Hello and welcome to another edition of Offside. The phrase “the shot heard round the world” was popularized by Ralph Waldo Emerson in his Concord Hymn, whose opening stanza read: “By the rough bridge that spanned the flood / Their flag on the April breeze unfurled / Here once stood the war farmers / And fired the shot heard round the world.“It is a reference to the opening platoon at the Battles of Lexington and Concord in 1775, which launched the American Revolutionary War and laid the foundations of the modern American state. Now, more than 250 years later, three days before the big American celebration, another shot was heard around the world, fired by an Englishman who, in his own way, embodies American exceptionalism.England struggled against DR Congo, who were on course for one of the World Cup’s famous shocks after beating the hapless Jordan Pickford at his near post. England have not won a knockout game from behind since 1966, when they trailed West Germany before lifting their only World Cup. But England have never had such a striker Harry Kane.His first goal came after Declan Rice switched to right-back, an area in which England looked vulnerable after Thomas Tuchel opted to leave out the world’s most creative right-back, Trent Alexander-Arnold. Rice brought on substitute Anthony Gordon, who fed the ball to Kane and headed home with enough power to beat the keeper who had looked impenetrable until then. But the second goal changed everything. Kane again received the ball from Gordon, went past the defender with his first touch and shot with such power that no goalkeeper in the world could save it. There is a joke from the philosophy of Don Tzu it says if you don’t know what you’re doing, neither does your enemy. Kane didn’t even look up as he fired a shot that was heard in all directions.
Now, on all evidence, he may not be coming home, although with Harry Kane in the ranks, you never know, because this was an England goal that will be remembered and watched forever, like Paul Gascoigne’s dentist celebration, Beckham’s free-kick against Greece or Michael Owen’s Maradona-like dribbling through the entire Argentina team. As the DR Congo coach said, it took the best striker in the world to beat them.Next are the co-hosts of Mexico in their sacred land: the Aztecs.Meanwhile, the last vestiges of Belgium’s golden generation pulled off the tournament’s craziest comeback yet, coming back from 2-0 down before scoring the latest goal in World Cup extra-time history in the 125th minute from a penalty that will be discussed ad nauseam. Belgium were the better team for 85 minutes, had the better chances and will wonder if the football gods have condemned them to be sacrificed on the altar of false penalties, like the AFCON final.And finally, USA survived the red card and beat Bosnia and Herzegovina 2-0. It was nervy at 1-0, but Tillman scored with a great free kick to make things safe for the USA. What is a red card? It was one of those days when VAR was not celebrated, and many looked at three big decisions.
What is VAR?
VAR has robbed football of its most joyous moment: the release of pent-up energy after a player scores a goal. Now, after a player scores a goal, he waits to see what some guy in a room full of cameras thinks before he starts celebrating. So when VAR messes up, it’s doubly infuriating. And yesterday, three glaring incidents happened.First, Harry Kane was denied a penalty and the referee waved him off. What was striking was that the referee didn’t even decide to send him for a check, and ESPN’s VAR review stated that it was a deserved penalty. Second, Belgium won a penalty in the 125th minute, and it seemed to everyone that the first contact was outside the penalty area.And finally, Balogun’s red card also looked rather strange. The referee did not make a speech during the live match and then decided to check the attack which was accidental or reckless, although it was certainly not violent or malicious. A slow-motion replay made it look even worse, but FIFA’s bureaucracy decided his fate as they dictate that a player cannot be booked after the foul goes to VAR and is reviewed by the on-field referee. Madness? He must feel that way.
Match day action: Spain vs Austria
July 3, 12:30 PM ISTSpain are the reigning European champions, have the world’s most talented teenage prodigy in Lamine Yamal and a team that can probably pass the ball in their sleep, eyes closed, while grabbing the morning paper or any other permutation or combination. Austria, on the other hand, is a trained and disciplined team led by Ralf Rangnick.
