More soccer talk

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I don’t know if the world powers are feeling an undue amount of pressure, but the air of invincibility surrounding the likes of Argentina, Brazil, Germany and other elite squads appears to gone. It seems as the rest of the world has rapidly closed the gap between second-tier teams and the top teams.

On paper, Argentina was the superior team to Iceland. Instead, it settled for a 1-1 draw. Same for Brazil, which struggled against Switzerland. France needed a late goal to beat Australia 2-1, as did England over Tunisia.

Most of the underdogs have not played scared or excessively defensive. It appears many lesser teams are using the old adage of “offense being the best defense.” Teams are attacking and forcing their more well-known counterparts to react and defend more than they probably expected to do early in the tournament.

There have been some definite clunkers — Morocco’s 1-0 win over Iran on an own-goal was a snoozer, as was Russia’s 5-0 dismantling of Saudi Arabia in the Cup opener. There have also been a number of the dreaded 1-0 results, ones that critics of the game continue to hold against it.

But there have also been a number of highlight-reel moments that keeps fans coming back for more.

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There is already an early contender for game of the tournament when Spain and Portugal treated fans to a goal-scoring bonanza by finishing with an pleasingly exhausting 3-3 tie.

The game was a coming-out party of sorts for Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo who, despite being one of the best players in the world for the better part of a decade, has struggled in previous World Cup appearances. His three goals in the opener equaled his goal total in his three previous Cup appearances, combined.

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If Spain-Portugal was the most entertaining game, Mexico’s win over Germany most likely will be the upset of the tournament.

The Germans, the defending World Cup champs, were ranked No. 1 in the world going into Russia, but struggled in their last few warmup matches. Mexico is 20th in the world and while always a solid side, have never made it past the quarterfinals, the last being in 1986.

Sunday, however, Mexico took it right to Germany, going on the attack every chance it got. It was clear Mexico’s front had more speed than Germany’s back line, but the Germans, despite seeing several dangerous forays by Mexico, kept pushing their defense up into the attack, while all but neglecting defense.

And it cost them. Mexico was behind the German back line all game long and if not for some off touches, Mexico could have easily won that game 3 or 4 nothing.

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The weight of the soccer world continues to hang on the shoulders of Argentine star Lionel Messi, who went scoreless during a 1-1 tie with Iceland in the opener for both teams. A game that saw him go 0 for 11 on shots, including a saved penalty kick that would have given Argentina a late lead.

Messi has won nearly every trophy imaginable at the club level and has proven to be one of the best of his generation. But for the critics, he needs to lead Argentina to a world title to cement his status as one of the greatest of all time.

Nathan Mollat can be reached by email: nathan@smdailyjournal.com or by phone: 344-5200 ext. 117.