OFFSIDE WITH JEROME


Good day, and thanks for joining me on OFFSIDE with JEROME

This week I will be doing a world cup round up as the grandest football tournament has just reached its conclusion with France emerging victorious for the first time since they first won it as the hosts 20 years ago.
As a bonus I will be providing a rundown of the top 5 statistics that were on show at the 2018 world cup in Russia.
So the world cup is over, the world has been released from the mass hysteria it has been engulfed in for the last one month of total football.
The tournament opened with a goal fest as hosts Russia drubbed Saudi Arabia 5-0 and it was only fitting that the world end would end in another goal fest, this time with France edging Croatia 4-2 in a 6 goal thriller played out at the Luzhniki stadium. But once All 5 African teams  (Egypt, Morocco, Nigeria, Tunisia and Senegal) failed to make it out of the group stage, and no non-European team making it to the semis it became clear the world cup was heading to Europe again.
France won the world, but many have argued they never really had to be the best team in their games to win the trophy as they very much relied on their superior organisation, a midfield buzzing with endless energy and an explosive attack. The manager Didier Deschamps ignored all temptations to play pretty football and stuck to the strengths of his team by prioritising swift circulation of the ball to wingers on counter attacks and taking advantage of their strengths from set pieces.
This world cup will forever be remembered as a world cup of surprises. For starters, no one expected Germany to repeat the trend of defending champions exiting the group stage, Russia surprised the world by edging out Spain on penalties having had only one shot on target in the prior 120 minutes of action, Senegal being knocked out on fair play after being tied on goals with Japan (the first time it ever happened), Croatia making it to the finals when no one gave them a chance at the beginning of the tournament and a host of other surprises. But one thing is a given this world didn’t disappoint, it had all the dribbles, big score lines, dour games, teamwork, fouls, brilliance and most of all a credible winner. France.

TOP 5 AMAZING STATISTICS AT THE 2018 FIFA WORLD CUP IN RUSSIA
5. Olivier Giroud of France finished the tournament without recording a single shot on target in 546 minutes of action.
4. There was only one goalless draw at the 2018 world cup (France v Denmark), the fewest at any world cup tournament since the 1954 edition, when there were none.
3. Didier Deschamps of France is only the 3rd person after Franz Beckenbauer (Germany) and Mario Zagallo (Brazil) to win the FIFA world cup as a player and as coach
2. The 2018 FIFA world cup has recorded the most own goals at any world cup (12), more than half the previous record of 6 own goals at the 1998 edition, Mario Mandzukic also became the first ever  player to score an own goal in a world cup final.
1. Kylian Mbappe is only the second teenager (aged 19years and 207days) to score in a world cup final after Pele did in 1958 (aged 17years and 249days)

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