Sampaoli facing Argentina sack after World Cup shambles: press

Did Argentina’s estranged coach Jorge Sampaoli ask captain Lionel Messi whether to bring on Sergio Aguero during the must-win match against Nigeria?

Argentine news outlet TYC Sports filmed Sampaoli speaking with Messi prior to Aguero's substitution, with the Barcelona superstar nodding his head in response to a question, believed to be "Lo pongo el Kun?" In English, that loosely translates to "Shall I put on Kun?"

The alleged incident, compounded by pre-match talk of a mutiny in the Argentina camp, occurred after Messi walked straight past his manager when approaching the bench to talk to other members of his coaching staff while the score was 1-1.

Sampaoli had made a flurry of changes during the match against Croatia, throwing in Paulo Dybala and Christian Pavon to get back into the game. However, his three-at-the-back formation limited Argentina’s attacking potential and Croatia controlled the game in midfield.

Sampaoli responded with five changes and a third formation in as many games – a selection that hinted at player power or darts being thrown at a team-sheet in the dressing room as opposed to punches. Ever Banega was the most notable change in the lineup as his inclusion meant that Messi saw a lot more of the ball. Argentina’s opening goal also came after Banega’s defence splitting pass found Messi, who then showed clinical precision and control to find the net.

During the Nigeria match, Sampaoli introduced Maximiliano Meza and Pavon but nothing good came off it. With time running out, Aguero was introduced in the end as Argentina frantically searched for a goal.

Six minutes later, Marcos Rojo then scored a dramatic late winner that rescued his country from a humiliating group-stage exit.

Javier Mascherano had admitted that senior players went to to AFA officials on Friday night to discuss issues about tactics after Sampaoli’s switch to a three-man defence against Croatia backfired spectacularly. Whether Sampaoli is handing over coaching duties to Messi or not, Argentina still have a lot to consider if they want to replicate their first half performance against Nigeria and ensure they do not descend into chaos the way they did in the second half against the Super Eagles.

France have shut out all the euphoria back home over their run to the World Cup final in order to play a perfect match against Croatia on Sunday, France captain Hugo Lloris said.

The goalkeeper said the team were not being swept up by the wave of celebrations back home and were keeping their focus firmly on their shot of earning a second World Cup title after 1998 when they take on the Croatians in Moscow's Luzhniki Stadium.

"To be honest we are in our little bubble and we don't know what is happening in France," Lloris told reporters on Saturday.

"We are far from thinking that we have reached our goal. We will face a high-quality opponent and they deserve as much credit as we do.

"They have displayed their physical and mental strengths and tomorrow we will need a great French team to win."

France have never needed to go beyond 90 minutes in their run to the final after beating Argentina in the round of 16, Uruguay in the last eight and Belgium in the semi-finals.

But Croatia had to battle from a goal down in all three of their knockout matches to beat Denmark, Russia and England.

They played extra time in all of them and needed penalties against the Danes and hosts Russia.

"Croatia have shown their mental strength which is quite incredible. They have managed to qualify after extra time three times in a row. There is something special in this team," Lloris warned.

"They also have an incredible collective strength. We have a lot of respect for them. We need to perform at a high level and deliver a perfect match to win," said the keeper.

France are in their third World Cup final after winning in 1998 and losing to Italy in 2006. They also reached the Euro final on home soil two years ago only to lose to Portugal.

Lloris said that defeat was not on their minds any longer, with many current players not part of the 2016 team.

"I think that our team is quite calm. I do not really know if we realise how far we have come but it is better that way," Lloris said. "We have this inner strength from the beginning of the tournament with which we can overcome any challenge."

"Tomorrow will be the most important match of our career. It will be a special match because it is a World Cup final and we have to stay in our bubble to focus on the ultimate goal."

France winning the World Cup trophy in Russia, Chinese kitchen and bathroom appliance maker Vatti Corp is now in the spotlight -- it is time for the company to deliver on a bold promise. 

Vatti, as a sponsor for the French national soccer team, said a month ago that if France won the title at the 2018 FIFA World Cup, it would refund customers who made purchases of designated products between June 1 and July 3, based on invoice value.

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On Monday, the Guangdong-based company said it had started the promised refund process, after the marketing campaign helped it net total sales of about 1 billion yuan ($150 million) during the promotional period, a year-on-year increase of over 20 per cent.

The sales of designated products, such as dishwashers and water heaters, which were listed in the refund initiative, hit around 79 million yuan, with online sales accounting for 29 million yuan and offline sales standing at 50 million yuan.

Vatti said the company will afford the refund of sales through its own online store, and its distributors and retail partners will be responsible for refunding offline sales and third-party online sales.

