatia has made the team's results extremely valuable and convincing. Morocco has become one of the focuses of the World Cup with its strength.

　　Morocco became the first African team since 1998 to win the first place in the group. They joined hands with Senegal to advance to the knockout stage, and also tied the best record in the African region in the World Cup group stage.

The Asian-African teams changed their past weakness in the World Cup in Qatar and eliminated Germany, Belgium and Uruguay by themselves, becoming a force to be reckoned with.

Twilight of the Gods

Suarez's tears "full of flavors"

　　On the last day of the group stage, tears became the theme of the game.

South Korean star Sun Xingmin led his team to the top 16 for the first time. In an interview, he reminisced about the joy of victory, and the sadness of the past turned into tears.

At the same time, in another arena, the legendary Uruguayan striker Suarez did not want to accept the fate of his team being eliminated, so he sat alone on the sidelines and covered his face and wept.

　　The 35-year-old Suarez completed his last journey in the World Cup in this way.

Helping the team win is not enough for the team to advance. The regrets of the past night, together with his once unruly and even reckless, constitute the color left by Luis Suarez beyond the victory and defeat of the World Cup.

On December 2, Beijing time, in the third round of Group H of the Qatar World Cup group match, Ghana played against Uruguay.

In the first half, Suarez sent two assists and De Alascaeta scored twice.

In the end, Uruguay defeated Ghana 2:0, and the points were equal to the South Korean team. However, due to the disadvantage of the total number of goals, they ranked third in the group and were eliminated.

The picture shows the frustrated Uruguayan player Suarez after the game.

Photo by China News Agency reporter Cui Nan

　　Halfway through the World Cup in Qatar, some people marched forward with great success, while others left the field sadly.

When the final whistle blows, there will always be someone among the waving crowd saying goodbye silently.

They walked back to the player tunnel for the last time under the watchful eyes of the audience. Since then, this familiar face will no longer run from the tunnel to the field in response to the cheers of the fans.

　　In the crowd leaving Qatar, Bell was saying goodbye. He led Wales back to the World Cup after half a century. Although he failed to go further, he had no regrets in his heart; Muller was saying goodbye. After turning around, he also took away the last glory of the German team; Hazard was also saying goodbye, and the golden generation of Belgium only sighed.

　　We don't even have time to miss, the wheels of the Qatar World Cup are still rolling forward, and the remaining 16 games will gradually bring the quadrennial football feast to its climax.

What remains unchanged is that the legend and farewell continue, which is the fascinating part of the World Cup.