Iran Shows Strength While Mourning Supreme Leader; Ukraine Struggles With Defense Missile Shortage

Summary

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Here's the Scoop Podcast Summary

Episode: Iran Shows Strength While Mourning Supreme Leader; Ukraine Struggles With Defense Missile Shortage
Date: July 6, 2026
Host: Yasna Vasugin, NBC News
Featured Guests:

• Richard Engel (NBC News Chief Foreign Correspondent)
• Ilya Ponomarenko (Journalist, Author, formerly with Kyiv Independent)
• Greg Rosenstein (NBC News Sports Editor)

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Overview

This episode examines three urgent global stories:

1. The mass funeral and demonstrations in Iran following the assassination of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and what this signals for US-Iranian relations and ongoing peace negotiations;
2. The dire situation in Ukraine as Russian missile strikes devastate Kyiv and a shortage of air defense missiles leaves civilians vulnerable;
3. A World Cup controversy centered on a US star striker and President Trump's alleged intervention in overturning a red card, causing international uproar.

The reporting features on-the-ground insights from Tehran and Bucha and includes expert commentary on geopolitics and sports.

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Part 1: Iran’s Funeral for Khamenei—A Show of Strength and Anger

(00:10–08:01)

Key Discussion Points

• Mass Demonstrations and Political Messaging

  • Hundreds of thousands, possibly millions, of Iranians gathered in Tehran for Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's funeral, killed in a US-Israel strike on February 28th.
  • While officially a funeral, the event became a government-orchestrated political rally, showing defiance and renewed regime confidence.

• Atmospheric Changes in Iran

  • Richard Engel reports a shift since prewar visits: “The government is much more confident… more emboldened, more confident. And you could, you can, I could see that over the last several days.” (02:05)
  • The crowds are primarily composed of government supporters rather than critics or protestors.

• Anti-American Sentiment Intensifies

  • Chants of “Death to America” are more impassioned than in past years, with personal anger at President Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu, their images on posters in crosshairs.
  • Revolutionary Guard member tells Engel: "The war will only be over when the blood of the Supreme Leader has been avenged." (03:47)
  • Ordinary Iranians express direct hostility: A woman approaches Engel saying, “Kill Trump,” an imperative echoed repeatedly. (04:57)

• State-Driven Messaging

  • Posters and slogans are government-distributed, not homemade—a sign of official sanction and orchestrated defiance.

• Complications for Peace Negotiations

  • Engel clarifies: “This is a message that the government is, is actively encouraging. I don’t know if there’s any indications that they’re going to make good on them.” (06:33)
  • While the government fosters this anger, Engel believes they do not actually seek to reignite open war with the US or Israel, but officials remain suspicious that conflict could resume.

Notable Quotes

• “This is not just a funeral. This is a political rally. This is a way for the government to show that President Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu... failed, that they are still in power...” —Richard Engel (02:05)
• “Kill Trump. I hear that message all over. You actually mean kill Trump.” —Richard Engel (04:57)
• “The anger is directed toward the people who led this war… not anti-American anger in general… death to American imperialism.” —Richard Engel (05:20)

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Part 2: Ukraine’s Air Defense Crisis Amid Fresh Russian Strikes

(09:39–17:47)

Key Discussion Points

• Intensity of Russian Attacks

  • Recent missile attacks on Kyiv have killed over a dozen people; this follows another mass-casualty strike a week prior.
  • Nighttime attacks cause horror and destruction, with many citizens buried under their own homes.

• Air Defense Shortage

  • Ukraine’s air defense is particularly vulnerable to Russian ballistic missiles.
  • Patriot missiles are the only effective counter but are in alarmingly short supply—both in Ukraine and globally.
  • Ukrainian forces managed previous threats (cruise missiles, drones), but cannot intercept these ballistic weapons.

• Domestic and International Response

  • President Zelensky has urgently, even publicly, pled with the US and Congress for more Patriot systems.
  • No significant new aid has passed during President Trump's second term; Zelensky called his last conversation with Trump “very good.”
  • Problem extends beyond politics: worldwide production capacity for these interceptors is low (<1,000/year), and expansion would take years.

• European Support?

  • Some nations, notably Germany and Poland, have shared what they have but supplies are extremely limited, and full inventories are not public knowledge.
  • Ukrainian leaders hope for more, but acknowledge limitations across Europe.

