USA fall asleep in Seattle and it’s tchau Ronaldo: World Cup Daily

Summary

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Football Weekly: USA fall asleep in Seattle and it’s tchau Ronaldo – World Cup Daily (July 7, 2026)

Episode Overview

In this World Cup Daily edition, Max Rushden is joined by Barry Glendenning, Archie Rhind-Tutt, Nick Ames, and Sid Lowe to dissect a turbulent World Cup day. The USMNT’s heavy defeat to Belgium is central, not just for the performance, but also the extraordinary political controversy around Folarin Balogun’s eligibility. The panel also reviews Spain’s dramatic late win over Portugal—an apparent end to Cristiano Ronaldo’s World Cup career—and reflects on the Azteca classic between England and Mexico. The show weaves sharp football analysis with wry, irreverent anecdotes, taking in the wider, sometimes absurd, drama surrounding the on-pitch action.

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Main Discussion Points

1. USA 1-4 Belgium: Collapse, Politics, and Fallout

The match: US performance and Belgium’s ease

• Barry Glendenning: “I was surprised by how bad the USA were in this game. They never really got going at all, were second best in every department. Their defense was a shambles” (02:41)
• Defensive calamities led to four avoidable goals for Belgium; USA’s only goal came against the run of play via a deflected Malik Tillman free kick.
• Belgium’s motivation was questioned, but they "tore into the States from the kickoff," perhaps spurred by the off-field disputes and political drama (02:41).

Charles De Ketelaere’s Emergence

• Archie Rhind-Tutt: “He’s never really fulfilled the potential that... many saw when he left Club Brugge for AC Milan. Didn’t score a goal for them in Serie A... but including Da Ketelaere was a big decision for Rudy Garcia as well.” (04:18)
• Praises Rudy Garcia’s bold selections and tactical flexibility—De Bruyne and Doku benched for fresh faces like Raskin and Lukebakio.

US Turmoil: The Balogun Affair

• The “Balogun Palaver”: Folarin Balogun’s red card was overturned after reported political interference from President Trump, casting a pall over the fixture.
• Nick Ames: “If I was one of their players or staff, I’d be really angry about it. I’d be zooming out and seeing what has happened here... The show of ego and bluster and bombast that clouded this entire game did for us no favours at all. It completely backfired...” (06:16)
• Barry Glendenning: “His name is going to become a byword for what happened here—it's the Balogun affair, the Balogun incident, the Balogun palaver...” (08:55)
• The controversy is seen as undermining both the sporting values of the World Cup and the credibility of US soccer’s progress.
• Max Rushden: “So much goodwill towards this team... they must be so pissed off.” (13:54)

Impact on the Game

• The US never settled, with Pulisic forced deep and midfield overrun.
• Defensive panic recurred, and the squad’s composure collapsed quickly after their equalizer (10:42).
• The panel repeatedly notes it’s impossible to quantify just how much the politics affected the players, but consensus is the effect was significant.

Broader Ramifications

• Nick Ames: “This was really serious... and I think it is a bit of a bullet dodged maybe that the US didn’t win. Frankly, I think it’s a very good thing for football, unfortunately, sorry, US fans, that they didn’t.” (12:46)
• There are warnings against letting the scandal be dismissed as typical football politics; it strikes a major credibility blow at FIFA and US Soccer.

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2. Spain 1-0 Portugal: Drama, Substitutes, and Ronaldo’s Last Hurrah

Dull Match, Dramatic End

• Sid Lowe paints the picture: “It had a brilliant end... because Mickey (Mikel Merino), who’d only played 28 minutes since the end of January, comes on, scores the winner in injury time—just 28 minutes since January.” (19:45)
• The goal, engineered by three substitutes (Fabian, Ferran Torres, Merino), highlights Spain’s depth and coach Luis de la Fuente’s “long-game” management.

Ronaldo's Curtain Call

• Sid Lowe: “That’s his last ever game at a World Cup. You were there to see it and, Portugal didn’t do much, but he certainly didn’t do a lot.” (23:10)
• Ronaldo tells reporters he’s undecided on his entire future but confirms this is his last World Cup.
• Panel forensically discusses how Portugal’s attack shrivels without modern pressing and movement; Ronaldo’s presence increasingly a tactical hindrance.
• Nick Ames: “They’ve had this totem up there...crying out for movement in front of them... what he has offered now is not good enough.” (29:17)
• Archie Rhind-Tutt: “The biggest mistake Cristiano Ronaldo has made is continuing to play football for the last five years because of... his obsession to match Lionel Messi.” (32:14)

Midfield Battle

• Both Spain and Portugal regarded pre-match as having tournament’s finest midfields, but these canceled each other out in a largely cagey affair.
• Pedri and Bruno Fernandes both “low key”, Rodri solid. Portugal’s exciting players left suppressed by a rigid structure.

Sid Lowe’s Accidental Tackle

• [26:29] Sid recounts tripping Spain manager Luis de la Fuente, joking: “English journalist nearly kills Spain manager. I would've been the most hated person in the country if—Max, I am not already.” (26:47)
• Wry remark about Trump’s intervention supposed to clear his “red card.”

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3. Reflections From the Azteca: England’s Win, Mexican Warmth, and Absurd Moments

England’s “Classic” Over Mexico

• Nick Ames: “It was literally edge of the seat tense stuff for 101 minutes... But the moment they were mingling... I only saw and heard really lovely things, just in terms of the hospitality... Absolutely magical.” (34:30)
• Panel celebrates the “game of a lifetime”—not just for the football, but the spirit in Mexico City and the emotional exhaustion among journalists and fans alike.

Viral Reactions and Memorable Moments

• Schools and pubs in the UK going wild for the England goals; people sleeping through the drama; BBC's mechanical graphics simulating Dan Burn’s record-breaking header (39:15).
• The Mexican coach’s incendiary, meme-worthy shout: “Gordon, fuck you!” after a crucial late England goal, followed by instant laughter (38:10).
• Barry’s humorous confession he slept through Spain-Portugal after the emotional drain of England-Mexico (28:08).

