Turns out the missed penalty was rather meaningful, as the final result only gives Portugal second place in the group, forcing them to face Uruguay while Spain gets Russia. Is that good or bad for them? Really hard to say, as Uruguay's only opponents so far were two very weak teams and a weakened Russia. We might be in for a borefest though. Neither team is very convincing offensively, nor particularly eager to play an attacking game. Ronaldo's explosive start has fizzled out completely. I wouldn't dare make any bets.
Russia has hit a huge speed bump with all their accumulated momentum. 0-3 to Uruguay looks like an ominous sign and many say the Russian bubble is now officially burst, but I wouldn't go that far myself. The Russians were playing without a number of key players and their substitutes were clearly far below par, Smolnikov getting an early red that pretty much decided the game. Both goals conceded in the first half were rather unlucky too. Russia's true strength still can't be determined with any degree of certainty. Spain was having massive problems in their group, leaking goals left and right and only beating Iran thanks to a total fluke. Again, I wouldn't bet on either team, but over 2.5 seems likely.
As for the losing sides, I'm sad to see Morocco and Iran knocked out. Both were a pleasure to watch, although for different reasons. That said, good riddance to Saudi Arabia and Egypt. There's a very nice
personal story involved, but otherwise they were easily among the worst teams of the tournament.
For today's games, I find myself caring very little about Group C. Meanwhile in Group D, Iceland will be facing a massively weakened Croatia (up to six first team players will be resting with the playoffs in mind). In case of a victory they can still claim second place by virtue of goal difference, preferably with Argentina overcoming Nigeria by a single goal. But can Argentina win at all? There are persistent rumors that Sampaoli is no longer the one in charge: the players have decided to oust him and take things in their own hands, with Messi and Mascherano selecting the squad and tactics. Hardly a recipe for victory. One possible scenario is reckless offense punished by a Nigerian counterattack, whereupon the Argentinians return to their dejected state. (now watch everyone defy my expectations)