• Morale and Civilian Resilience

  • Despite years of war, daily life continues, but persistent attacks enrage citizens. Ilya Ponomarenko notes this terror tactics only reinforce Ukrainian resolve:
  • "It only shows people that this is what we are fighting for… what we are enduring, because this is what stands." (16:14)

Notable Quotes

• “When it comes to a very specific thing as ballistic missiles… the only instruments...are the patriot interceptors… super expensive and super rare.” —Ilya Ponomarenko (12:02)
• “It’s been almost officially said by people in the Defense Ministry that we have no more of them left. Zero, Nothing.” —Ilya Ponomarenko (12:58)
• “But the problem is, and it never works. Throughout history, civilian terror only demonstrates what is at stake, who is the aggressor, what they’re capable of.” —Ilya Ponomarenko (16:14)

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Part 3: World Cup Red Card Controversy and Presidential Influence

(19:13–26:02)

Key Discussion Points

• The Incident

  • US striker Folarin Balogun received a red card in the previous World Cup match and was set to be suspended for the next game.
  • FIFA reversed the decision, following reported intervention by President Trump, who personally requested a review.

• Controversy and International Reaction

  • The soccer world is incensed; UEFA called FIFA’s decision “a mockery,” and warned “the integrity of the game is at stake.” (23:19)
  • Belgian officials and their coach expressed shock—“Is it April Fool’s Day?” was the response. (22:36)
  • Past precedent: In 2025, Cristiano Ronaldo’s ban was reduced in a similar ruling, but such reversals remain extremely rare.

• Impact on the Tournament

  • US team regains its top striker, majorly improving their chances against Belgium.
  • Discussion over fairness and the specter of political interference looms over the match.

• Wider Tournament Drama

  • Other World Cup upsets: Norway beat Brazil thanks to star Erling Haaland; Cape Verde nearly toppled Argentina.
  • The US could face Spain or Portugal next if victorious.

Notable Quotes

• “UEFA actually came out with a statement earlier today and they basically said, you know, this is a mockery. You know, the rules are the rules.” —Greg Rosenstein (23:19)
• “I could see him [Trump] making a call and saying, hey, you guys got to really review this.” —Greg Rosenstein (21:19)
• “If Balogun goes out there, scores a goal, scores potentially the game-winning goal, there’s going to be a lot of talk about, you know, should this be an asterisk.” —Greg Rosenstein (25:09)

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Segment Timestamps

• Iran Funeral, US Relations & Interview with Richard Engel: 00:10–08:01
• Ukraine Missile Attacks & Interview with Ilya Ponomarenko: 09:39–17:47
• World Cup Controversy & Interview with Greg Rosenstein: 19:13–26:02

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Memorable Moments

• The chilling, repeated demand on the streets of Tehran: “Kill Trump.” (04:57, 05:07)
• Ilya Ponomarenko’s benchmark for civilian morale: “If people get up in the morning and go to work… Ukrainians are still capable of going on with this…” (16:14)
• UEFA’s blunt condemnation of FIFA’s red card reversal: “The rules are the rules… the integrity of the game is at stake.” (23:19–23:43)

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Tone and Language

The tone remains urgent, clear, and conversational throughout, balancing on-the-ground intensity with analytical composure. Quotes are direct, sometimes harrowing, and the reporters maintain a focus on giving listeners both eyewitness detail and big-picture context.

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This episode is essential listening for anyone seeking to understand the interplay of politics, violence, and global sport in a world where personal and national grievances spill onto the streets—and the soccer pitch.

Transcript

[Greg Rosenstein]

UEFA actually came out with a statement earlier today and they basically said, you know, this is a mockery. You know, the rules are the rules.

[Yasna Vasugin]

Hey, everybody, and welcome to here's the scoop from NBC News. I'm Yasna Vasugin. So today on the show, the soccer world is seeing red after FIFA decided to allow U.S. striker Follerin Baligun to play in tonight's World cup match despite a red card in the last game. What role did President Trump play? Plus, Russia has launched another series of deadly attacks on the Ukraine capital, Kyiv, ahead of the NATO summit. Why? Getting the defense missiles that President Zelensky needs desperately right now is a hard ask. Up first, though, hundreds of thousands of Iranians flooded the streets of Tehran on Monday for the funeral procession of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Khamenei and several of his family members were killed in targeted airstrikes launched by the US and Israel on February 28th. The crowd at his funeral procession held signs and chanted slogans expressing their anger at the US And Israel for the Supreme Leader's killing. Meanwhile, talks between the US And Iran to end the war are on hold until the funeral proceedings finish on on Thursday. So what message is Iran sending with this massive funeral? And could the anger towards the US Complicate the next stages of these peace negotiations? For this, I want to bring in Richard Engel, NBC News chief foreign correspondent. He's been reporting on the funeral processions from the ground in Tehran.

