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The 2018 World Cup: A reminder of how we find beauty in heartbreak

The 2018 World Cup: A reminder of how we find beauty in heartbreak
Luca Modric's look (left) said it all, just like Kylian Mbappe's (right) as to who won the final. Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images

As Kylian Mbappe scored the fourth goal of the game for France in the World Cup Final, it seemed like a done deal, France was going to win the 2018 World Cup. Croatia never stopped, and eventually got a second goal after a ridiculous mistake by Hugo Lloris. But it was not enough, Croatia would not be able to come back. As France lifted the trophy 31 other countries pursued, we were all reminded that this tournament is cruel, and it will break your heart at one point or another.

This is not to say France was not a worthy champion, they absolutely were. Their lethal counterattack proved to be fruitful throughout the course of the tournament. After everything Croatia had given us fans throughout the tournament, though, they were the darling. They were the underdog everyone loves to root for. They began the World Cup winning their group with three wins, nine points.

In the round of 16, they came back against Denmark, and won in penalties, 3-2. After 120 minutes in the Quarterfiinals, Croatia drew with the host nation, Russia, 2-2. Again, they started the game behind 1-0, and again an Ivan Rakitic penalty put them through to the next round. In the Semifinals against England, a Trippier Free Kick Goal saw them, once again, behind 1-0. This time, they did not need a penalty shoot out, as they would win in extra time. Croatia reached the final after having played extra time in literally every game of the knockout stage. They came into the game against France yesterday having played an extra game’s worth of minutes. That is why everyone was behind them, and that is why it hurt so much to see them lose.

In many cases, the 2018 World Cup told several heartbreaking stories. Watching Messi and Ronaldo fail to get out of the Round of 16 was gutting. Whether you spend your free time pointlessly debating who is the better player or not, it almost feels as if we were cheated out of seeing them achieve the greatest glory in the world of soccer. Come the 2022 World Cup, Ronaldo will be 37 and Messi will be 35. As they pass the prime years of their careers, not seeing them lift up a World Cup trophy was a hard pill to swallow. This, quite possibly, was their last chance to achieve that.

On a personal level, watching Mexico get bounced in the Round of 16, again, was brutal. They began the World Cup upsetting the reigning champions. They defeated South Korea, as Chicharito scored his 50th goal for Mexico. Then, they had an embarrassing performance against Sweden, and only qualified thanks to South Korea’s victory over Germany. A few days later, the dream died as they lost to Brazil, 2-0. Mexico only scored three goals all tournament, their worst performance since only scoring two in 1978. I will not remember this World Cup for that, though. I will remember the way Chucky Lozano cut inside and scored on Manuel Neuer.  I will remember how, even if it was only for a few days, I thought Mexico could really do something big in the World Cup.

Because of that, I am reminded of why we love this tournament so much. Why we invest so much money on jerseys, on trips to the local sports bar, or on the under in that one quarterfinal game you spent hours studying. At the end of the monthlong tournament, unless you’re lucky enough to see your country win, we all end up with the same broken heart. Hell, the odds are against us before the tournament even starts as only eight countries ever have won the World Cup. Despite that, for a month, you put aside your logic and think with your heart. Just like I believed Mexico was going to upset Brazil, then Belgium, to make the semifinals, I’m sure fans around the world were convinced their countries would do the same.

There is not much as devastating as seeing your country get eliminated, but until it actually happens, you are on top of the world. Your expectations are high. You find beauty and pride in the simplest of things your country does.

I had a conversation with one of my closest friends after his country, Colombia, was eliminated. Mexico had been eliminated the day before, so I still felt a similar pain to the one he was feeling. By the end of the conversation, we both talked about our expectations of our countries  in 2022. We already began mentally preparing ourselves for the pain that will come from that tournament before this one had even ended.

Luka Modric holding his Golden Ball trophy, the award given to the best player of the tournament, was the ultimate representation to how heartbreaking the World Cup can be. After getting bounced in the group stages of 2014, he led this Croatian team to a Final. The team gave it their all, but the golden generation of France ended the Cinderella story. Winning the Golden Ball is a great honor, but the melancholy look on Modric’s face said it all.

