When my team America is not playing in the World Cup, I like to cheer for Argentina (what can I say, I love Messi).
For some reason, though, as the game between England and Argentina unfolded today (with most of the eyeballs on Earth watching), I found myself slowly cheering for England.
Sports is a weird thing. When your team—or should I say, your country– is playing, you’re a fanatic. But if it’s other countries, you become more of a fan of the sport and revel in the drama.
This game was dripping with drama. England hasn’t won the World Cup since 1966, and here they were, a few minutes away from playing for the final on Sunday against Spain.
While England was suffering through its 60-year drought, Argentina has had a remarkable run, winning the Cup in 1978, 1986 and 2022.
So, when England took a 1-0 lead early in the second half, I felt a sense of cosmic justice. Sixty years is a long time. Argentina won it the last time. Maybe it was England’s turn.
Even though my love for Messi never dissipated, I quietly rooted for England.
When Argentina made a remarkable comeback with two goals to win it, I had mixed emotions—sad for England, but in awe at the extraordinary quality of the game.
It’s only when I drilled down at the statistics that I found some justice at the final score.
Unlike sports like basketball or baseball, soccer (or football, as they say around the world) is not known for statistics. You have shots on goal and you have goals. The rest is commentary.
It turns out there are some valuable stats in this sport as well, and in today’s epic game, Argentina had the clear advantage.
It had a 64% to 36% advantage in time of possession; a 1.59 to .53 advantage in “expected goals”; a 5 to 2 advantage in shots on goal; a 3 to 1 advantage in big chances created; a 52 to 50 advantage in duels won; and a significant 537 to 273 advantage in accurate passes.
Beyond the numbers, Argentina’s dominance, especially in the second half, passed the eye test, with a persistent, relentless attack in England territory. England defended valiantly, but it wasn’t enough.
Of course, playing valiantly and knowing the best team won are poor consolation for the millions of England fans now nursing their patriotic sorrow.
But I can only imagine how much greater their sorrow would have been had England dominated the game and still lost. And remember, on Saturday England will play France for third place. The British versus the French—need I say more?
And one more thing: Messi, who’s 39, is not likely to play in 2030.
None of this makes up for today’s loss. But add it all up and I would say England need not cry for thee Argentina.