Injuries & Anecdotes

• Jordan Henderson’s “stag do”–style mishap: injures wrist jumping over hoardings (40:44).
• Danny Murphy’s “Bob the Cat” trilogy extended—light comic relief amid the seriousness (45:18).
• Moving listener email from Paul in Birmingham, drawing a link from his own disability to his childhood guinea pig Oscar, and expressing what watching England means after dark times (46:44).

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4. Off-Pitch Issues: FIFA, Sponsorship, and the Business of Football

The Aramco/Port Arthur Report

• Nick Ames details reporting on Port Arthur, Texas, site of a Saudi Aramco refinery—FIFA's primary sponsor—where sky-high cancer and disease rates shadow football’s “progress” (41:34).
• “It was a bleak place to go... a pretty poor community... and it all came together to paint a picture of what is happening... a really major player in the tournament is heavily involved, even through a subsidiary.” (41:34)
• The story serves as a warning/reminder about the real cost of football’s commercial partners.

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Memorable Quotes & Moments (with Timestamps)

• "I think the official Belgium team account posted 'overturn this' with a picture of them celebrating – a good tweet from Franklin Leonard: 'get your Belgian chocolate now before the tariffs hit.'" – Max Rushden (02:11)
• "USA... never really got going at all, were second best in every department. Their defence was a shambles..." – Barry Glendenning (02:41)
• "The Balogun affair, the Balogun incident, the Balogun palaver, whatever..." – Barry Glendenning (08:55)
• "A show of ego and bluster and bombast that clouded this game did for us no favours..." – Nick Ames (06:16)
• "No major tournament semi-final since 2016 for Portugal. Could they have, I don't know, set up differently?" – Max Rushden (01:00)
• "The biggest mistake Cristiano Ronaldo has made is continuing to play football for the last five years because of his obsession to match Lionel Messi..." – Archie Rhind-Tutt (32:14)
• "It was literally edge of the seat tense stuff for 101 minutes... Absolutely magical." – Nick Ames (34:30)
• "Danny Murphy’s cat... We did try and settle Bob back into the house, but he started bullying and fighting his sister Mary..." – Max Rushden (45:18)
• [Listener email] "Perhaps the universe has a sense of humor, but if it fancies giving me a break, watching England win against Norway in a pub with my friends... Well, that could would be a good way to do it..." – Paul, Birmingham (46:44)

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Notable Timestamps

• [02:07] – Start of US v Belgium discussion
• [06:16] – Nick Ames on US political fiasco
• [08:55] – Balogun incident
• [10:42] – Archie Rhind-Tutt on US tactical failings
• [13:54] – Max Rushden on US fan heartbreak
• [19:28] – Spain v Portugal segment begins
• [23:10] – Ronaldo’s last World Cup reflections
• [26:29] – Sid Lowe recounts tripping Spain manager
• [34:30] – Nick Ames’ reflections from the Azteca
• [39:15] – England/Mexico viral reactions and pub tales
• [41:34] – Nick Ames on Aramco and Port Arthur exposé
• [45:18] – Danny Murphy’s cat anecdote
• [46:44] – Moving email from listener Paul

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Episode Tone and Style

• Analytical yet irreverent, blending sharp football insight with humor, self-awareness, and empathy.
• Frequent asides, running jokes and lighthearted storytelling break up discussion of serious on-pitch and off-pitch issues.
• A profound sense of wider context, with the Balogun controversy and FIFA/Aramco sponsorship raising existential questions about football’s integrity.

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In Summary

This episode stands out for its blend of deep tactical and emotional analysis, with the USMNT’s political scandal and collapse, Portugal’s anticlimactic World Cup ending, and England’s Azteca triumph providing a compelling tapestry. Sentiment runs from acerbic (“the Balogun Palaver”) to poignant (Paul’s moving email), all delivered with Football Weekly’s trademark blend of irony and warmth.

Transcript

[Max Rushden]

This is the Guardian.

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[Max Rushden]

Hello and welcome to Guardian Football Weekly. Has Belgium ever global support? They beat the US pretty easily in the end. Charles Daquetalero with two in the first half and then Matt Fries froze and Tim Ream had a Tim Ream and then Lukaku doing what he does in a Belgium shirt and then they all did the Trump dance. It feels like justice. After the game was completely overshadowed by the US president claiming credit for Flo Balogun's inclusion. Something denied by Gianni Infantino Chini Recon. But what a shame for genuine US football fans who saw their side get to this stage on merit, whose team until now had impressed the world and who are so desperate for this sport to grow, they deserve better. In the early game, Spain beat Portugal 1 nil. Mikel Mourinho's injury time winner Sid Lowes managed to do seven interesting minutes on it. It's no major tournament semi final since 2016 for Portugal. Could they have, I don't know, set up slightly differently? Nick Aimes was at the Azteca so we can talk about that last night. Good news for Barry and the amazing content we hadn't seen. Pubs watching, Pointless fans sleeping through it all. And the Mexican manager, Gordon. Fuck you. Hahahaha. All that plus your questions. And that's today's Guardian Football. The panel today, Archie Rintap. Welcome. Barry Glendenning. Hello.

[Barry Glendenning]

Hello.

[Max Rushden]

And in Mexico City, Nick Ames. Hey Nick.

[Nick Ames]

Hello.

[Max Rushden]

Let's begin then with the USA 1 Belgium 4. I think the official Belgium team account posted overturn this with a picture of them celebrating a good tweet from Franklin Leonard saying get your Belgian chocolate now before the tariffs hit. So yeah, 4:1 to Belgium, then the game to be Replayed next Wednesday, but like a really comprehensive victory for Belgium. Bas, they were better all over the park and maybe this was the first really good team that they played or maybe all the off the pitch stuff affected them.