The World Cup is the most beautiful tournament in sports. You can say it is because you get to watch the best players in the world compete at their highest levels with their countries. You can say because countries embed their cultures into that of a host nation’s. I will say because it takes us to our highest emotional points before breaking our hearts.

They say you will always find beauty in heartbreak; if the World Cup is not the exact representation of that, then I do not know what is.

 

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Is leadership the main problem for Houston? Composite Getty Image.

With the Astros now officially ten games under .500 for the season, manager Joe Espada is taking a lot of heat from the fanbase for the team's struggles.

While we don't agree with the sentiment, we even hear fans clamoring for the return of Dusty Baker and Martin Maldonado, thinking the Astros wouldn't be in this mess if they were still here.

Which is ridiculous. First of all, Maldonado has been awful for the White Sox, hitting .048 (even worse than Jose Abreu's .065). And for those of you that think his work with the pitching staff justifies his pathetic offense. Let me say this: Where was Maldy's game calling genius for Hunter Brown, Cristian Javier, and Framber Valdez last year? All of them regressed significantly.

And as far as Baker is concerned, we have no idea how much a difference he would make, we can only speculate. Baker would also be dealing with a pitching staff ravaged with injuries. And let's not forget, Baker was the guy that refused to move Jose Abreu down in the batting order, even though he would finish the regular season with the ninth-worst OPS in baseball.

The reality of the situation is managers can only do so much in baseball. Which leads us to something else that needs to be considered. Is Espada being handcuffed by the front office? Espada and GM Dana Brown both said recently that Jon Singleton was going to get more at-bats while they give Abreu time off to try to figure things out. Yet, there Abreu was in the lineup again in the opening game of the Cubs series.

It makes us wonder how much power does Espada truly have? The Astros have some other options at first base. Yainer Diaz may only have eight games played at the position, but how much worse could he be than Abreu defensively? Abreu already has four errors, and Diaz is obviously a way better hitter. Victor Caratini isn't considered a plus offensive player, but his .276 batting average makes him look like Babe Ruth compared to Abreu. Let him catch more often and play Diaz at first. Starting Diaz at first more often could also lengthen his career long-term.

Maybe that's too wild of a move. Okay, fine. How about playing Mauricio Dubon at first base? I understand he doesn't have much experience at that position, but what's the downside of trying him there? If he can play shortstop, he can play first base. He's driving in runs at a higher rate (11 RBIs) than everyone on the team outside of Kyle Tucker and Yordan Alvarez. And he's producing like that as part-time player right now.

The other criticism we see of Espada is his use of Jon Singleton to pinch hit late in games. Let's be real, though, who else does Espada have on the roster to go to? Batting Abreu late in games in which you're trailing should be considered malpractice. Espada can only use who he has to work with. This all really stems from the Astros poor farm system.

They don't have anyone else to turn to. The draft picks the club lost from the sign-stealing scandal are really hurting them right now. First and second rounders from 2020 and 2021 should be helping you in 2024 at the big league level.

Maybe they go to Astros prospect Joey Loperfido soon, but after a hot start he has only two hits in his last six games.

Finally, we have to talk about what seems like a committee making baseball decisions. Lost in a committee is accountability. Who gets the blame for making poor decisions?

As time continues to pass it looks like moving on from former GM James Click was a massive mistake. He's the guy that didn't sign Abreu, but did trade Myles Straw (recently DFA'd) for Yainer Diaz and Phil Maton. He also built an elite bullpen without breaking the bank, and helped the club win a World Series in 2022.

The reality of the situation is Dusty Baker and James Click are not walking back through that door. And all good runs come to an end at some point. Is this what we're witnessing?

Don't miss the video above as we hit on all the points discussed and much more!

Catch Stone Cold 'Stros (an Astros podcast) with Charlie Pallilo, Brandon Strange, and Josh Jordan. We drop two episodes every week on SportsMapHouston's YouTube channel. You can also listen on Apple Podcast, Spotifyor wherever you get your podcasts.

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