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‘From heaven to hell and back’: Spain skipper Rodri revels in FIFA World Cup 2026 triumph
New Jersey [US], July 20 (ANI): Spain captain Rodri said his journey from the heights of world football to the despair of a serious knee injury and back to the summit again should serve as an inspiration to young players after La Roja defeated Argentina 1-0 after extra time to win the FIFA World Cup 2026 title on Sunday (local time).
Named Player of the Tournament after another commanding campaign, the 30-year-old reflected on his remarkable comeback less than two years after rupturing his knee ligaments.
“It feels like the perfect script. I certainly didn’t expect this," Rodri said after receiving FIFA’s Golden Ball award, as quoted by Reuters. milkshakeslot.lat
“I’d love for the younger generations to see that a player who touches the heavens, then descends into hell, can come back. It’s a lesson in overcoming adversity," he added.
Rodri completed one of football’s rarest collections of honours with the victory, becoming only the fourth player after Franz Beckenbauer, Gerd Muller and Zinedine Zidane to win the FIFA World Cup, UEFA European Championship, UEFA Champions League and the Ballon d’Or.
The Manchester City midfielder arrived at the tournament still searching for the dominant form that earned him the 2024 Ballon d’Or after helping Spain win Euro 2024 and leading City through a record 74-match unbeaten run. His performances steadily improved throughout the World Cup, culminating in another influential display in the final.
Despite the individual recognition, Rodri credited Spain’s collective spirit for their success against a resilient Argentina side.
“That’s the secret of the national team," he said, according to Reuters. “We’re always going to go for you. In the end, God rewards you. We’ve been brave."
“We’re on cloud nine. This squad is sensational. We’re two-time World Cup champions. It was the toughest tournament in World Cup history. We beat a great Argentina side, featuring (Lionel) Messi, the best player in history," he further added.
Spain finally broke the deadlock in the 106th minute when Ferran Torres latched onto Nico Williams’ knockdown and blasted the ball into the roof of the net, sealing a 1-0 victory and the country’s second World Cup title after its maiden triumph in 2010.
The European champions dominated much of the contest but were repeatedly denied by Argentina goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez, who produced several outstanding saves to keep the holders in the match.
Argentina’s hopes suffered a major blow in second-half stoppage time when Enzo Fernandez was sent off after receiving a second yellow card for a late challenge on Pau Cubarsi. Spain thought they had gone ahead early in extra time through Nico Williams, only for the goal to be ruled out before Torres eventually found the breakthrough.
Rodri believed Spain deserved their victory despite Argentina’s stubborn resistance.
“Argentina. World champions," he said. “They haven’t created much, but they’re hard to break down. Spain are simply very good, and in the end, the result was fair."
The victory also extended Spain’s unbeaten international run to a European-record 38 matches, capping another golden chapter under coach Luis de la Fuente. (ANI)
(This content is sourced from a syndicated feed and is published as received. The Tribune assumes no responsibility or liability for its accuracy, completeness, or content.)
Mitchell Santner, Kiwis hold nerve to beat West Indies by 1 wicket, take unassailable lead in series
All’s well that ends well. New Zealand pouched a narrow 1-wicket win against hosts West Indies to clinch the series 3-1 in Barbados, with one match to spare. Chasing only 188, WI bowlers almost managed to defend the puny total, but Mitchell Santner‘s 34 not out scarped them through.
New Zealand bounce back from Bangladesh setback
That is yet another series win for the 2nd best ranked team in the world (111) , who have narrowed down the gap between first-placed Indians to just five points now (116); prior to the start of the series it was eight point. That just goes on to show, how consistent Santner’s team has been in the last couple of years.
Starting from Sri Lanka’s tour of New Zealand — the Kiwis won 2-1, followed by Pakistan tri-series, which they won as well. Post that they entered the final of the Champions Trophy, and only lost to India. Then they beat Pakistan 3-0, followed by England 3-0 as well. West Indies were beaten 3-0 too, before they beat India in India 2-1.
The only exception being their last series against Bangladesh — that they lost 1-2. But the side is back on track again, with bowlers picking wickets in clusters, and batters delivering too. So far, the stand out performer for them has been left-arm spinner Jayden Lennox who has picked up 11 wickets in 4 matches, and Michael Bracewell, who has 7 wickets in as many encounters, showing their vast reserves of spin pool.
West Indies vs New Zealand 4th ODI, as it happened
After being asked to bat first, West Indies batters never looked comfortable at the wicket. At one stage they were reduced to 81/6 in 21 overs. Thanks to Amir Jangoo’s 51 and Gudakesh Motie’s 41, that the hosts managed to reach 188. Santner was excellent again with the ball, returning with figures of 2/36 in 10 overs.
