It's official: Spain vs Argentina
Alex ConnorTwo goals. Seven minutes. That’s all it took for Argentina to send England home and book its ticket for another chance at the World Cup title when it faces Spain on Sunday in the final.
Yet again in this tournament, Argentina came back from a deficit, and the defending champions are looking to turn their 2022 World Cup win into a back-to-back. No team has accomplished that since Brazil in 1958 and 1962.
- World Cup team of destiny? Messi's Argentina makes impossible look easy.
What we know: Argentina vs Spain will be an electric match. But what makes the storyline near impossible to wrap one’s mind around is a photo you’ve surely already seen: Messi once bathed baby Lamine Yamal.
"The beginning of two legends," wrote Yamal's father, Mounir Nasraoui, on Instagram in 2024.
Yes, indeed.
I’m Alex, this is my last edition of “Extra Time,” and it’s coming home? Sorry England. But not before a third-place game against France in Miami.
Did you read this?
- Where is the World Cup final? Details on Spain vs. Argentina game.
- Is Lionel Messi retiring after the World Cup? What the soccer star has said.
- Soccer world roasts Thomas Tuchel after England blows semifinal to Argentina.
- Who will win the Golden Boot? Leaderboard and latest updates.
This will be the last newsletter from me, but Callie Fin will be in your inbox this weekend for the third-place finish and the final.
I’m off to my own big event of the summer, RAGBRAI, which is a seven-day bike ride across the state of Iowa. (Yes, I have been starting my days with the Tour de France before switching over to soccer).
Thank you for letting me take up space in your inbox. It’s been a pleasure writing this newsletter!
Signing off,
Alex