[Barry Glendenning]

Well, I was surprised by how bad the USA were in this game. They never really got going at all, were second best in every department. Their defense was a shambles particularly well, I was going to say, particularly in the first half, but no, all throughout they conceded four very avoidable goals, I would say, and probably should have conceded a few more. And the way Belgium, I mean, you shouldn't need additional motivation in a World cup to play well. But Belgium's motivation has been questioned before today. But the way they tore into the stage from the kickoff suggests they maybe had a point to prove and had revenge on their mind after events of the last couple of days. And there it's hard to know how good Belgium were because the United States were so bad. The goal they scored came very much against the run of play and was a little bit lucky because Malik Tillman's free kick took a big deflection cakewalk for Belgium. And the thing is, I think a lot of people who wouldn't have had any great animus towards the United States before yesterday or the day before, we'll be absolutely delighted to see the match.

[Max Rushden]

Yeah, I mean, Gianni keeps saying football unites the world and it felt, it did feel united. So we should do some Belgium. Archie. Alec Da Ketaleiro, who's an interesting player, I really, I've always really liked him, kind of got a languid, not very fast, technically good player and it's a really lovely day for him.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

He's never really fulfilled the potential that I think many saw when he left Club Brugge for AC Milan. Didn't score a goal for them in Serie A there and hasn't scored many for Atalanta since. He moved on after that. And you talk about his languid qualities. I've been hearing about how when he was younger, he actually got made to play at centre back at one point.

[Max Rushden]

Oh, I could see him as a nice centre back.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

In what sense?

[Max Rushden]

Just I like a languid centre back, you know, good on the ball. A ball playing, you know, the John Stones of Belgium.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Sure.

[Nick Ames]

Okay.

[Max Rushden]

Are you with me? You don't sound it.

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I just.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

There's something about the way he carries himself that doesn't scream centre back.

[Max Rushden]

No, it doesn't.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

But then again, we are used to growing up with Dan Burns, but we'll get onto him at another Point, but it was just the way that. I don't know, the way he seemed to shut his eyes, actually, when he had that header for the second goal.

[Boost Mobile Advertiser]

Yeah.

[Max Rushden]

Dan Burns not shutting his eyes.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

I would point to the fact that including Da Catalera was a big decision for Rudy Garcia as well. And Belgium and Rudy Garcia in particular were helped by this whole sideshow. Well, it wasn't the sideshow, it was the main show in the end, with everything that was going on with Folerin Balogun, because they'd not played well in any of their four games so far. You could say the game against New Zealand, but given how New Zealand performed at the tournament, how much value can you attach to that? And you look at the decisions that Rudy Garcia had to make in this game. He left Kevin De Bruyne on the bench, he leaves Jeremy Doku on the bench. He brings in Nicola Raskin and Dodi Lucabacchio, who were both excellent as well. It was. And even. Even playing Timothy Castagne over Thomas Meunier, who has been good so far in this tournament, or a bright spark of the quarter finalists we now have, Belgium, despite having played five games, remained the most mysterious because I still don't think we can work out how good this team is, despite the body of evidence.

[Max Rushden]

Can you uncover the mystery, Nick?

[Nick Ames]

No. I think we saw good evidence of their depth today as, as. As we just pointed out, and that was very encouraging. I think they came up against a US team that just was not at it at all. And if. If I can shift it to the US slightly, you've got to be, if you're the US players or, Or. Or Pochettino or. Or a lot of their fans, maybe not all, but a lot you've. You've got. Was it worth it? This Balogun farce? He's obviously a very good striker. He's had a good season, very talented. He's not a world beater, he's not a superstar. You've got a good team of decent, mainly pretty good players that were functioning well in the tournament without him. And then for this sideshow to take over, which, let's be quite honest, was all about the ego of one man and his administration, who are very used to getting whatever they want and to steaming in and getting their way. And supplemented with that, the cravenness of a global governing body, FIFA and its president, who are used to both rolling over for this guy, Donald Trump, and also, frankly, these days, for steaming in and getting their way, for these two things to come together. And Completely overshadow what should have been a good occasion of a joyous occasion, maybe for the host nation. If I was one of their players or staff, I'd be really angry about it. I'd be zooming out and seeing what has happened here. As it happens, I don't think they'd have won the game anyway. They lost defendli 5:2 to Belgium not that long ago. So there's clearly a big difference between the sides and we saw that today. But I just think, I just think the whole show of ego and bluster and bombast that clouded this entire game did for us no favours at all. It completely backfired and it's going to have much wider ramifications, or it should have much wider ramifications too, for FIFA, Gianni Infantino and football in general.

[Max Rushden]

Yeah, I mean, I feel for Baligan Barry. I mean, he did nothing in this game virtually. He had no surface. But to be suddenly caught in the middle. He actually dealt with that red card really well. You know, the way he acted on the P afterwards, what he said about it. And then to be in the middle of this political storm is just, it's just not fair on him.

[Barry Glendenning]

It's not fair on him. And his name is going to become a byword for what happened here. It's the Baligan affair, the Baligan incident, the Baligan palaver, whatever. And to be fair, the usa, as far as we know, didn't agitate to have his ban suspended. It just happened, you know, outside their bubble. And Potch, his statement left a lot to be desired, I think, but once they were thrown this bone, they, they picked it up. And I do think I've been pilloried for saying this by some American fans, that they should have left him out and just not played him. And, and he did play. It must have affected him. As you say, he didn't get much service, he didn't play well, none of the American team played well. I mean, I can't think of a single one of them who had a good game. But yeah, I, I, we can't quantify or we can only speculate as to how much of an effect this farce had on them, but it's got to

[Max Rushden]

have affected them in some way, I would say. I, I think the chance of any side leaving out their best center forward, if he's available, for whatever reason, morally correct or not, I don't know if any team would, I understand your point completely.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Yeah.

[Barry Glendenning]

It's not even a moral thing. It's more we, you're because this thing is going to be talked about for a long, long time and if he doesn't play, at least the team can say, well, we were in no way complicit with this.

[Max Rushden]

No, no, I totally understand. I just wonder if Kane gets a red and it's overturned spuriously or whatever.

[Barry Glendenning]

Well, Kane's a different story.

[Sid Lowe]

Kane's Kane.