Come the chase, it wasn’t an easy outing for the Black Caps as well. They also were 77/4 at one stage, reminding one and all, that it was a tough wicket to bat on. But Mark Chapman played brilliantly for his 80. Michael Bracewell and Santner too strung a partnership, but once the stand was broken, there was a mini-collapse in the innings. But Santner finished the game with Lennox, nonetheless, who stayed unbeaten on 0 after playing 10 balls.
The post Mitchell Santner, Kiwis hold nerve to beat West Indies by 1 wicket, take unassailable lead in series appeared first on Inside Sport India.
Lionel Messi હાર બાદ થયો ભાવુક, મેદાન પર રોકી ના શક્યો આસું, જુઓ-Video
સ્પેને ફિફા વર્લ્ડ કપ 2026ની ફાઇનલ મેચમાં આર્જેન્ટિનાને હરાવ્યું. આ હાર સાથે, આર્જેન્ટિનાનું સતત બીજી વખત વર્લ્ડ કપ જીતવાનું સ્વપ્ન ચકનાચૂર થઈ ગયું.ન્યુ જર્સીના મેટલાઈફ સ્ટેડિયમ ખાતે આર્જેન્ટિના અને સ્પેન વચ્ચે ખૂબ જ રોમાંચક મેચ રમાઈ. આ મેચમાં નિર્ધારિત સમય સુધી કોઈ ગોલ થયો ન હતો, ત્યારબાદ મેચ વધારાના સમયમાં ગઈ. સ્પેને વધારાના સમયમાં 1-0 થી મેચ જીતી અને બીજી વખત ફિફા વર્લ્ડ કપ ટ્રોફી જીતી.
મેચ પછી મેસ્સી રડી પડ્યો
મેચ પછી મેદાન પર ખૂબ જ ભાવનાત્મક ક્ષણ હતી, જ્યારે આર્જેન્ટિનાના કેપ્ટન લિયોનેલ મેસ્સી રડી પડ્યા અને પોતાના આંસુ રોકી શક્યા નહીં. અંતિમ સીટી વાગતાની સાથે જ મેસ્સી ઘૂંટણિયે પડી ગયો અને ખૂબ જ ભાવુક દેખાયો. એવોર્ડ સમારંભ પછી તે ખૂબ રડતો પણ જોવા મળ્યો. સ્ટેડિયમમાં હજારો લોકોએ "મેસ્સી, મેસ્સી" ના નારા લગાવ્યા, તેમના મનપસંદ ખેલાડીનો જયજયકાર કર્યો અને તેમનું સન્માન કર્યું. ઘણા ચાહકો પોસ્ટરો અને પ્લેકાર્ડ પકડીને મેસ્સીને વિદાય આપતા જોવા મળ્યા.
https://x.com/messianilari/status/2078974923758879009?s=20
લિયોનેલ મેસ્સીએ એક મોટો રેકોર્ડ બનાવ્યો
જોકે આર્જેન્ટિનાની ટીમ પોતાની ટ્રોફીનો બચાવ કરવામાં નિષ્ફળ રહી, લિયોનેલ મેસ્સીએ બીજો એક મહત્વપૂર્ણ રેકોર્ડ બનાવ્યો. તે ફિફા વર્લ્ડ કપના ઇતિહાસમાં ત્રણ ફાઇનલ રમનાર માત્ર બીજો ખેલાડી બન્યો. 39 વર્ષની ઉંમરે, તે વર્લ્ડ કપ ફાઇનલમાં રમનાર સૌથી મોટી ઉંમરનો આઉટફિલ્ડ ખેલાડી પણ બન્યો.
આર્જેન્ટિનાના ખેલાડી એન્ઝો ફર્નાન્ડીઝને લાલ કાર્ડ મળ્યું
મેચની નિર્ધારિત 90 મિનિટ પૂરી થવાની તૈયારીમાં હતી ત્યારે આર્જેન્ટિનાને મોટો ઝટકો લાગ્યો. તેમના મિડફિલ્ડર, એન્ઝો ફર્નાન્ડીઝને બીજું પીળું કાર્ડ મળ્યા બાદ લાલ કાર્ડ બતાવવામાં આવ્યું. ફર્નાન્ડીઝના આઉટ થવાથી આર્જેન્ટિનાને નબળી પડી ગઈ, જેના કારણે તેમને બાકીની મેચ સ્ટાન્ડર્ડ 11 ને બદલે માત્ર 10 ખેલાડીઓ સાથે રમવાની ફરજ પડી. સ્પેને આર્જેન્ટિનાના એક ખેલાડીની અછતનો પૂરો ફાયદો ઉઠાવ્યો અને તેમના પર સતત હુમલો કર્યો. અંતે, સ્પેનના ફેરન ટોરેસે શાનદાર ગોલ કરીને તેની ટીમ માટે મેચ સીલ કરી.
આ પણ વાંચો - FIFA World Cupમાં સ્પેનની ઐતિહાસિક જીત વચ્ચે ડોનાલ્ડ ટ્રમ્પની રમૂજીનો વીડિયો વાયરલ