[Richard Engel]

Hey, Richard, good to join you. How are you?

[Yasna Vasugin]

I'm good. It's great to have you. You went to Iran before this war began and this is your first time back. How are you seeing things differently right now?

[Richard Engel]

So, yeah, I've been over the last 12 months or 15 months to Iran maybe half a dozen times, and I'm noticing a major difference now. Since the end of major combat operations, the government is much more confident. There were hundreds of thousands of people on the street today. The government is talking about millions of people. I think that's very possible. This is not just a funeral. This is a political rally. This is a way for the government to show that President Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu of Israel failed, that they are still in power and in many ways they are in a stronger position than they have been in many years. That doesn't mean that the government is universally liked. Absolutely not. It's deeply divided. But the government supporters feel more emboldened, more confident. And you could, you can, I could see that over the last several days.

[Yasna Vasugin]

So you're Seeing a renewed strength amidst the government. Government officials, amid support, it seems, for the government in the streets. And it's important to note that the people that would show up for Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's funeral would be supporters, would be government officials. These are not the people that we would see in the streets protesting the government of Iran. And that has been what you've been exposed to. I know that there have been the anti American slogans that we are used to hearing. Death to America, as they say it in Farsi. Those things have been chanted, as has been chanted in Iran in past history as well. You spoke to people. What are they saying about America?

[Richard Engel]

You know, the death to America chants. I've heard them in Iran for years. They seem to be more impassioned now. Today, people were shouting it and they were speaking it from their hearts. They were carrying posters with Trump's picture on it with crosshairs, like a bullseye on his forehead. Same thing with Netanyahu's picture. I spoke to a member of the Revolutionary Guard. That's very difficult to speak to members of Revolutionary Guard. They very rarely speak to foreign press, particularly American press. And he said the war is not over. He said that the war will only be over when the blood of the Supreme Leader has been avenged. So the government that was in place previously was probably more moderate than this one, was probably in a weaker position than this one. The death to America chants were louder and more impassioned that I heard today than I have for a long time.

[Yasna Vasugin]

You also spoke to a woman. What did she tell you?

[Richard Engel]

I spoke to a woman and she just came up to me and this happened several times, and she said that Trump should die, that Trump must be killed.

[Greg Rosenstein]

Kill Trump.

[Richard Engel]

Kill Trump. I hear that message all over. You actually mean kill Trump. You actually mean that he should be killed. No English, but kill Trump.

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That's your messenger.

[Richard Engel]

And there were posters that people were carrying around that said there will be blood. And I had pictures of Donald Trump on them. So there's a lot of anger that is being directed personally at President Trump. And people told me that they don't have this same sort of anger toward the American people, that this anger is directed toward the people who led this war, that it's not anti American anger in general, although it's death to America. But they say, they're saying what we mean is death to American imperialism. Death to the international world order dominated by the United States and Israel from their perspective.

[Yasna Vasugin]

You mentioned in speaking with this woman that was in this funeral procession. And speaking with this member of the Revolutionary Guard Corps, which is unprecedented, to hear from someone like that, that they want to avenge the death of Khamenei, of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. And in doing that, to them, that means targeting President Donald Trump. Could there be an issue with negotiating a permanent end to this war when you have people inside of Iran that don't want to see a real end to it until those things, those types of things are carried out?

[Richard Engel]

Yes, but not necessarily so. The Revolutionary Guard today at the funeral, standing next to the casket, of course people's blood is running hot. Of course people are making these kinds of slogans, these posters with Trump's picture on them and a bullseye, they've been handed out by the government. It's not that these are being made by individuals. These are not homemade signs. These are printed signs that the government is handing out. So this is a message that the government is, is actively encouraging. I don't know if there's any indications that they're going to make good on them. And the government is also engaged in active negotiations to try and end the war. So how much of this is bluster and how much does Iran really want to start the war again? I don't get the impression here that the government wants to restart the war. I don't get the impression that they want to go back to full scale conflict with the United States or Israel. But I also, in speaking to people on the ground and speaking to government officials, get the absolute impression that they're not convinced it's over, that there might be another round, that Israel might try and carry out another attack. They're not entirely sure that it will happen.

[Yasna Vasugin]

Richard Engel, we appreciate you being there for us. Thank you, my friend.

