T, in particular, was quite excited to cheer for Lionel Messi and his Argentine teammates. I'm not sure why, but this year's Cup has not seemed as big a deal as previous ones -- perhaps because the United States was not one of the 32 participants.
The underdog stories of the tournament have been Russia (they made it to the quarterfinals) and Croatia (who ultimately defeated Russia).
France defeated Belgium yesterday, 1-0, to advance to the championship. Their star performer has been Kylian Mbappe, who is quite fun to watch: fast, agile, confident. Watching Mbappe, one gets the sense that he sees the field in a way that other's don't -- similar to the way that LeBron is one step ahead of the competition on any given play.
Today, Croatia plays England in the second semifinal. I'm rooting for the underdog Croats, though I'll be happy for all the Brits if they make a long-awaited return to the championship.
Mbappe is only 19 years old, and he's the second highest paid player in football. His father is from Cameroon and his mother is from Algeria.
Playing against Argentina in the Round of 16, Mbappe became only the second teenager in history (after Pele!) to score two goals in the same match.
