The build-up to the 2022 World Cup Finals left me cold, but – over the piece and despite a few fairly turgid 0-0s – it has so far been a better tournament than I had anticipated, and has undoubtedly thrown up some remarkable stories.
The fears many of us had about this competition seemed to have been borne out in the first few minutes of the opening game, with what initially seemed an inexplicable decision to prevent the hosts from conceding an early goal against Ecuador.
It was eventually shown to be the correct call, but it did nothing to spur Qatar on, and the South Americans were comfortable and deserved winners.
While I have not watched every single minute, I have had the television on for most of it, quite often in the background while working on my laptop, and have caught up later on anything I have missed.
After the Ecuador win, England were next up and, while they were helped by facing what proved to be very limited opposition, I have to admit Gareth Southgate’s side played some excellent football, and their exciting young stars have the potential to light up the tournament.
The Netherlands found it tough against a very capable Senegal, but ultimately proved too strong.
The game of the Finals so far for me was USA against Wales.
The Welsh were fortunate to still be in the contest at half time after a 45 minutes in which they looked out of their depth, but after making changes at the interval, they were a team reborn, and driven on by their star man, Gareth Bale, they picked up what could be a massive point.
The stunning scorelines came in successive days and followed a similar narrative – both Argentina and Germany were in control of their opening ties, but missed chances, and somehow managed to lose to Saudi Arabia and Japan respectively.
The Japanese, in particular, looked impressive and will be a highly dangerous counter-attacking side. A win against Costa Rica on Sunday surely seals qualification for them, and would put the Germans under even more pressure ahead of their evening kick-off against Spain.
The Spanish romped to victory over the Central Americans, and if they maintain that form, Hansi Flick’s team will be facing a second successive group stage exit, which seems incredible.
France have, for me, been the best team so far on show. Having conceded early to Australia, they stepped up through the gears, and eased to a convincing win. I would expect them to take care of Denmark this afternoon to clinch a place in the knock-out stages.
Of the other potential eventual champions, Belgium had to get down and dirty to edge past Canada, Portugal were given a fright by Ghana, and Brazil initially frustrated by Serbia before cutting loose and showing the attacking quality that might take them all the way to the trophy.
VAR has inevitably caused a bit of controversy, but not as much as I had anticipated, while one of the big talking points has been the enormous amount of stoppage time we have seen, something I have welcomed.
The next week will decide the line-up for the last-16 and it looks certain there will be a few surprise names included in it.
I hope Hall of Fame ceremony showed Aberdeen legends how highly thought of they are
It was my privilege on Wednesday evening to host the latest Aberdeen FC Hall of Fame dinner.
Having been involved since the club revived the HOF seven years ago, it has always been a good night – and the 2022 event certainly lived up to that.
It was emotional; Davie Robb’s son Danny accepted the posthumous award on behalf of his dad, and Frank McDougall was unable to attend as he battles cancer, but sent a heartfelt message of thanks.
💬 "There are some great players in the Hall of Fame and I am really chuffed to be in it."
🔴 Russell Anderson, Duncan Shearer and Dougie Bell spoke to RedTV as they were inducted into our Hall of Fame.
📺 RedTV subscribers can watch in full now // https://t.co/BneOnAIFSW pic.twitter.com/H44ios7UE9
— Aberdeen FC (@AberdeenFC) November 24, 2022
The three inductees who were there made it clear how honoured they were to have been recognised. Dougie Bell, Duncan Shearer and Russell Anderson are three of the humblest guys you will meet, all expressing surprise at their nomination.
The warmth in the room, the reception they all got, hopefully helped them realise how important they all were to the club, and that they richly deserve their places in that exclusive club.
Russell Anderson and Duncan Shearer were tonight two of the latest inductees into our Hall of Fame.
— Aberdeen FC (@AberdeenFC) November 23, 2022
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