“I feel like I’d have to get my leg broken for anyone to get a card,” Zaha said, according to the BBC. “That’s why I lose my head. Why am I getting different treatment from other players? It is every week. I don’t know what to say.”
Zaha and Ruben Loftus-Cheek were joint-most fouled players in the Premier League last season at 2.6 times per game, and that figure was up to 2.8 before Saturday’s 1-0 win over Huddersfield Town.
Not known as a terrible diver, Zaha would still like to see more calls and has been vocal in his displeasure. Now he’s taking it to the microphones.
“I don’t know. I have tried to speak to the referees. there’s nothing I can do any more. It is hard. It doesn’t make you want to go on a run because someone will come through the back of you and it doesn’t allow you to express yourself. At the same time, I have to let my feet do the talking which I did today.”
As for his wonderful solo goal?
“I had one thing in my mind when I went on my run. I don’t think we had many shots but I managed to connect with it well and scored.”
England know anything other than a four-goal or more defeat to Wales means they are in the last 16, while a win for the Three Lions would guarantee them top spot in Group B ahead of Wales, Iran and the USA. Gareth Southgate’s side need an impressive performance to go with any win as their fanbase was far from happy with their lackluster display in the 0-0 draw against the USA last Friday.
As for Wales, their situation is clear: they have to win to have a chance of reaching the last 16 and then they will hope that Iran vs USA in their other Group B game ends in a draw. That could happen but Wales need to improve drastically on their two showings so far as their star players have looked off the pace and they deservedly lost against Iran last time out.
How to watch Wales vs England live, stream link and start time
Kick off: 2pm ET – Tuesday, November 29 Stadium: Ahmed bin Ali Stadium, Al Rayyan TV channels en Español: Telemundo Streaming en Español:Peacock (all 64 matches)
Key storylines, players to watch closely
The Welsh have not made the most of their second trip to the World Cup in their history. They were dominated in the first half of their opener against the U.S. but showed good spirit to battle back for a point late on. Against Iran they were second best throughout and a late red card to Wayne Hennessey was followed by two late Iranian goals and Robert Page could have no complaints as his team failed to show up. Aaron Ramsey and Gareth Bale have had superb careers but injuries have hit them hard in recent years and this looks like a tournament too far for Wales’ star duo.
As for England, the vultures are circling back home as Gareth Southgate is under pressure once again for what many believe are overly cautious tactics. Against the U.S. they huffed and puffed without really creating clear-cut chances and were pretty lucky to escape with a draw. Even though England are all but guaranteed a spot in the last 16, the Three Lions fans expect more from Harry Kane and Co. after they reached the World Cup semifinals four years ago and were runners up in the European Championships just over a year ago. Southgate is expected to make quite a few changes to his lineup as the likes of Phil Foden, Kalvin Phillips and Marcus Rashford could feature from the start.
Wales quick facts
Current FIFA world ranking: 19
World Cup titles: 0
World Cup appearances: 1
How they qualified: Qualified from UEFA via playoffs, Path B
Coach: Rob Page
Key players: Gareth Bale, Aaron Ramsey, Ben Davies
England quick facts
Current FIFA world ranking: 5
World Cup titles: 1 (1966)
World Cup appearances: 15
How they qualified: Qualified automatically from UEFA
Coach: Gareth Southgate
Key players: Harry Kane, Raheem Sterling, Jordan Pickford
Following their incredible late comeback win against Germany, many people believe the Samurai Blue could be a dark horse in this tournament. Their total team effort, and options off the bench, are impressive and they will now look to make the most of that historic win against Germany.
As for Costa Rica, well, it can’t get any worse than their opener. They didn’t have a single shot against Spain and lost 7-0 as Loc Ticos were totally outclassed and it will be tough to recover from that. If they want to get out of the group, they simply have to win this game.
How to watch Japan vs Costa Rica live, stream link and start time
Kick off: 5am ET – Sunday, November 27 Stadium: Ahmed bin Ali Stadium, Al Rayyan TV channels en Español: Telemundo Streaming en Español:Peacock (all 64 matches)
Key storylines, players to watch closely
Japan will now look to build on their first-ever win against Germany and they will be full of confidence after a resolute team display. Manager Hajime Moriyasu makes five changes to the team which beat Germany as the the strength of his squad is incredible and he will once again look to the bench and aim to blow opponents away in the final 30 minutes. It is all about the team first and his players totally buy into that model.
— サッカー日本代表 🇯🇵 【11.17(木)】vs 🇨🇦【11.23(水)】vs 🇩🇪 (@jfa_samuraiblue) November 27, 2022
As for Costa Rica, they have to forget the hammering to Spain. That can happen when you play Spain who have so many great attacking players and when it clicks, they can pummel teams. They simply have to win this game and Kendall Waston and Gerson Torres are the only two changes from the defeat to Spain.
