The farce that was Belgium v England

Well, that was all a bit s**t

Belgium took on England on Thursday night in a match neither side was particularly keen on winning. Both sides made a plethora of changes, with all the star names given the night off. While it is good to rest the odd key player with more important matches to come, resting them all was a bit of a slap in the face to the fans who made the trip to Russia, and the World Cup itself.

That attitude towards the game showed on the players who were picked. It really wasn't a good game and at times was a farce. Belgium's reserves were just that bit better than England's, winning the game 1-0 thanks to a cracking strike from Adnan Januzaj in the second half. Finishing second in the group meant an 'easier' route to the semi-finals, but nothing is guaranteed in football, which made this approach all the more infuriating. You should always play to win, as momentum is often more important than who you have in your ranks.

Read: The curse of the defending World Cup champions continues

The same thing happened in the clash between France and Denmark on Tuesday. When teams know that a certain result is more important than another, they tend to take their foot off the gas, and that needs to change. Every side knows exactly where they will end up in the knockouts after finishing first or second in their World Cup group, as it is all pre-drawn. This opens the door for pre-planning of performances in seemingly 'dead rubber' matches. In order to stop this from happening in future, it would be beneficial to draw the knockout round ties after the groups have been decided. Top spot would then be the incentive no matter what, and you wouldn't have cases of teams playing for a draw or loss in order to gain a favourable route to a potential final.

Please look at this, FIFA. We, as fans, invest a lot of our time and money into football, so to be hoodwinked is not fair and is disrespectful.

This is not a good look on you, Africa

Five teams travelled to the World Cup to represent Africa. All five are heading home after the first round. Not cool, guys. Not cool.

Senegal were Africa's final hope on Thursday afternoon. All they had to do was not lose. Problem was, Colombia just wanted it that bit more.

The South Americans won 1-0, sending Senegal packing. That result meant the interest of African sides in this World Cup was over. Sad, but sadly inevitable. Maybe next time? I wouldn't bet on it, though...

We have our World Cup knockout participants!

After two weeks of non-stop football action, we have the fixtures for the Round of 16 of the 2018 World Cup. There are some very interesting clashes in store, with the clash between Brazil and Mexico looking like the most exciting on paper. France v Argentina is also a massive game, but neither side is playing particularly well, so here's hoping that changes.

Here is the full list of Round of 16 clashes:

France v Argentina - Saturday, 30 June at 16h00

Uruguay v Portugal - Saturday, 30 June at 20h00

Spain v Russia - Sunday, 1 July at 16h00

Croatia v Denmark - Sunday, 1 July at 20h00

Brazil v Mexico - Monday, 2 July at 16h00

Belgium v Japan - Monday, 2 July at 20h00

Sweden v Switzerland - Tuesday, 3 July at 16h00

Colombia v England - Tuesday, 3 July at 20h00

Michy Batshuayi does his best 'Three Stooges' impression

Belgium's Michy Batshuayi was so happy his side took the lead against England to end the boredom that he did something rather silly. I think we all would have been fine with a ball to the face watching that game. 

Take a look and have a chuckle:

Also read: Diego Maradona needs to take a chill pill

https://www.ecr.co.za/fifa-world-cup-2018/diego-maradona-needs-take-chill-pill/