OFFSIDE: Sir Alex Ferguson’s favorite lieutenant steals England with his roar Football News:

Have you ever wondered why you feel anxious when you are facing the unknown? The answer lies in evolutionary biology, which dictates that those who maintain a healthy skepticism survive while those who waste their time shuffling their mortal coil. Familiarity does not breed contempt; it actually gives us a warm feeling. Football fans sadly lost that warm feeling after England played an attacking brand of football to beat Croatia 4-2 but that familiar feeling of enjoying English mediocrity returned for the second game as England huffed and puffed in a group-stage match against the supposed minnow nation.The Three Lions shirt is a rare magical thing, one that can turn a world-beater into a mediocre player overnight. Bring: Wayne Rooneyone of the Premier League’s greatest players, whose performances in an England shirt at every tournament since Euro 2004 have left much to be desired. The Man Utd legend has just one World Cup goal to his credit. That means he has stepped on more balls than put them in the net in World Cups. England’s performance against Ghana was, in that sense, a rare throwback to the days of yesteryear, what Don Draper would call the pangs of nostalgia and England fans would call rubbish.But while England fans ponder whether they will be cursed with the albatross of a second-leg draw, one man who will be laughing is the Godfather of all football managers. Sir Alex Ferguson. A proud Scot, Ferguson turned down the job in England twice and famously said: “There’s no way I can think of taking the job in England. Can you imagine me doing that? A Scotsman? I’ve always joked that I’d take the position and relegate them: make them the 150th ranked country in the world, with Scotland 149.“And the fact that his former assistant Carlos Queiroz’s Ghana blanked England makes him laugh even more, as does the fact that England had 78.8% of possession and still failed to find the back of the net, the highest possession figure recorded for a scoreless World Cup draw since 1966.For old time’s sake, Queiroz even pulled some classic Ferguson-esque lines after the match, asking if VAR worked in the World Cup, if the VAR referee took a break in the second half, and if he went out for coffee.Before he delivered Fergie-like repartees in international football, Queiroz was the man who helped build Ferguson’s third great Manchester United team. Ferguson was a big fan, calling him an assistant who challenged him intellectually and the “closest you can get to being a Manchester United manager without ever holding the title”.

Under Queiroz, United moved away from their swashbuckling 4-4-2 style, with two wingers and two central midfielders, towards a more flexible 4-3-3 that gave them greater midfield balance, more fluid forwards and a counter-attacking structure that could also defend. This is the form that has helped make United a formidable force in Europe. One game that stood out was Manchester United’s Champions League semi-final win over Barcelona in 2008, which was decided by a classic Paul Scholes goal and a defensive masterclass over two legs where Barcelona dominated possession and still lost. One questions whether United’s two defeats by Barcelona in the 2009 and 2011 finals might have been different had Queiroz been around.He was also instrumental in signing players from Portugal and Brazil, including: Cristiano RonaldoNani and Anderson, and helped turn Ronaldo from a touch and joke teenager into an athletic specimen who became a complete footballer, one whose rivalry with Lionel Messi would dominate almost two decades of football.Like his compatriot and former student Jose Mourinho, Carlos Queiroz’s first goal is not to lose, which leads to the so-called “sufferball”, where both teams suffer but only one is willing to do it. Against England, Queiroz had a clear structure. a disciplined mid-block, a narrow back line, Thomas Partey probing the defence, and England were forced into wide possessions without being a serious goal threat. Ghana have no desire to win the ball high from England’s centre-backs. Instead, they protected the middle, stopped England’s attack-minded midfielders and prevented Harry Kane from dropping into pockets and combining. As analyzed by DAZN, England have “wide no penetration”.At half time, England had 78% of the ball but only one clear view of goal. At the end of the game, they had 19 attempts but only made three shots. It was no coincidence. Ghana allowed England to circulate possession in innocuous areas, then shut down areas of importance. the route to Jude Bellingham, the pocket Kane likes to occupy, and the middle spaces where England’s wide players like to cut inside. When the ball went wide, Ghana’s full-backs kept their shape, the centre-backs protected the box, and Partey probed the danger zone in front of them.This is Queiroz-ball in its purest form. You can keep the ball, you can pass it, you can do all the numbers but you can’t score. It’s the kind of show that warms the heart of a Scotsman, especially one who hates the English.

GOAT return?

From Portuguese managers, it’s time to turn to Portuguese players. Cristiano Ronaldo, whose failure to score grabbed the headlines in the first leg scored twice in a 5-0 rout of Uzbekistan and announced on camera that he was back. The real question, despite his two goals is: Should he still be around?

Sure, Ronaldo made it 10 goals for Portugal in the World Cups to surpass Eusebio and become the most Portuguese player, but Eusebio only played in one World Cup. The fact remains that these were Ronaldo’s first major tournament goals from open play in five years. When asked about Messi in the mixed zone, Ronaldo remained silent because, as Athletic said, five of Messi’s goals came against teams in the top 30. Meanwhile, Uzbekistan is ranked 50th in the world.In other games on the day, Croatia managed what they usually do in World Cup tournaments to keep their qualification hopes alive as Modric turned back the clock for his 200th international appearance becoming the fourth man to achieve the remarkable feat. Colombia also beat DR Congo 1-0 which means they will still dream of topping the group ahead of Portugal. Colombia’s more impressive success came despite DR Congo’s mascot Lumumba Vea standing tall with his hand raised in the stands.

Day 14 Look ahead

Group B: KICKOFF: 1:30 AMWe are now in the business end of the group which means all the group matches take place at the same time so no one can game the system. Group B matches have Switzerland vs. Canada to decide who controls the group. Bosnia and Herzegovina vs Qatar is effectively a shootout and a draw won’t help either and whichever team wins will find themselves in a good position to qualify for third place.Group C:KICKOFF: 3:30 AMIn Group C, Brazil will face Scotland. Brazil have four points, Scotland three, meaning a draw would help both qualify. If Brazil win, Scotland could still qualify, but that will depend on other matches. Morocco are tied with Haiti and the likes of Brazil with four points and only need a draw to confirm qualification. On the other hand, Haiti can stay alive mathematically if they beat Morocco.Group A:KICKOFF: 6:30 AM Co-hosts Mexico will face Czechia. The former is over after two wins while Czechia has one point and needs to beat Mexico to stay alive. Meanwhile, South Korea will face South Africa. The Asian giants have three points and can qualify with a win or a draw.

Premier League Representative:

The Premier League likes to brand itself as the biggest show in the world. True football fans insist that this is the World Cup. But how many Premier League players are in this tournament? According to data from the league, 182 players involved in the Premier League (169 now and 13 registered in 2026-27) have appeared in the World Cup. Now while the presenters of the Premier League are shocked to learn, there are other leagues in the English football structure that take a total of almost 200 players to the World Cup. German clubs have 109 players. French clubs have 86. Spain has 86. Italian clubs, despite Italy not qualifying, also have 49 players. Meanwhile, 44 of those players are plying their trade in MLS.

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