[Max Rushden]

Yeah, I understand. Baligan's Baligan. No, no, I understand that, Archie.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Just on the football side of things and where the US Lost this game, the panic with which they started the match and how their midfield did not turn up in anywhere near the same form that it has so far. I add to that the struggle to get Christian Pulisic on the ball. Shame for Amadou Arnana that he looks to have picked up a pretty serious injury judging by the knee brace that he's got there. And the way that Christian Pulisic was having to come back deeper into midfield seemed to disrupt the US Flow a bit. They didn't seem comfortable with the way that they've been rotating off the ball. You can't also concede 61 seconds after you've scored your equalizer through Malik Tillman and you have the gift of a deflected goal and the way that none of the players go towards the second ball when it's up in the air. I think that was the problem for the first two goals and the third

[Max Rushden]

is not great defending.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

The third produced quite a chuckle from you.

[Barry Glendenning]

Marine was not a language center half at that moment.

[Max Rushden]

Certainly wasn't.

[Nick Ames]

If, if I can, sorry, just go to the non football side again very quickly. Although it is all about football, this, this episode shouldn't be forgotten and it could easily be whitewashed now and wiped under the carpet because the U.S. didn't win, Baligan didn't score. You know, nothing to see here. But the fact is that we've seen not even a failure process. We've seen a trampling over and brushing aside riding roughshod of process here that could on another day have influenced the biggest football tournament, the biggest sports tournament in the world. I mean Baligan had a decent second half chance that he didn't score, didn't he? It could have been different. So the important thing is that this is now not forgotten. And I think it was very, very key interesting today that we, we saw Trump basically dump Infantino in it by saying, yeah, I called him. And what was interesting after that was that FIFA that normally to get a reply out of them, a substantive reply about a controversial topic, it's like blood from a stone. And there they were churning out the explanations from Infantino. A very wordy screed later from a disciplinary commission. I think it was, you know, they knew they were on the rack here and they know they're still on the rack. And the fury that I was hearing from contacts all over football, various, various ends of the scale was very, very real. But there is always a danger, especially these days when we're so dopamine hit that we move on to our next story and the next scandal and the next sugar rush and everything, that it just gets forgotten and becomes another silly soap oper that happened. That cannot happen here. This was really serious and I think it is a bit of a bullet dodged maybe that the US didn't win. Frankly, I think it's a very good thing for football, unfortunately, sorry, US fans that they didn't, but we can't let this be forgotten.

[Max Rushden]

In an uncharacteristically rambling speech, Trump did say that he had personally asked Gianni to review the red card. Gianni then said, oh, FIFA's judicial bodies are independent. They operate autonomously. Belgium were given a very small window to appeal. Trump did also say the ref was dodgy. I've seen this ref before. He's very suspect. So on the ref. FIFA and the referees committee had to do a statement on Rafael Claus saying, FIFA recognized this guy as one of the world's leading professional referees and a valued member of Team 1 at the FIFA World Cup. France have appealed to FIFA over Lyse's yellow card. It's been reported the FA are considering an appeal against the Quansa Red. Perhaps. Don't bother, lads, is what I would say. And a really important point, I sort of mentioned it in the intro, but like, we've spent a lot of time, you know, with the Guardian US soccer guys, Alex and Pablo and Jeff and there are so many US football fans who listen to this podcast and have for years and years and years who love the game and have wanted to grow in this country and have probably got carried away with, you know, those four wins and the US playing well. But like there was so much goodwill towards this team. I think if this hasn't happened, I think as neutrals are probably supporting the US against Belgium and hoping that they went through, I don't know. And they must be so pissed off. Yeah, this is they, you know, like the desperation to grow this game and to get respect for football in this country and around the world for US soccer. They must be so pissed.

[Barry Glendenning]

I'd Say they're really angry and probably a bit embarrassed. I remember when after the theory on re handball, the FAI Football association of Ireland tried to lobby. I think it was SEP blatter at the time to. To give Ireland a spot at.

[Max Rushden]

God, what we do for Sep now.

[Barry Glendenning]

Anyway, yeah, come back Sep. All this forgiven to. To give Ireland, you know, because we'd been cheated out of this place and give us a pity spot at the finals. It was tall curlingly embarrassing and that made me angry and I certainly wasn't alone in being embarrassed and angered. That would have been on John Delaney's watch. So, yeah, dyed in the wool. USA fans will have found this whole thing very distasteful. There are a lot of USA fans who only started watching soccer three and a half weeks ago. And there's nothing wrong with that. Fine. You know, everyone's welcome. But I think a lot of them thought Baligan deserved his reprieve.

[Max Rushden]

Well, a lot of people are doing. A lot of journalists and pundits have been doing the mental gymnastics to say this is great for football. And that has been pretty frustrating, if unsurprising.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Archie, just also feel a bit for the players because they couldn't have really done anything about this and if they do speak out against it, then that they're putting their piece and their family's piece on the line. I think I also feel a bit, most of all because of Fulham connections. I also feel very sorry for Tim Ream, especially on the mistake. But I also just know and think that he's a really good bloke.

[Max Rushden]

Yeah, he probably hated this.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Yeah, exactly. But what can you do as the captain of this? Well, of course, you could make a very strong political statement, but in this climate,

[Max Rushden]

well, it's very easy for. It's very easy to sit here and say, this is what someone should do. And I agree when. If you're on the cold face of it, not as easy. Anyway, that'll do for part one. Part two, we'll do Spain's win over Portugal. Hi, Podfans. Max here. Barry's here too.

[Barry Glendenning]

Hello.

[Max Rushden]

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[Barry Glendenning]

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[Max Rushden]

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[Barry Glendenning]

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[Max Rushden]

Explore it for [e-mail] or download the GradientFC app from the Apple Store or Google Play.

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[Max Rushden]

Welcome to part two of the Guardian Football Weekly. So Spain beat Portugal 1 nil to set up that game with Belgium, Michael Marino's injury time winner. I caught up with Sid Low at full time. Hey, Sid, we're trying to make a podcast as interesting as after the England Mexico game. So can you make this game sound better than it was for me?