Current FIFA world ranking: 24
World Cup titles: 0
World Cup appearances: 7
How they qualified: Qualified automatically from AFC
Coach: Hajime Moriyasu
Key players: Maya Yoshida, Takehiro Tomiyasu, Takumi Minamino, Daichi Kamada
Costa Rica quick facts
Current FIFA world ranking: 31
World Cup titles: 0
World Cup appearances: 5
How they qualified: Qualified from CONCACAF via interconfederation playoffs
Coach: Luis Fernando Suarez
Key players: Keylor Navas, Joel Campbell, Celso Borges, Bryan Ruiz
The 2022 FIFA World Cup features 32 nations competing in soccer’s biggest event in Qatar, the first World Cup ever held in the Middle East. This year marks the final edition of the tournament with a 32-nation field – that number is set to increase to 48 for the 2026 World Cup, which will have venues across the United States, Mexico and Canada.
This year’s Copa Mundial looks different for several reasons, including the dates (due to Qatar’s intense summer heat, the schedule was shifted to November-December instead of its traditional summer timing). But as always, the event features the world’s top fútbol nations vying for global glory as well as individual awards for top performers, including the coveted prize for attacking players: the Golden Boot.
At the last iteration of the World Cup, England’s Harry Kane, also a star for Premier League side Tottenham, took home the award thanks to his six goals, which likely helped soften the blow of the Three Lions falling 2-0 to Belgium in the third-place match. One of the top storylines to watch at this year’s World Cup is the swan song for two of the game’s biggest stars: Argentina’s Lionel Messi and Portugal’s Christiano Ronaldo. Neither player has ever won the Golden Boot, and neither of their teams has won the World Cup during their tenures. Defending champions France will likely field some contenders for the award, including Kylian Mbappe and Karim Benzema. For more on the latest Golden Boot standings, odds and predictions throughout the tournament, follow along with ProSoccerTalk and NBC Sports Edge.
The Golden Boot is the award given to the top goal-scorer at each edition of the World Cup. If at the conclusion of the tournament two or more players are tied at the top of the list with the same number of goals, the award will go to the player with the most non-penalty goals, and if they are still tied, it will go to the player with the most assists. While there has always been a top goal-scorer at the tournament, the specific award has been given since 1982. It was known as “The Golden Show” until its re-christening in 2010.
The ‘Golden Boot’ award trophy for best footballer in the tournament sits on display in an Adidas AG ‘pop up’ shop inside the G.U.M. luxury department store in Moscow, Russia, on Saturday, June 9, 2018. FIFA expects more than three billion viewers for the World Cup that begins this week in Russia. Photographer: Andrey Rudakov/Bloomberg via Getty Images
The World Cup begins Sunday, November 20th with host nation Qatar taking on Ecuador in the opener. The group stage runs through December 3rd before the knockout rounds begin. The final is set to take place on Sunday, December 18th.
Follow along with ProSoccerTalk for the latest news, scores, storylines, and updates surrounding the 2022 World Cup, and be sure to subscribe to NBC Sports on YouTube!
What are the group stage tiebreaker rules at the 2022 World Cup?
The 2022 World Cup is already well underway and through the first matches of the group stage, the tournament has been marked by unpredictability and upsets, including Saudi Arabia toppling Argentina and Japan edging out Germany thanks to a late comeback. While one loss doesn’t necessarily mean these pre-tournament contenders won’t make it to the knockout rounds, it does make the path significantly harder. Read on to see the World Cup tiebreakers that may come into play in determining which teams advance to the next round and continue on the path to soccer’s greatest glory.
How many teams will advance from the World Cup group stage?
Of the 32 teams at the 2022 World Cup, only 16 will advance to the next round of the tournament. The top two teams in each of the eight groups will advance to the Round of 16. From there, the tournament will be a single-elimination competition, with eight teams making it through to the quarterfinals and four to the semifinals. The winners of the semifinal matches will play in the final, while the losers will meet in the third-place playoff.
What are the tiebreakers for the group stage at the World Cup?
If two or more teams have an equal number of points after the conclusion of group stage matches, FIFA will use the following tiebreakers to determine which nations advance:
Goal differential – the team with the higher goal differential (total goals scored minus total goals allowed) will have the higher ranking
Number of goals scored – If multiple teams have the same number of points and equal goal differential, the team with more goals scored will be given a higher ranking than the lesser-scoring team
World Cup draw rules
If two or more teams are still “tied” after applying these tiebreakers, FIFA moves on to a second round of tiebreakers:
Greatest number of points obtained in group matches between the teams concerned
Superior goal difference resulting from the group matches between the team concerned
Greatest number of goals scored in all matches between the teams concerned
Highest team conduct score – team conduct score is based on the number of yellow and red cards a team has obtained. The team with the highest team conduct score will receive the higher ranking.
Yellow Card: Minus one point
Indirect Red Card (acquired via two yellow cards): Minus three points
Direct Red Card: Minus four points
Yellow Card and Direct Red Card: Minus five points
The “team conduct” tiebreaker or “fair play” tiebreaker was first used at the 2018 World Cup – Japan and Senegal stood equal after all other tiebreakers were applied but Senegal had more yellow cards and was subsequently eliminated. Japan advanced to the Round of 16.
World Cup 2022 schedule, start time, dates, how to watch live
When: November 20, 2022 to December 18, 2022
Group stage game kick-off times: 5am, 8am, 10am, 11am, 2pm (all ET)
Location: Qatar
TV channels en Español: Telemundo, Universo, Peacock
Follow along with ProSoccerTalk for the latest news, scores, storylines, and updates surrounding the 2022 World Cup, and be sure to subscribe to NBC Sports on YouTube!
