I'm no Pele'

Croatia coach Zlatko Dalic stated outright what he felt regarding the controversial penalty call following his side’s 4-2 defeat to France in Sunday’s World Cup final, saying : “You don't give a penalty like that in a World Cup final.”

A debatable penalty awarded with the use of FIFA's new video replay system proved a turning point in the World Cup final on Sunday as debate focused on erronous referee calls.

France and Croatia were level at 1-1 in an evenly contested match when Argentine referee Nestor Pitana was alerted to a possible handball ten minutes from half time and, after checking the off-field screen, he decided Croatia's Ivan Perisic had handled. While there is no doubt that the ball did hit the Croatian’s hand, the focus will remain on whether the handling of the ball was intentional.

Antoine Griezmann converted the penalty and France went on to win 4-2. Even after the use of the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) system, it remained a highly contentious call. Many former players called the awarding of the penalty a dubious decision with former England and Liverpool defender perhaps rightly suggesting that ‘It’s the referee’s mistake, not VAR! VAR is just the replay of an incident.’

The decisions proved to be a turning point in the match as France’s influence grew following their second goal. Dalic said he thought such a decision had no place in a game of such magnitude.

“We played well but the penalty knocked the wind out of us and after that it was very difficult," Dalic said after congratulating France on their victory. "I just want to say one sentence about that penalty: You don't give a penalty like that in a World Cup final.”

The Croatia coach conceded that his team had let in two ‘soft goals’ but lamented the fact that things did not go their way when they were in a good position to fight for the match.

“We wanted to win the World Cup so much, but that's football," he said. "The French did not surprise us; we let in two soft goals coupled with an own goal and a penalty.

“What we had in terms of luck in this tournament, we lacked today. When you concede four goals, you cannot expect to win the game.”

Neverthless, Dalic went on to congratulate France and praised his team’s effort after they gave a vastly talented French side a run for their money.

“I congratulate France on their title. We played well in the first 20 minutes, we controlled the game. Then there was an own goal from a set play. We came back to life, dominated and then the penalty was given,” Dalic said.

“I have to congratulate my players, it was maybe the best game we played in this tournament; we controlled the match but we conceded. Against such a strong side as France you must not make mistakes. We are a bit sad, but we have to be proud as well for what we’ve done.”

Didier Deschamps proclaimed France’s second World Cup triumph was “just as beautiful” as their first after leading them to glory again 20 years on, but Croatia defender Dejan Lovren said that Deschamps' team "did not play football."

"I'm disappointed because we lost the game, we played much, much better football than them, but on the other hand I'm proud of this team and what we have achieved," Lovren said.

"We played beautiful football again. France were one of the favourites to win the World Cup and they did it. I think we were better. They did it another way. They didn't play football, they waited for their chances and they scored. They had their own tactic and you need to respect that. They played the tournament like that, every game, but when you look at all the countries behind us, we're second.” he added.

"There's nothing to talk about now. It's difficult to describe. Maybe after a week or two, a couple of months... right now, it's difficult. Some moments I feel sad, some moments I'm happy. Overall, I'm proud."

Ivan Perisic conceded the first-half penalty after referee Nestor Pitana penalised him for handball following a VAR review.

"I was sure he would not give the pen," said the Liverpool centre-back. "From my point of view, he [Perisic] could not react.

"It was a critical moment, we came back at 1-1, and then this penalty and then 3-1, 4-1, but even then we didn't stop playing football, we still believed, we gave everything, and this is why people are proud now in Croatia."

Didier Deschamps' side had claimed a 1-0 over Belgium in the semifinals with a defensive masterclass which left Belgium star Eden Hazard and Thibaut Courtois deeply unimpressed with what he felt were overly cagey tactics by France in the semi-final, and now Lovren also felt the frustration of coming up against Deschamps's style. Not always the most entertaining, however, in the end, French squad just had too much talent at its disposal to get the job done.

In an extraordinary game, Portugal were pushed right up till the end by Iran as VAR came into play at the death. There was a penalty incident review after a handball by Cedric Soares and Iran captain Karim Ansarifard stepped up to equalize for Iran in injury time. Despite the late drama, Portugal held on to a 1-1 draw to ensure second place in Group B and qualified for the Round Of 16 where they will play Uruguay. 

In the other Group B game, Spain were drawing Morocco 2-2 and late in the game, Iran forward Mehdi Taremi had the chance to seal a memorable win when a deflected shot fell his way. He however only managed to find the side netting and the match ended in a 1-1 draw.

Portugal forward Ricardo Quaresma had scored a stunning goal right at the end of the first half to give the European champions the lead in the crucial game.  Cristiano Ronaldo failed to extend Portugal’s lead when he won a penalty in the 53rd minute but Iran goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand dived to his left to save his effort from the spot.

Refree Caceres consulted with VAR to award Portugal a penalty for Morteza Pouraliganji's foul on Ronaldo amid vociferous protests from the Iranians and their numerous supporters at the Mordovia Arena. The Real Madrid forward's missed penalty also meant he lost the chance to tie England's Harry Kane at the top of the scorers' list on five goals.

"We have achieved our goal and now we have to recover over the next few days to think about the next match," goal-scorer Quaresma was quoted as saying by Reuters. "Now we have to continue with this mindset of winning and wait for the next match."

Iran were well organised at the back and defended stoically but did not have enough men going forward. Carlos Queiroz's men relied mostly on counter attacks and while forward Sardar Azmoun showed plenty of glimpses of his talent, it was not enough to deny Portugal.

