No one can argue that it has been a highly entertaining World Cup so far. Countless upsets and last minute winners have kept us on the edge of our seats, but here are the top 3 alternative moments away from strictly in-play matters.
3. Batshuayi gets his head on it – Belgium vs. England
Apart from Adnan Januzaj’s wonder strike, this was the highlight of a mundane match where both teams had already qualified; with perhaps the real prize going to the losers who get an easier route to the final.
Michy Batshuayi is loving life in Russia, stating ‘dreams come true’ after his 90th minute goal versus Tunisia. The Chelsea striker must have been ecstatic to see his name in the starting 11 to face England, and got just a little carried away during the goal celebrations.
A jubilant Michy tried to boot the ball as hard as humanly possible into Jordan Pickford’s net, but after a slight misjudgment clattered it off the post and took the rebound straight to the forehead.
I know Batman was never that prolific at Chelsea, but I don’t remember him ever physically endangering himself!
The second just before I knew I f*cked up #InternetUndefeated 😂 pic.twitter.com/wAf5Wt6QvK
— Michy Batshuayi (@mbatshuayi) June 28, 2018
2. Mohammadi’s roly-poly – Iran vs. Spain
Iran battled hard all tournament and were still in with a chance of a vital point against Spain in the dying moments. With millions of eyes watching around the world and time of the essence, Milad Mohammadi attempted to launch one final attack.
What happened next went a little something like this: kiss to the ball, point to the sky, look to the heavens, head-butt the ball, handstand . . . bottle it, get told off by the referee, throw it short to a defender.
Mohammadi has in fact had success with the summersault throw in the past, and would have gone down in World Cup history had he pulled it off. But the winger still managed to set social media abuzz and will be remembered for quite some time for his failed attempt none-the-less.
My absolute highlight of the World Cup so far is the failed front flip throw in by Iran in the last minute of #irn v #esp #IRNSPA pic.twitter.com/MeH9Wm1ESt
— Adam Neilsøn (@adamjneilson) June 20, 2018
1. Maradona madness – Argentina vs. Nigeria
Diego Maradona was arguably the most entertaining footballer to ever grace the field, and he can certainly put on quite a show from the stands too!
FIFA obviously didn’t know how seriously he would take his role when they agreed to pay him £10,000 a game as part of a legends project to bring more spotlight to the tournament.
Maradona acted a bold child after too much soda who then passed out for a quick mid-match nap. But the ’86 World Cup winner roused just in time for Marcos Rojo’s 86th minute strike, upsetting quite a number of people with his celebrations.
He had such a good time watching his nation clinch qualification that he had to be assessed by paramedics post match, but later posed to show he was OK before jetting off to Moscow. Whether he will survive the last 16 tie is another matter.
Next: England vs. Belgium player ratings
Which moments stood out to you so far in this World Cup?