[Sid Lowe]

It was amazing, Max. What a game. Should have been the final. Just glorious. Completely brilliant. Yeah, just. Just fantastic. No, I mean it was. It had a brilliant end and it had an end that had me desperately scrambling because I was literally going from zero to 850 words in seven minutes. That wasn't. That wasn't too easy. And a nice end as well. Because of course, Mickey, who'd only played 28 minutes since the end of January, who'd had an injury that first. They couldn't diagnose it properly. They didn't know what it was. They were struggling to find an answer. In fact, he said that he was kind of almost relieved when he eventually got operated on because he didn't really know and at least then he had a clear plan to go forward and went a couple of months without being able to walk. His wife was pregnant at the time. He talks about how his wife, who's six, seven, eight months pregnant, trying to help him around the house, which should be the other way around, trying to help him get up and down the stairs because he's on crutches and he didn't think he would get here, as I say, just 28 minutes since. Since the end of January. But Luis La Puente, and I remember seeing Luis La Fuente in. When would it be? Late February, I think. And ask him about Mourinho. And he was absolutely clear, even at that point, even if at that point he wasn't necessarily being offered the chance to say so publicly. Absolutely clear that he would wait to the very, very end for Mourinho, because he was convinced that he was a player that was a bit different to some of the others, that could play in lots of positions and had that amazing ability, the Spaniards always refer to it is higado, which means arrival, that ability to arrive into the penalty area at just the right time, to be a midfielder that gets into the box. And no one really does that for Spain, except possibly Fermin, who also got injured and couldn't come to this tournament. And so tonight was wonderful. And well, tonight, this afternoon, and that celebration, which of course he repeated from Stuttgart, which was copied off his dad, who did it 33 years ago.

[Nick Ames]

Yeah.

[Max Rushden]

And the pass from. I mean, the game wasn't fascinating, but the goal is beautiful. And the pass from Ferran Torres is so good.

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Yeah.

[Sid Lowe]

And I think there's another element to that which is important, which is that, you know those. The three players involved in the move, Marino, Fabian and Ferran Torres, all substitutes. Marino had only been on the pitch six minutes. I must confess, I'm not sure how long Ferran had been on, about 20 minutes, I think, and Fabian hadn't been on very long either. And I think in the case of Fabian, obviously it's been quite difficult to deal with this because he's won two European cup wins in a row with psg. And then to find himself kind of out of place for the Spanish national team, I think was. Was quite hard for him to deal with. He was a starter in the first game and hasn't played since. And I think for Ferran, I don't know if you saw this footage, Max, and I, I must confess, and now can't remember which game it is. I feel like it was the game against Saudi Arabia, and there's a. And Spain are obviously already going to win the game anyway. And Ferran has a goal which gets ruled out for offside. And the cameras catch him basically kind of with his fingers crossed, going, please let it be a goal, please let it be a goal, please let it be a goal, please let it be a goal. And then there's a chance that he gets late in one of the next games. Which was it? Maybe Uruguay? I'm not sure. He hits the bar. And there was a sense, I think, of him feeling under pressure, you know, him feeling like it wasn't quite going for him. So I think it's quite important for him as well to feel like he's played a part in this. And Luis de Fuentes talked about the importance of trying to give opportunities to those players who haven't had them yet, to try and give people minutes, to try and make them all feel like participants. And I think that goal, apart from its obvious importance, because it puts Spain through, and of course, that's the most important thing. And I'm not going to try and invent some big story around everything else, but I think there's a. There's a kind of a significance as well because of the role of three substitutes in making it happen.

[Max Rushden]

There's an obligatory question about Ronaldo Sid. I mean, that's his last ever game at a World Cup. You were there to see it and listen, Portugal didn't do much, but he certainly didn't do a lot.

[Sid Lowe]

No, no, I think that's true. We've actually just been listening to him in the mix zone after the game, saying that although this is his last World cup, it might not necessarily be his last game. Obviously, we don't know if I'm. I don't know there if he's talking about club football or international football. I think it's club football. Obviously, he. He wants to continue. I would imagine he absolutely would, because I think he'll want to get to that thousand goal target. Although Roberto Martinez has always said no, he's not obsessed by that. That's not a thing, that's a media thing. It's you that talk about it, not him. I think with the international team, of course, the decision almost certainly won't be in his hands. But he said post game, now's not the time to make a decision. You know, in the heat of the moment, I was. There's time for me to talk to my family. It's time for me to think about what I want to do next. And to whether I continue. But yes, it will be my last game at the World Cup. Obviously, it's maybe even, you know, a World cup later than he would have anticipated, than anyone else would have anticipated. Not least because when he walked out of the World cup last time, it felt like the manager had kind of set the wheels in motion for him not to come back, hadn't he? That, you know, that that hard decision had been made and actually Roberto Martinez could have turned up and not had to make himself and just kind of carried on with the idea of Ronaldo not in the national team. But you're right, today he didn't really have an impact, I think in his defense. I think, you know, he scored three goals at this tournament. It's difficult to know what Portugal would have looked like, you know, with a different forward up front. I think it's true, of course, that there isn't the press, that there's not the maybe the velocity to the game that there might be with a different forward. And of course, Gonzalo Ramos came on and scored very quickly the other day, but I'm just reluctant to. To make an all round performance in which they didn't create a huge amount about him, if you see what I mean. I think at times a striker is both a cause, but also a consequence of a way a team plays.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Yeah.

[Max Rushden]

And actually that if that's the case, then it is frustrating that Portugal's midfield should be so brilliant. And maybe like you feel like these are two of the best midfields in the tournament. They canceled each other out a bit today maybe.

[Sid Lowe]

Yeah, that was the focus before the game, you know, this idea that, that, you know, these might not be the best two teams here, but they're certainly the best two midfields. I. I felt that there was a period in the first half where I thought this is straight shaping up to be really good because I did feel like these were two teams that wanted the ball. These were two teams that wanted to go at each other, these two teams that wanted to happen. I thought that Nuno Mendes was brilliant and I did feel like the game died a little bit with his departure. Now, I don't know if I'm overstating that because I was so focused on him and Lamine and on that battle, but it did feel to me that that was kind of the beginning of the end and. And Simetta actually did an alright job of stopping Lamina. Marine wasn't able to do a huge amount either, really, although there's one or two really nice moments. But you're right. The midfield, it did feel like they cancelled each other. I don't know how it felt watching it for you, but I felt this was an unusually low key performance from Pedri, but he gave the ball away a lot more than he usually does. I thought Rodri played very well, but I thought Pedri struggled to really influence the game. And I felt a little bit the same with Bruno Fernandes, although there are a couple of very nice, nice passes from him.

