Day six of this sprawling World Cup in North America has thrown up the kind of off pitch drama that makes this tournament irresistibly messy. The head...
Day six of this sprawling World Cup in North America has thrown up the kind of off pitch drama that makes this tournament irresistibly messy. The headline act Iran's opening day squad is suddenly a man down. Their star forward, having watched his visa expire moments after the final whistle against England, now finds himself in a bureaucratic purgatory that threatens to derail their entire group stage. For a side that relies so heavily on transitional bursts and set piece discipline, losing a key outlet before a must win clash with Wales is a tactical body blow. How Team Melli adjust their low block without that pace on the break is suddenly the most pressing question in Group B.Elsewhere, Tunisia have finally snapped. After weeks of dithering, they have appointed Herve Renard. The man who took Saudi Arabia to that infamous upset over Argentina in Qatar now inherits a Carthage Eagles side that has bottled its knockout stage ambitions for two consecutive tournaments. Renard is a specialist in tournament football, a master of the psychological arts and the deep defensive structure. The old guard will love him. The question is whether his pragmatic, almost archaic approach can unlock the creative talent that has so often gone missing when it mattered most.And then there is the German chancellor, Friedrich Merz, who somehow thought it was a good idea to gift Donald Trump a national team shirt with the number 47 and Trump scrawled across the back. The American president, currently in Paris for the G7 summit, looked genuinely chuffed. It is a rare moment of cross Atlantic warmth that will no doubt be forgotten by the time the next tariff threat lands. Still, you have to admire the sheer audacity of trying to butter up a man who mostly only endorses his own branding.Meanwhile, in Lawrence, Kansas, a beautiful little football story is unfolding. Algeria, tipped by few to escape a group containing Argentina, have made their base camp at a DoubleTree. Not the Ritz. Not the Four Seasons. The humble DoubleTree in a college town 40 miles west of Kansas City. According to local artist Stan Herd, nobody is surprised. The residents have fallen hard for the Desert Warriors, turning out in droves to greet them. Vladimir Petkovic has praised the welcome, and you sense that this warmth could become a genuine twelfth man when they face the defending champions. In a tournament often dominated by commercial sterility, this is the kind of grassroots romance that reminds you why football still matters.