[Richard Engel]

Absolutely.

[Yasna Vasugin]

All right, coming up, we are going to be talking to a journalist in Ukraine about recent Russian attacks on Kiev and why President Zelensky is begging for more defense support. And hey, while you're waiting, just take a second to subscribe to here's the scoop. Wherever you get your podcasts. And if you already subscribe, thank you. We would love it if you would now rate and review us. It'll really help other future fans find us as well. I'll be back in a second.

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[Yasna Vasugin]

And we are back with here's the scoop from NBC News. So more than a dozen people were killed overnight in Ukraine's capital city of Kyiv. Russia launched a second major attack on the city in less than a week, according to officials there. The Russian strikes came just hours before the start of the NATO summit in Turkey, where Ukrainian President Zelensky is going to ask leaders again, including President Trump, for more firepower and defense missiles. So how are the Ukrainian people withstanding these ongoing attacks? And what is Zelensky going to do if he doesn't get what he wants? For this, I want to bring in Ilya Ponomarenko, a journalist formerly with Kyiv Independent and a author based in Ukraine. He's currently in Buja, just outside of Kyiv. Welcome, Ilya.

[Ilya Ponomarenko]

Thanks for having me. Hello.

[Yasna Vasugin]

Thank you for being here. So I want to talk about the most recent wave of attacks in Kyiv. What has been happening there?

[Ilya Ponomarenko]

What was happening was the very loud and very terrible roaring thunder in the middle of the night that rolled throughout Kyiv's suburbs for many, many miles, including my place here in Bucha. And I live about 10, 15 miles away from the populated area of the city. So what was happening was yet another massive act of murder that happened about a week after the previous one that left 30 people dead. Now we're talking about 15 people dead. And the work continues, the rescue work continues, another 15 people buried under the rubble of their own homes in the middle of the night because Russia can't do this because of lack, terrible, essential, critical, lack of air defense and, and Russian understanding that there is a very huge window of opportunity for its ballistic missiles to attack Ukraine and to kill Ukrainians, particularly in Kyiv. They have focused on Kyiv in the recent weeks.

[Yasna Vasugin]

Let's talk about Ukrainian air defense missile systems. President Zelensky wrote in social media that Ukrainian forces were struggling to intercept Russian ballistic missiles. What is the status of Ukrainian Air defenses.

[Ilya Ponomarenko]

The Ukrainian military managed to find ways to counter Russian cruise missiles, swarms of Russian drones. But when it comes to a very specific thing as ballistic missiles, which are a very different kind of, kind of a beast to kill Ukrainian targets in Ukraine throughout this years of war, they only instruments effective, super effective, but super expensive and super rare instruments to kill. These ballistic missiles coming from Russia in scores, in dozens sometimes are the factory interceptors from Patriot system.

[Yasna Vasugin]

I want to make sure that people understand what you're talking about. The only air defense systems that are capable of taking out a ballistic missile are patriotic missiles. Yes, Correct.

[Ilya Ponomarenko]

Essentially, yes.

[Yasna Vasugin]

And Ukraine is, is running low on those Patriot missile defense systems.

[Ilya Ponomarenko]

It's been said, it's been almost officially said by people in the Defense Ministry that we have no more of them left. Zero, Nothing.

[Yasna Vasugin]

So to be clear, Russia is attacking you and your country with a missile that you cannot shoot down.

[Ilya Ponomarenko]

Yeah. The latest attack on Kyiv that happened last night that we're talking about, it was made no secret that we have no interceptions at all over Syria when it comes to ballistic missiles.

[Yasna Vasugin]

So President Zelenskyy actually has been asking the President and Congress as well for more air defense systems. We know this. There has been no legislation, no other authorizations of major new aid to Ukraine in President Trump's second term. President Trump actually spoke with Zelensky and Russian leader President Vladimir Putin ahead of this week's NATO summit. Zelensky has described the conversation that he had with President Trump as, quote, unquote, very good. What do you think, in your estimation, from what you've been seeing, from what you've been hearing, are Zelensky's objectives in this conversation with President Trump? What does he want? Does he want these air defense systems?

