England plays Argentina, who outlasted Switzerland 3-1 on Saturday night, in one semifinal, on Wednesday in Atlanta. France and Spain face off on Tuesday, in Dallas, in the other semi. For the first time, the top four teams in the FIFA rankings reached the men’s World Cup semifinals. While Haaland is now out of the tournament, a host of big names—Kylian Mbappé, Lamine Yamal, Lionel Messi, Harry Kane, Bellingham, etc—remain. The World Cup trophy might indeed be “coming home”: England, believed to be the birthplace of soccer, is just two wins away from ending its famous 60-year World Cup drought.
As for Haaland, he wasn’t too bummed about his benching. He admitted he was out of gas. He’s repeatedly said that Norway’s appearance in a World Cup, for the first time in 28 years, was itself a victory. Beating Brazil was surreal. Falling to England carries no shame. “How is it to be Erling Haaland right now after being in the quarterfinals with Norway and going straight to holiday? It’s quite nice,” Haaland said after the quarterfinal. “I think this changes Norway. I think it changes me. I’ve said it many times, we’re building on something in Norway.”
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