[Barry Glendenning]

But.

[Sid Lowe]

But yeah, a game that was set around those midfield, those two midfields. I suppose. Yeah. The conclusion maybe is the way you frame it, that it's not so much that those two midfields didn't play well as that they were both up against really good midfields. And it's quite hard to do so to play well when the other midfield is also really brilliant.

[Max Rushden]

Did you trip Luis de la Fuente up the other day?

[Sid Lowe]

Yeah, I was really. I mean, I very nearly hurt him quite badly and I'm quite glad that I didn't. He. Do you know that thing when you trip up and you have to sort of run to stay on your feet, otherwise you're going to fall? Yeah, I tripped him up and he did that and he went running down this sort of mini slope by the pitch and he kind of turned around and came back to me. I was like, oh, my God.

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Can you.

[Sid Lowe]

Can you imagine the headlines? Not just journalists nearly kills Spain manager, but English journalists nearly kill Spain manager. I would have been the most hated person in the entire country if. Max, I am not already.

[Max Rushden]

Was it a reducer? Like what. What we just a little. Or you're going two footed?

[Sid Lowe]

It was a little. It was a little narrow walkway and it was a little ramp that went up to. To the pitch in Los Angeles and I went to have a look at the pitch on match day minus one and Luis De la Fuente was out there looking at the pitch with his staff and I thought, well, I probably shouldn't get in the way. So I stayed in the narrow walkway rather than going out to the pitch. So what that meant was that when he left the pitch and went down the narrow walkway, it was quite narrow and without me realizing it, my foot was sticking out a little bit and he went straight over it.

[Max Rushden]

That's what people say. He's not that kind of journalist. Like that.

[Boost Mobile Advertiser]

Exactly.

[Max Rushden]

He's not that kind of journalist. Anyway, thanks.

[Sid Lowe]

I got away. I got away with it though, Max. I did get a red card, but a call, a call from Donald Trump cleared me for the rest of the tournament.

[Max Rushden]

Of course it did. Thank you, Sid.

[Sid Lowe]

Pleasure. Cheerio.

[Max Rushden]

So Sid has basically covered Spain and all of it.

[Barry Glendenning]

Actually, I think I was overcome with fatigue today. I think it must have been sadness, the emotional and trauma of last night's match in Mexico, but I actually missed this game because I was asleep.

[Max Rushden]

But you didn't get out of bed till. What time did you get out of bed?

[Barry Glendenning]

No, I got up, and then I went back to bed and I watched the. The Fox highlights package, which you won't believe was 15 minutes long.

[Max Rushden]

Well done to them.

[Barry Glendenning]

So I'm not really in a position to comment on it, but crike, it was bad. And I don't know how a team like Portugal. Well, I do know, but it shouldn't be happening. Is playing like Everton under Roberto Martinez, a team with so many good players as Portugal have, how are they reduced to playing like Everton under Roberto Martinez? Are there any clues?

[Max Rushden]

I mean, there was a great tweet, I don't know, some meme of someone smiling from nothing, saying, you know, Roberto Martinez when he finds out his agent's got him the Netherlands gig. You can just see it happening. But, you know, it feels like Chris Sutton on five Live was like, this is all about Ronaldo, Nick. And I don't know if you think it is. Sid was perhaps a bit more circumspect today, but what a waste of the rest of these players. Right. This is 2016, the last time in a semi final. They got so many brilliant players.

[Nick Ames]

Yeah. And you've. You've got this fantastic midfield, all these technicians who can move the ball so well. The. These wingers, these. These wide men who are F and tricky and devilish, and all of these players are crying out for movement in front of them and. And people who can exploit space and people who will make runs that free others up and, you know, make the players around them better. But instead, they've got. They've had this totem up there. And I think it's a point that many of us have been saying on this pod for years now, but it shows how absurd the problem has been. I mean, there was one moment, I think, in the second half today when Ronaldo sort of attempted a run down the left, I think, towards the penalty box, and sort of 15 years ago, it might end up in a goal. This time, he traveled about 10 yards and just sort of stumbled and got dispossessed. You just, like, just didn't work. And I think it's not all about Ronaldo, but I think it largely is because it's such an important part of a team, especially these days when it comes to press from a friend and as I said, making runs that can basically allow your entire attack and midfield and attacking fullbacks to breathe. And Portugal have had none of that. And there was an opportunity to change it because our World cup, when they put Gonzalo Ramos in for Ronaldo against Switzerland, he scored a hat trick and they won 6 1. I was at that game and. And you think, okay, this is the new dawn now. This is the new dawn and it just hasn't happened. And ultimately they have paid for it. And Roberto Martinez, who I think would have gone anyway if they hadn't won the World cup, which they were probably never going to, has paid for it in a way as well. And it's just a bit of a shame because there's a lot of players there with fantastic vision, fantastic scope, and they have been lumbered by the all time great. Let's be honest, we can't denigrate what Ronaldo has done over his career, but we can say that what he has offered now is not good enough.

[Max Rushden]

A tweet from Duncan Alexander saying Cristiano Ronaldo's dream of scoring more World cup knockout goals than Matthew Upson feels like it's over. Yeah.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Finally on this, Archie Nick made the point about that run that Cristiano Ronaldo did down the left. The thing that actually struck me most about that run was that no one followed him. As if to think. As if to say that his teammates are going, well, we all know how this is going to end, and surely your teammates are going to follow your runs in hope. I think the biggest mistake that Cristiano Ronaldo has made is continuing to play football for the last five years because of his quest. Quest is not a strong enough word. His ambition.