[Ilya Ponomarenko]

Oh, yes, we are 100% sure. And it's been absolutely clear and vocal from the Zelensky side, from military leadership, that one of the top, top tasks in the list is getting those interceptors one way or another. A huge problem, and everybody is very vocal about this. Such weapons are in very low stock worldwide, in the United States included, following the Iran war. So it's a huge problem for everybody in the world to get these weapons, essentially given the fact that United States produces less than 1,000 such interceptors a year. And it will take a lot of time and a lot of resources to expand the production if we want this. Another problem is that Ukraine and many other countries have been begging for years to provide us, for instance, Ukrainian producers or European manufacturers with licenses to produce copies of these weapons, which is Again, a big problem from the point of view of arms manufacturing and their own benefits and their own business interests, which is. And even in case of positive political decision in the White House, it will take time to start producing them.

[Yasna Vasugin]

Can though the eu, can European nations, can they fill the void left by the United States?

[Ilya Ponomarenko]

It's a very good question. When it comes to Patriot missiles, we know for sure it was open information that Germany donated these missiles, some amounts of them. Poland, it's been revealed yesterday or today that Poland also had to share at least something I'm not sure about. It's not an open information about the quantity of such missiles throughout European nations. It's possible. And this is what the Ukrainian leadership sits its task in.

[Yasna Vasugin]

How are Ukrainians feeling four years into this war?

[Ilya Ponomarenko]

I have this benchmark for myself which I'm always using to assess, you know, the situation around myself and answer such questions. So I'm always looking out and see if life goes on normal, life goes on around myself. If people get up in this in the morning and go to work, if cafes, shops, supermarkets keep working, if there is a civil order, it tells me that the Ukrainians are still capable of going on with this, of withstanding this. But of course, of course, such attacks are brutal attacks, demonstrative attacks on houses with lots of entire families being buried under the rubble of their own apartments in the middle of the night. Of course, that enrages a lot of people, Russians and the Kremlin personally. They probably think that such a missile terror is the way to intimidate Ukrainians into surrender and into accepting Russian terms and such. But the problem is, and it never works. Throughout history, civilian terror only demonstrates what is at stake, who is the aggressor, what they're capable of and what they are doing to us. It only shows people that this is what we are fighting for, this is what we are enduring, because this is what stands.

[Yasna Vasugin]

Ilya Ponomarenko. Thank you.

[Ilya Ponomarenko]

Thank you.

[Yasna Vasugin]

All right, we're going to take a very quick break and when we are back, how President Trump got involved in FIFA's red card controversy.

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[Yasna Vasugin]

and we are back with here's the scoop from NBC News. So there have been a lot of crazy games and Cinderella stories at the World cup, but the big controversy right now is not over a goal. It is over a red card. So in the US Game against Bosnia Herzegovina last week, the US Won, but American striker following got a red card and was supposed to be suspended for tonight's matchup against Belgium. Then on Sunday, FIFA reversed that decision. President Trump says he asked FIFA to review the call and that wasn't a foul.

[Ilya Ponomarenko]

That wasn't even an infraction. That was two guys running full speed

[Richard Engel]

that happened to crash into each other.

[Yasna Vasugin]

But he denies having anything to do with FIFA's ultimate decision. Still, the soccer world is in uproar. So I want to bring in NBC News sports editor Greg Rosenstein for more on this and what else to watch. Hi, Greg.

[Greg Rosenstein]

Hey, how are you?

[Yasna Vasugin]

I'm good. I got to talk about this call. So I was watching this game and we watched this replay over and over again. Walk me through what the play was and why the call was made.

[Greg Rosenstein]

Well, both players were going for the ball. You know, I think like if you watch a replay and it's slowed down dramatically, you know, it might look like Baligan is, you know, almost intentionally sticking his cleat out there and clipping the back of Bosnian's player. But you know, I think if you were watching it in real time, it was pretty quick bang, bang play, two guys going for the ball. And obviously, like, you know, if you're looking a different way, you're not looking right at the opposing player, you might have that happen. So that's why it was, that's why I was very controversial because some people say you know, the rules say if he ends up taking his cleat and, you know, hitting the ankle of the opposing player, he should get a red card and be suspended for the next game. But other people say, you know, maybe the crime didn't deem the punishment.

[Yasna Vasugin]

Do we know if the president asking them to review the call had any influence on their decision?

[Greg Rosenstein]

That's a great question. You know, he did make a call to Gianni Infantini, the FIFA president. They are close friends and Trump is obviously a very powerful person and he could be influential. So I could see him making a call and saying, hey, you guys got to really review this. And the disciplinary committee going back and checking it out at the same time. Because it was such a controversial play and a red card that affected the next game for the team, the disciplinary committee may have checked it anyways and ruled the same way.

[Yasna Vasugin]

Has FIFA ever done this before?