Also, total costs of the refund only include manufacturing and promotional cost, which is less than the combined sales price of 79 million yuan, thus exerting little impact on the company's bottom line, the company added.

"We chose to launch such a campaign to support the French team because the temperament of the French team is very compatible with our passionate, smart and fashionable brand image," Vatti said in an interview with China Daily.

The shares of Vatti surged as much as 9 per cent by midday on Monday before the rise narrowed to about 4 perc ent at closing, when share prices stood at 15.18 yuan.

Ma Bing, a 33-year-old bank employee in Beijing, bought a dishwasher in June after seeing Vatti's advertising post on an elevator.

"Well, my wife has been asking for a dishwasher for a long time. I am also a big fan of the French team. The dishwasher saved me from my wife's nagging when I stayed up at night for football matches. It was a good deal," Ma said, adding he has registered the refund information at a Vatti online store.

Vatti is one of a number of Chinese companies that are cashing in on the World Cup. Their combined spending on advertisements for this year's tournament hit $835 million, $400 million more than the next biggest spender, the United States, and easily exceeding that of host country Russia, according to market-research company Zenith.

Liu Buchen, an independent expert in the home appliances industry, said it is good for Chinese companies to experiment with creative marketing campaigns, but more effort is needed to ensure that enterprises do deliver their promises and consumers' rights are protected.

Copyright: China Daily/ Asia News Network

France and Croatia go into Sunday's World Cup final in Moscow with the same starting line-ups as in their semi-final wins over Belgium and England respectively.

Kylian Mbappe and Antoine Griezmann support Olivier Giroud in attack in France's 4-2-3-1 formation, while Ivan Perisic and Ivan Strinic, who had been pre-match injury doubts, have been passed fit for Croatia.

Perisic was the star of Croatia's 2-1 extra-time victory over England at the same Luzhniki Stadium on Wednesday, scoring his country's equaliser and then setting up the winner for Mario Mandzukic.

Croatia are in their first ever final, while France are aiming to win the trophy for the second time, after beating Brazil 3-0 in the final as hosts in 1998.

France beat Belgium 1-0 in the semi-final with a Samuel Umtiti goal in the second half.

Starting line-ups for the World Cup final between France and Croatia at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow on Sunday (1500 GMT kick-off):

France (4-3-3)

Hugo Lloris (capt); Benjamin Pavard, Raphael Varane, Samuel Umtiti, Lucas Hernandez; Paul Pogba, N'Golo Kante; Kylian Mbappe, Antoine Griezmann, Blaise Matuidi; Olivier Giroud

Coach: Didier Deschamps (FRA)

Croatia (4-3-3)

Danijel Subasic; Sime Vrsaljko, Dejan Lovren, Domagoj Vida, Ivan Strinic; Luka Modric (capt), Marcelo Brozovic, Ivan Rakitic; Ante Rebic, Mario Mandzukic, Ivan Perisic

Coach: Zlatko Dalic (CRO)

Referee: Nestor Pitana (ARG)

Argentina coach Jorge Sampaoli had words of praise for all his players but especially for his captain and star man Lionel Messi after their victory against Nigeria which ensured that the Albiceleste avoided an embarrassing Group Stage exit.

The coach was relieved after Argentina suffered so much and commented that the match against Croatia did not go according to plan as the team could not bring Messi into the game. The Argentine playmaker has the tendency to ease his way into the game with lots of touches on the ball and his performance was jittery when he did not see much of the ball against Croatia. With Messi seeing less action, chances were not created.

"A coach who has to train Leo knows everybody surrounding him needs to make him feel secure, and if we are able to create passes to Leo we can create chances. Otherwise we suffer.

"We have the best player in the world and the other players need to benefit from that. That's why I said the match against Croatia was our problem, not his problem."

Sampaoli confessed that Messi’s gesture of coming to hug him made him proud. "When Leo came and hugged me it made me very proud and happy, because he knows I am passionate every single day," Sampaoli said.

"I have had the opportunity to travel with him and share moments with him. He knows me well, and knows we have this dream to come to Russia and do something important for Argentina.

Sampaoli had tried to ensure that Messi gets to have more say in the match. Introduction of a midfielder like Banega helped Argentina build play through midfield with a lot more fluency than in previous matches.

"His position in the team - playing three midfielders and Leo on the right trying to create more passes on the inside to get to the goal on the outside.

He praised Ever Banega, who was instrumental in the first half and then battled through in the second.

"I was pleased with Ever [Banega], Enzo [Perez], Javi [Mascherano] and Leo, they have stopped our opponents creating any transitions.

"We had planned and I think the first half went well. We were better than Nigeria," Sampaoli added. "We were also able to move forward and have many touches in the midfield.

"After the penalty we got nervous and were worried about not going through, but we were very happy at the end.