Warrior watchFor Spain, the obvious answer is a man who plays as if possessed by the ghost of Johan Cruyff and baptized by the holy Messi. For Austria, it’s their playmaker David Alaba, who will make sure his team don’t panic when Spain move the ball.Battle planFor Spain, it’s simple: keep the ball, stretch Austria and let Yamal do his thing. But the trap is also simple: don’t buy into the ball-in-the-ball tactic where every pass looks pretty, every triangle is applauded by the coaching geeks, and Austria still has plenty of time to put eight bodies between the ball and the goal. Spain must move Austria from side to side quickly enough for gaps to actually open up and then attack those gaps before Rangnick’s red shirts can rearrange the furniture. The key is Pedri and Fabián Ruiz. If they dictate the pace, Spain can turn the game into an exercise in positional torture: one switch to the right, one overload, one isolation of Yamal, and suddenly the Austrian full-back is defending the teenager in front of the entire Internet. Austria must stop that first pass into the midfield. Sabitzer and Laimer need to get close enough to force Pedri to play backwards and force Fabián Ruiz to receive under pressure, because when Spain’s midfield is facing forward, the press is already half-dead.Austria’s best chance is to make Spanish control uncomfortable. Press the first boost, trap the ball, foul early if Yamal turns and force Spain to play at a speed they don’t choose. They can’t just stand back and admire the geometry, because Spain will eventually find one passage that makes the whole block look like IKEA furniture after a missing screw. The game is basically this: Spain need possession with their teeth. Austria needs pressure with time. If Spain gets a rhythm, Yamal becomes a show. If Austria breaks that rhythm, Spain can become a very elegant team looking for a door that refuses to open.Dinner table lineYamal is God’s gift to football, but Rangnick’s system could be the Antichrist stopping the Chosen One in his tracks.
Matchday action: Portugal vs. Croatia
July 3, 4:30 AM ISTThis is the battle between the veteran legends of Real Madrid: Cristiano Ronaldo and Luka Modrić. One is 41, the other 40, although the real battle will be in midfield, while the question will be whether Roberto MartÃnez will do the obvious and send Ronaldo off. Behind him, Portugal has some of the greatest creators of football in Bruno Fernandes and Bernardo Silva. Ronaldo may be one of the greatest to ever play the game, but he’s becoming an albatross slowly aging around the neck of a talented team because no one wants to tell the Emperor that he can’t be hacked anymore.Warrior watch
Portugal’s Bruno Fernandes (8) plays for the ball during the World Cup Group K soccer match between Colombia and Portugal in Miami Gardens, Fla., Saturday, June 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Bruno Fernandes is one of the few players in the world who is not touched by the conformism of football and can create something out of nothing, but the people in front of him must be better. For Croatia, the question will be whether they will be able to pull out another rabbit from the perpetuum mobile called Luka Modrić.Battle planPortugal will not want Croatia to control the middle of the park and will need Vitinha and João Neves to play through midfield. Rafael Leão and Bernardo Silva will try to force the Croatian wingers back and give Bruno Fernandes the ball between the lines. The problem, as usual, is Ronaldo’s tax: if every attack becomes a cross towards Cristiano Ronaldo, Croatia will accept it all night because Josko Guardiol and the centre-backs are much more comfortable defending the box than they are defending late runners.Table talkTalking point: Portugal has more firepower, but Croatia are masters of dark magic in FIFA’s knockout rounds.
Match day action: Switzerland vs Algeria
July 3, 8:30 am ISTWhat is fascinating about this is that it is Vladimir Petković’s derby. Algerian coach Petković was the coach of Switzerland from 2014 to 2021 and knows what kind of players he will face.Warrior watchGranit Xhaka remains Switzerland’s main man, while former Man City winger Riyad Mahrez will look to secure the magic dust.Battle planSwitzerland will do their best to make this a Xhaka sermon in which Riyad Mahrez has no words. Algeria have already shown a weakness against long-range shots, so Switzerland’s plan should be brutally obvious: park bodies around the D, recycle the ball through Xhaka and Freuler, and keep asking the Algerian keeper boring questions from 20 yards.The Algerian plan must be disrupted. Petkovic knows Switzerland too well to pretend that there is some secret gate under their midfield. The route is simpler: stop Xhaka’s first pass, crowd the center, force Akanji and the Swiss centre-backs into a hurried distribution, then quickly break through Mahrez, Ibrahim Maza, Amour and Gouiri. Switzerland as a row. Algeria needs to make the match as if someone changed all the scoreboards at once.The key wing is Algeria’s right against Switzerland’s left. If Mahrez continues to get one-on-one moments, Switzerland will begin to age in dog years.Table talkAlgeria wants history. Switzerland wants routine. The reality will differ from one of them.