[Barry Glendenning]

Obsession.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Obsession. Thank you. To. To match Lionel Messi, when instead had he retired earlier, I think we could consider his greatness in football on. In. In its own pantheon. And yet the further he's gone on, the more it's just slipped away as Messi has become brilliant at the World cup and won the World cup with Argentina. And then you're left with this weak quote from Ronaldo today saying, well, me winning the Euros in 2016, when I think you came off in the first half anyway, point like Portugal won it. Not just Ronaldo in that tournament where he's saying that, look, that has to be considered in the same dimension as winning a World Cup. It's not. You're reaching, you need to stop. And the longer that he's gone on and if he still goes on, who knows? The longer that he continues to tar his footballing legacy.

[Max Rushden]

I don't disagree, Archie. And that'll be for part two. Part three. We can do a bit more how was it at the Azteca with Nick?

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[Max Rushden]

Welcome to Part three of the Guardian Football Weekly. Sorry to put you through this again, Barry. It's all right, Nick. You were at the Azteca yesterday. What a privilege to be there. And how was it?

[Nick Ames]

Yeah, I was at just in case Bowie's forgotten my score after his long sleep, England's 32 win over Mexico at altitude against a team that hadn't lost their home since 2013. That put them in the World cup quarter finals. But yeah, now, now we got that detail out of the way. It was. I mean, a lot of words have been said already, so I can probably only add to them. I mean, I'm here in my hotel In Mexico City, 24 hours or so on and you still feel a little bit drained almost. I was with just before this pod, our good friend and colleague Dave Heitner from a guardian and a couple of other colleagues too, having a spot of dinner who were still here and we were all just looking at each other saying we're knackered. And it was just a game of football that we went to last night. It was literally edge of the seat tense stuff for 101 minutes, wasn't it? And the atmosphere was everything that people say about the Aztec here, it was tense, it was, it was thrilling. It was a real roller coaster ride as well. But I think something, something about it all has been, it's been really nice as well. It's been really jovial and genial. And the Mexicans, well, while they were so passionate and into their team, and while the noise in there when they scored their goals was utterly phenomenal, and I was at the Ecuador game in Iran before and on Tuesday, and the noise when they scored those goals was the loudest I've ever heard in a stadium in my life. It was astonish. There was no doubt how partisan they were. But the moment they were mingling on my concourse with England fans or in the bars afterwards or before, I only saw and heard really lovely things, just in terms of the hospitality and the way people got on. So it all made for a really lovely occasion, actually. And obviously an all time classic of a football match that I'm. I think it's been covered in great depth already. But I think the England players will have, would have enjoyed their day off today. And Thomas Tuchel said he wasn't going to even engage with any football today. And I think they've earned that. And I think we'll all come away from Mexico City thinking this was a once in a lifetime moment to be able to do this. It's definitely being able to cover these two games at the Aztec area against Ecuador and England. I think they've been the best things I've done in my career, quite honestly, not the best work I've done, the best things I've done. It's just been absolutely magical and I think it's, it's a bit of a, bit of a scandal really that Mexico doesn't get much further presence in this World Cup. I mean, we, we can talk about where the finals should be. I think the Azteca should at least have a quarterfinal or semi final. But there may be, maybe less is more, maybe scarcity is good, maybe it makes things that bit more magical and rare and joyful when you do experience them. But no, it's, it's been honestly a, a lovely and quite overwhelming experience for a lot of us. And one of those things that is everything that it's cracked up to be. And obviously the result, Mexico 2, England 3, was also a very, very pleasing one for a lot of people.

[Barry Glendenning]

Yeah, I'm chuckling to myself listening to Nick in Mexico and comparing and contrasting and Wilson in Mexico on day one of this odyssey and how grumpy and miserable he was.

[Max Rushden]

I mean, it is. Is the W. You didn't work. I mean, it is worth pointing out just some amazing stuff, that when we recorded yesterday, we hadn't seen Archie, like the schools who went in and hadn't seen this game and all watched it, teachers and kids, was really beautiful. The box part. I'm not a box part guy, but like double limbs is something. Seeing everybody go wild and just about get their breath back and then belly into scores again. People in pubs waiting for the game in that hour delay on watching Pointless, on silent and just going down and going down. And when it's one, they're like, oh, when it's zero. There was an amazing clip of. Of Harry Kane taking a penalty. You see this one and four lads in a front room all asleep and not woken up, just sleeping through this whole thing. And maybe the best is the Mexican coach, Javier Aguirre. Just as Anthony Gordon's there going, gordon, fuck you. And they're bursting out laughing and like. And it's almost like it's animated. It's like a jump cut. It's like a bad edit. How quickly he starts laughing, like a sort of cartoon. I don't know. I saw this tweet on Dan Burns header, the one with the Raul Jimenez overhead kicking.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

There's only one.

[Max Rushden]

Well, no, he heads another one. I know, but like he says, aj, when you consider the following shot, power shot, trajectory, block, proximity, Dan Burns skull thickness, low air resistance. This must be the furthest a ball has ever been headed in football history. I can't see how it's physically possible for it ever to be beaten. It's probably right. It's an unbelievable. I can't stop watching it. Adam Hurry from football cliches tweeted out the BBC graphics of Dan Burns headers. You know, this ludicrous 3D thing. The 3D thing. It's amazing. John Stone's in the dressing room pretending that he's injured his shoulder with Tuchel and then just starts dancing. I enjoyed that.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

I liked your reaction last night after we'd had dinner where you were like, I'm just gonna go by the pool now, pour myself a glass of red and watch the final 20 minutes again.

[Max Rushden]

I did. I watched injury time again. Absolutely brilliant. This tweet from Pete, I'm not saying sport is brutal, but Raul Jiminez next competitive game is against Port Vale. That's a blow. Jordan Anderson expected to have surgery on the wrist injury he suffered after he landed awkwardly after hopping over the advertising hoardings. Yeah, there was One Archie, a friend of mine, Tom, from the Melbourne Bohemians, forwarded it to me. Jordan Henderson's night was more like a stag dude. Dress up like a footballer, get her talking to by the authorities for your behavior and then break your arm jumping over some railings. Poor bloke. He wants to stay and be a vibes man. And he's been brilliant at that.