"It's such a big disappointment for us," Iran midfielder Alireza Jahanbakhsh said. "We had a big chance at the end of the game, we could have scored and won it. As everyone has seen, we did our best to win this game but we missed some chances."

Portugal had faced a lot of criticism for their lacklustre display and inability to hold possession in their 1-0 win against Morocco last Wednesday but they appeared determined to set that right against the Asian powerhouse.

They dominated possession, playing almost three times the number of passes than their Asian opponents, and were more intent on creating chances through the midfield rather than just directing long balls towards Ronaldo.

Spain will meet hosts Russia at Moscow's Luzhniki Stadium on Sunday. 

(Source: Reuters)

With the 2018 World Cup in Russia starting in a month, we take a look at how the biggest names -- who between them have won 13 of the last 20 tournaments -- are shaping up:

- Germany -

Germany's build-up has been marred by uncertainty as to the fitness of first-choice goalkeeper Manuel Neuer. The 32-year-old Bayern Munich man has been on the sidelines since suffering a fractured foot in September.

"I do not think it's imaginable that I go into such a tournament without match practice," Neuer admitted last week. His natural replacement is the excellent Marc-Andre ter Stegen of Barcelona.

Low has a core of the team that won the 2014 title, and can also call on the likes of Joshua Kimmich, Leon Goretzka and Timo Werner. Marco Reus will hope to be fit this time too.

After winning all their qualifiers, Germany have failed to win recent friendlies against England, France, Spain and Brazil. Nevertheless, they are the world's top-ranked side and almost always deliver at the World Cup.

- Brazil -

In 2014, Brazil's hopes rested on the shoulders of Neymar, and the back injury he suffered in the quarter-final win over Colombia sparked the meltdown which led to the 7-1 humiliation against Germany in the semis.

Fast forward four years and the nation is again sweating on his fitness. The world's most expensive player is recovering from a foot injury suffered playing for Paris Saint-Germain in February.

The absence of his PSG colleague Dani Alves with a knee injury is a huge blow too, but Brazil still look far better now under Tite than they did in 2014.

They comfortably topped South American qualifying and there is greater strength in depth. Add to that a kind-looking draw, and Brazil have a genuine chance of a sixth title.

- Spain -

After poor showings in their last two major tournaments under Vicente del Bosque, Spain are on the up again under his successor Julen Lopetegui.

The former goalkeeper has yet to lose a game in charge, with Spain dropping just two points in qualifying and recently destroying Argentina 6-1 in a friendly.

With Sergio Ramos and Gerard Pique still there in front of David de Gea, they have one of the best defences in the business. Further forward, it will be difficult to stop the likes of David Silva and Isco in full flow, and then there is Andres Iniesta.

"We are delighted that he keeps playing this well and are excited about him keeping it up at the World Cup," Lopetegui recently told FIFA.com.

- France -

France fell short on home soil at Euro 2016, losing in extra time to Portugal in the final. That increases the pressure on coach Didier Deschamps to deliver this time with a gifted squad.

Deschamps' team won their qualifying group despite some unconvincing performances, including a goalless home draw with Luxembourg, and the coach has his critics.

To silence them he needs to find the right system to bring the best out of his squad, especially in attack, where Antoine Griezmann is the main man but teen sensation Kylian Mbappe will be one to watch too. This is also surely the stage for Paul Pogba to really step up.

- Argentina -

After their defeat in the 2014 final, this is Lionel Messi's big chance to finally get his hands on the trophy.

However, Messi only rescued a shambolic qualifying campaign by scoring a vital hat-trick in Ecuador in the last game to take the team to Russia. There are huge doubts about the rest of Jorge Sampaoli's squad, and the coach recently said Messi "can carry the team on his shoulders."

But Sampaoli must also get the best out of the many undoubted talents at his disposal, including Sergio Aguero and Paulo Dybala, to help his side's chances of reaching the latter stages.

Argentina captain Lionel Messi did not find his peak form at the Russia World Cup as the Albiceleste crashed at the Round of 16 stage of the competition following a 4-3 defeat against France.

Kylian Mbappe was the star of the show, bagging two goals and also forcing a penalty from Marcos Rojo. France midfield and defence had kept a sharp eye on Messi all game and the Argentine still managed to provide two assists but did not find his goal-scoring form as Argentina crashed out.

French midfielder Paul Pogba however heaped praise on the genius playmaker despite media’s focus on his failure.

“It’s been more than 10 years since he became the best player in the world,” the Manchester United man said.

“He’s unique, he’s a unique size, what he does with the ball in unique, he’s a pure left-footer. He’ll always be an idol.

“I lost the 2015 Champions League final with Juventus against him and I’m happy to have beaten him today.”

Pogba also said that in the minds of fans, footballers and journalists, Messi will always be there despite there being the possibility that this was probably his last appearance at a World Cup. Pogba wanted Messi to continue to show his magic because players like him make people fall in love with football.

“Players like that, they make you love football,” he said. “I think he’s going to continue to be the best for many years and it’ll always be a pleasure to see him play.

“He must be sad. It could be his last World Cup, but he’ll remain in the heads of each football fan, each journalist, each person in the entire world forever,” he concluded.

Messi, who had retired once from international football before making a return has so far avoided talking to the press following the defeat against France.

Midfielders Lucas Biglia and Javier Mascherano have both announced their retirement following the defeat.