[Greg Rosenstein]

So it's mostly unprecedented, but not the only time it's happened. And this exact rule was used in late 2025 with Cristiano Ronaldo. He's like one of the greatest players of all time. He's Portuguese superstar and he had a three game suspension. And the FIFA ended up reviewing it using the same rule that happened with Baligan. And they changed the suspension from three games to one, basically allowing Cristiano Ronaldo to play in the World cup from the start. So, um, that was also controversial at the time because it kind of looked like FIFA just wanted, you know, one of their biggest superstars to be in every game. But it has happened in the past, but it's very rare.

[Yasna Vasugin]

How are folks responding? Because, you know, this is a controversial call after all.

[Greg Rosenstein]

I'm, I'm trying to remember what Belgium said. I believe the word was like, astonished. You know, they were shocked at the decision that was made yesterday. And, you know, their, their coach came out and said, is it April Fool's Day? You know, like, they're really like, upset with what happened. Obviously, you know, was going to lose one of their key players for their matchup against Belgium. So I think it's going to be a very tough matchup regardless. Belgium has always been one of the top contenders. You know, a lot of their biggest stars are maybe a little later in their career. You know, if you look to four or five years ago, some of these stars were, you know, really at their peak. Now it's not as much, but it's going to be a really tough test.

[Yasna Vasugin]

And it's interesting because Belgium isn't the only country that's Upset or team that's upset? It's also the European Soccer Federation as well.

[Greg Rosenstein]

Yeah. UEFA actually came out with a statement earlier today and they basically said, you know, this is a mockery. You know, the rules are the rules. He earned a red card. They should not be changing, you know, a one game suspension which applies to basically every other player in this one particular case. So, yes, internationally, a lot of people are upset with this, but, you know, the American side obviously is happy they're going to get one of their stars back.

[Yasna Vasugin]

Yeah. Also hearing they said the integrity of the game is at stake. So there's going to be kind of a cloud hanging over this game tonight, in spite of so many people obviously watching. And it could really make history for us. Men's soccer have had a struggle up until this World cup, which they're playing so phenomenally well. I want to talk about some Cinderella stories that we've been watching as well. So you had Norway beating out five time World cup winner Brazil, two goals from rising star Erling Holland, and then three time World cup winner Argentina barely scraping by to beat Cape Verde. Or what should people know here and watching some of these matchups. And what are you going to be watching over the next few days or so as we've seen some of these potential upsets?

[Greg Rosenstein]

Yeah, I mean, this has been a fantastic World cup because, you know, sometimes you might have results where the top teams are cruising by against some of these teams. But the fact that Cape Verde almost beat Argentina with, you know, the arguably the greatest of all time, Leo Messi, that was a great game. You know, I will say Haaland, as you mentioned, he is a superstar player and he's recently been a great player for Manchester City. He's on Norway. He comes in and he's a big guy, long hair, you know, he fights, you know, right at the goal, has an incredible finishing ability. And, you know, if they keep it going, like Haaland is really going to cement that superstar status.

[Yasna Vasugin]

Where does us go next if they win tonight?

[Greg Rosenstein]

So if they win tonight, they will play Friday night in Los Angeles. They play the winner of Spain and Portugal.

[Yasna Vasugin]

What do you think? Do they make it to Friday?

[Greg Rosenstein]

I am trying to be optimistic and I do think they squeak it out. I'm going to go two one US over Belgium tonight. Yeah. I think this Baligan news, you know, is just so monumental for the team and you're getting your top striker back who has played really well in the tournament. You know, you could look on the flip side and say maybe Belgium's going to be so upset about everything that they're going to come in with a real chip on their shoulder and, you know, show them who's boss. So and also, you know, if Baligan goes out there, scores a goal, scores potentially the game winning goal, there's going to be a lot of talk about, you know, should this be an asterisk or, you know, should that have even like possibly taken place. So that's another angle to watch if he has a major impact.

[Yasna Vasugin]

Greg Rosenstein, thank you.

[Greg Rosenstein]

Thanks.

[Yasna Vasugin]

That is going to do it for us. Here's the scoop from NBC News. I'm Yasim Desugin. We'll be back tomorrow with whatever the day may bring. And if you like what you heard, subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. And you can also subscribe to our daily newsletter, the Inside Scoop. It is a deeper dive on the main stories of the day that comes out every weeknight straight to your inbox. You can sign up for the Inside Scoop is Forever paid subscription@NBC news.com.

[Angie Hicks]

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