The best players, manager, referee, goal, and game of this World Cup

Well!

That was quite the semifinal yesterday, wasn’t it? Men against boys.

And now here are my awards for the World Cup as a whole.

First XI

Goalkeeper: Lloris (France)

Left defender: Vertonghen (Belgium)
Right defender: Trippier (England)
Central defender: Godín (Uruguay)
Central defender: Varane (France)

Defending midfielder: Kanté (France)
Attacking midfielder: Hazard (Belgium)
Volante mixto: Modrić (Croatia)
Volante mixto: Moses (Nigeria)

First striker: Lukaku (Belgium)
Second striker: Cavani (Uruguay)

Second XI

Goalkeeper: Subašić (Croatia)

Left defender: Marcelo (Brazil)
Right defender: Pavard (France)
Central defender: Granqvist (Sweden)
Central defender: Vida (Croatia)

Defending midfielder: Casemiro (Brazil)
Attacking midfielder: Coutinho (Brazil)
Volante mixto: De Bruyne (Belgium)
Volante mixto: Golovin (Russia)

First striker: Dyuba (Russia)
Second striker: Griezmann (France)

Third XI

Goalkeeper: Courtois (Belgium)

Left defender: Laxalt (Uruguay)
Right defender: Vrsaljko (Croatia)
Central defender: Kompany (Belgium)
Central defender: Mina (Colombia)

Defending midfielder: Witsel (Belgium)
Attacking midfielder: Iniesta (Spain)
Volante mixto: Pogba (France)
Volante mixto: Rakitić (Croatia)

First striker: Kane (England)
Second striker: Mbappé (France)

Nigeria’s Victor Moses didn’t advance past the tourney’s first round, but I consider him to have had a tremendous World Cup. He would’ve improved any of the top teams. (What if he, rather than the decent but unspectacular Nacer Chadli, had covered the Belgian right flank against the French?)

Two other players – Vincent Kompany and Diego Laxalt – came into the tourney rather late. I thought their performances lifted their respective teams.

Now, a few special awards.

Most valuable player: N’Golo Kanté (France)

Best-all-around player: Luka Modrić (Croatia)

Outstanding young player: Kylian Mbappé (France), with 19 years

Outstanding old player: Sergei Ignashevich (Russia), with 38 years

Best manager: Óscar Tabárez (Uruguay)

Best referee: Alireza Faghani (Iran)

Best goal: Uruguay’s first goal against Portugal (in the first knockout stage)

Best game: Belgium 3, Japan 2 (in the first knockout stage)

A Mancunian classic

The best game that I saw last year involved a league’s second-placed team trying to keep its archrival from walking away with the title.

The game that I watched today, while not as technically satisfying, was just as dramatic and probably will end up as the best game of this season. Moreover, it was played under similar circumstances: Manchester United was looking to keep its local rival, Manchester City, from clinching the English league title with six games to spare.

In the first half, the Citizens scored twice within five minutes. Their first goal was headed in by their captain, Vincent Kompany, who’d scored in previous title-clinching matches. It was a good omen for them; more importantly, they kept United from attempting a single shot.

But United played with greater urgency in the second half. Soon, Paul Pogba had scored two goals. United’s third goal followed not long after. Suddenly, the Citizens were reeling.

The Red Devils stayed calm and earned an unlikely victory. I was proud of my compatriot, Antonio Valencia, United’s captain. In the waning moments, he expertly ran down the clock as he very slowly took the free kicks and throw-ins near his sideline.

Afterward, the Red Devils stayed on the field to celebrate (though surely City will clinch the title in the coming weeks). The Citizens’ fans were in tears. All season, the Citizens have been described as perhaps the best English team ever to play. Now, they’re in danger of being remembered as just another domestic champion. And on Tuesday, they’ll probably be eliminated from the UEFA Champions League by Liverpool, whom they trail by three goals in their quarterfinal series.