[Barry Glendenning]

He can still throw a dart.

[Max Rushden]

Exactly. Yeah, of course he can. And Ellis James texted to say on behalf of your Welsh, Irish and Scottish listeners, Barry has got to get Archie out of that sodding bedroom. The lucky bedroom. Look, we'll do tomorrow's games tomorrow of course. Argentina, Egypt, Switzerland, Colombia. It is worth talking about the Egypt coach, Hossam Hassan giving an impassioned five minute speech on Palestine and the injustice they're going through. That was his quote. And how whatever happens at the World cup pales into comparison with how poorly the world has reacted to the situation. It got rapturous applause from the Egyptian journalists. We may. We'll hopefully talk about that more tomorrow. Nick, you wrote a fascinating and depressing piece on one of FIFA's main sponsors, Aramco, which I would recommend everybody reads. But if you could briefly give us the background to that, that.

[Nick Ames]

Sure, yeah. I was covering the earlier stages of the World cup in, in. In Houston, Texas. And about 100 miles east of there is a city called Port Arthur. And it. It's an oil refinery town. There's these three in, well more than three, but three major refineries there. And one of them is run by a company called Motiva that is a wholly owned subsidiary of Aramco. Now you probably, or you may subconsciously know that Aramco, the Saudi state petroleum company, it gets pumped, I think, into your eyeballs every time you watch a World cup game because it's a major partner of FIFA, probably their biggest sponsor, I think. So they essentially own this massive, massive plant. And in short, Port Arthur has an awfully bad cancer rate, like the highest in Texas, one of the highest in the US sky high rates of lung problems, heart problems, asthma, especially in children, all kinds of illnesses. And it's been like this for many, many years. And I mean a lot of causal links can be made to leaks coming from the plants, which sometimes exceed what they're allowed to emit. So I went there basically to talk to local residents and find out how life is there. And the answer is, while there have been some improvements in recent years with compliance from the oil companies, it's still not very good. It was a very bleak place to go to, honestly. It was once thriving. You once had a bustling downtown with all kinds of famous acts like Aretha Franklin, people like that playing there in years gone by. And now the place was a shell. It was desolate, empty plots and buildings, a pretty poor community that was sucking houses that were right along the fence line behind the refineries where their property value was so low that you couldn't really, or didn't really want to sell your house. Unemployment very high, people not really being given jobs by the oil companies, etc, etc, and it all came together to just paint a picture of what is happening in this town a couple of hours from where the World cup has been going on and where a major player in the tournament, a really major player, is heavily involved, even through a subsidiary. So I would say if you have five or ten minutes, please do read the piece because it's got a lot of testimonies really from local people that put it far better than I ever could. And you'll get a bit of an idea of the kind of deal that FIFA makes in order to, in its eyes, and some people's eyes, further the cause of football and to fund its activity across the world.

[Max Rushden]

It's brilliant reporting, Nick. And we'll put a link in the description page on the website and everyone should go and read it because yeah, it's. It's really good what you've done there, Nick. A moderate gear change to finish the pod. Danny Murphy was on Spain Portugal comms. So obviously had a lot to. A lot of time to fill. And there's the trilogy of Danny Murphy's cat. He said, we did try and settle Bob back into the house.

[Barry Glendenning]

House.

[Max Rushden]

This was a. If you remember, he came back after jumping in the Royal Mail van. He was feral. They sent him to Preston. He said, we did try and settle Bob back into the house, but he started bullying and fighting his sister Mary. I presume that is Bob's sister Mary, not Danny's sister Mary. I don't have those details. We made the decision to give him the red card and send him up to the road to Preston. I think it was the right decision. I did message Danny to say the trilogy, thank you. And he said had to be done laughing, crying, emoji, fist emoji. So well done, Danny. Steve says more Bob the Cat talk from Danny Murphy. We once met Danny Murphy while out in Chester with one of our friends who was also called Danny Murphy. Needless to say, the footballer version was not as interested in meeting our Danny Murphy, as we had hoped. And I finished with this really lovely email from Paul who says, dear Max, Barry and the good ones. All right, Paul, he says, long time listener, first time emailer. With England facing Norway in the finals, I can't keep it to myself anymore. Danny Murphy might have a Bob anecdote, but I have an Oscar one. First, you need to know something about me. Three years ago I was injured in a rock climbing accident. I broke my neck and I've lost much of my bodily functioning. I need help with, well, pretty much everything from a full time care assistant. That includes going to the toilet. We'll come back to that. While Danny might have had a cat called Bob, my first pet was a guinea pig called Oscar. I loved him, but as he got older he developed problems with constipation. The vet told me I had to put Vaseline on my finger and help the poo come out of his bum. I'm sorry to say that nine year old me was much less dutiful than I should have been and I fear that Oscar suffered. Fast forward 30 years and how the tables have turned. I don't suffer, but I sympathize far more with Oscar than I ever did when I was young. I've recently been volunteering at the Birmingham Sports Science Division, helping them do research on improving functionality for people with spinal cord injury. So at least I'm now a guinea pig in more ways than one. Perhaps the universe has a sense of humor, but if it fancies giving me a break, watching England win against Norway in a pub with my friends only a couple of years after I watched the European Championship final alone, convinced I'd never be happy again. Well, that could would be a good way to do it. Come on, England. Thank you, Paul. Keep on keeping on. We appreciate your email and that'll do for today, thanks.

[Barry Glendenning]

Thanks, Paul. And despite your misfortune, I still hoping to get better.

[Max Rushden]

Thank you, Barry, of course. But that'll do for today. Thanks everyone. Thanks, Nick.

[Nick Ames]

Thank you, Max.

[Max Rushden]

Cheers, Archie Rushton. Thank you. Cheers, Barry.

[Barry Glendenning]

Thank you.

[Max Rushden]

Football Weekly is produced by Rory Simon and Matt Bentley Viney. Our executive producer is Del Grove and we'll be back tomorrow. This is the Guardian.

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[Sid Lowe]

technology story in one way or another, and on the interface, we decode the

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[Sid Lowe]

On this week's episode is AI pushing

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