World Cup Player Watch – 1st Phase Eyecatchers

That Ronaldo is quite good isn’t he? Gets fined millions by the Spanish government for tax offences and then sticks it to their football team in his own inimitable way. It would be too easy to go on about him though, especially when one goal was a penalty and another a goalkeeping mistake. You would then have to think about Diego Costa and Nacho Monreal too and maybe the contrast with Messi’s performance the next day.

So, let’s leave all that alone as we pick out some of the so-called lesser lights that caught the eye here at SPORTSvox from the first round of group games.

Trent Sainsbury ( Australia ) 

Facing Mbappe, Griezmann and Dembele on your World Cup debut probably wouldn’t be the first choice of many defenders but Trent Sainsbury put in a big shift for Australia against France. There were times when the Aussies fancied a win might be for the taking, albeit against a French side that wasn’t at full throttle for whatever reason. No small part of this was due to the comfort afforded by Sainsbury at centre-back and his defensive partners.

Officially a player for Jiangsu Suning F.C. in China he finished last season on loan at Grasshoppers and according to Marca he has already received 26 offers from other clubs – you could say Sainsbury’s put himself in the shop window.

Birkir Bjarnason ( Iceland )

The Aston Villa midfielder first came to prominence during Euro 2016 where he was a thorn in England’s side. He played every minute of every game for his country, including the draw against Portugal let’s not forget. He initially struggled when he moved to England in the 2017 January window but is now a firm fan favourite. Scoring a world class goal against Wolves certainly helped with that.

He prefers a more central role but is usually deployed on the left wing where he troubled the Argentinians and will have a big part to play should Iceland repeat the heroics of 2 years ago.

Valon Behrami ( Switzerland )

Former Hammer and Watford man Behrami was rightly named Man Of The Match after his performance against Brazil. From the first minute he was on Neymar’s case, driving the current PSG man to distraction, breaking up attacks and getting a decent but blunt Swiss side going again.

With a near 93% passing accuracy he was the best outfield player from either side’s starting eleven. The Udinese midfielder could be pivotal to Switzerland’s continued run in the competition.

Rubens Loftus-Cheek ( England )

Why didn’t he come on earlier? Will he start the next game? Well we don’t know but what we are certain of is that from the second he ran on the pitch Ruben was on fire. Interceptions, runs, passes, he had the lot and Dele Alli must be concerned about his place for the next match.

SPORTSvox England Player Ratings v Tunisia

The Tunisia game capped a cracking season for Loftus-Cheek at a revived Crystal Palace and made a mockery of Chelsea’s transfer policy. A notable mention must also go to Marcus Rashford who should have scored from a Loftus-Cheek pass but maybe still did enough to usurp Sterling next time.

MEXICO – The Whole Squad

You could talk about Lozano’s goal, or the unusually good hold-up play of Chicharito but in reality it would be unfair to single anyone out from the Mexican side that for some, scored the shock of the tournament so far. The only criticism that you can give is the fact that they didn’t subject Germany to a proper drubbing in the end.

It’s a fact that 85% of teams that win their first game qualify, with South Korea to come, Mexico should do just that and maybe even top the group too. Unfortunately for them, after Brazil’s first game stumble, that could mean a 2^nd round tie against the South Americans.