Letter C was going to be about Chiellini. Specifically, it was to be about Chiellini when he was bitten by Luis Suarez during a World Cup group match in Brazil, 2014. Suarez has at least three incident of biting on the pitch, this one the highest profile. But we won’t get into that today.
How could we go without a word for Cape Verde, and the sensational World Cup debut against European Champions Spain. The story is what the World Cup is all about, the joy of the game. Imagine being Cape Verdean. After fellow tiny World Cup debutants Curaçao made their bow the day before (despite scoring to equalise, in a momentous moment for the country, the game ended in a 7-1 drubbing against Germany), it was now time for Cape Verde.
An island nation of just over 500,000 people, Cape Verde came into the tournament ranked 67th in the FIFA rankings – Spain are 2nd. The game in Atlanta was meant to be a walkover for Spain. When they get going, the passes can be dizzying for opponents, and at the last Euros they played some expansive stuff too when it was needed. Against a low block for much of the game here, they just couldn’t find a way through.
But it wasn’t just a backs-against-the-wall job, in the second half Cape Verde had some joy in transition, hitting Spain on the counter a few times yet not quite making the right final pass. They even had a header in injury time that would have given them an almighty upset for the ages. When they had the ball, the passes were tidy and fast, which bodes well for their matches against Uruguay and Saudi Arabia.
The hero was undoubtedly goalkeeper Vozinha. The 40-year-old probably thought he’d never see a tournament like this, yet here he was in tears at the end of the match. An old man in terms of the beautiful game, but sprightly with his 7 big saves that helped his country to an unforgettable result. He deserves the big nap that we are all sanctioned once over 40.
For the Irish fans out there, you do have a representative at the finals after all. Roberto ‘Pico’ Lopes was a rock at the back. Born in Dublin to an Irish mother and Cape Verdean father, he represented Ireland at youth level, Lopes was invited to play for Cape Verde through LinkedIn. The message was in Portuguese, so he thought it was spam. Think of all the chances we've missed thinking things are spam. Eventually, he was called up in 2019 after a follow up message in English. Not everyone finds their dream job through LinkedIn, but there is a lesson there somewhere, just not sure that it’s to use LinkedIn more because we couldn’t promote that for everyday life. Football’s different.
What was the biggest shock of the night though? Despite having none of the ball, Cape Verde only committed one foul all match. 1! There hasn’t been a lower number by any side since records began. Unbelievable.
USA v England in 1950, North Korea in 1966 against Italy, Cameroon v Argentina in 1990, Senegal v France in 2002, Saudi Arabia v Argentina in 2022. These were massive World Cup upsets, but they were all victories. Does Cape Verde 0-0 Spain rank alongside them even as a draw? For us, definitely. To watch such resolute defending for 90+ minutes against a side that dominates possession like no other, have great moments for the keeper and defending clearances, and for such a small nation was outstanding. Here’s hoping for more upsets during the tournament.
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