Day 6 of the 2026 FIFA World Cup didn’t disappoint.
The 2026 FIFA World Cup has been defined by underdog performances and unexpected results; Tuesday’s set of fixtures brought the footballing world back into order.
If the first 16 games were anything to go by, then there was an upset waiting to happen. Would it be Senegal’s time to shake their dark horse reputation and transform into a serious World Cup threat by defeating France? Would Iraq humble a talented Norwegian side who are back in the World Cup after a 28-year absence? Maybe history would repeat itself for Lionel Messi’s Argentina, unexpectedly losing their opening group stage fixture, this time against Algeria. Or perhaps Jordan would commence their debut World Cup appearance with a historic win against Ralf Rangnick’s revitalized Austria side?
In the end, there would be no upsets — only upset, expectant neutrals hoping for another fairy-tale defense or giant-killing performance.
But don’t think for a second that results falling the way they were predicted makes them any less significant. Au contraire.
The first round of games was just the opening of football’s heavyweight title fight. The underdogs came out with a spring in their step, throwing wild jabs, and occasionally landing a decisive upper cut. But the big boys have officially arrived, and they are here to let the punches fly.
A classic tale of two halves as France’s best player is revealed
France versus Senegal was a classic tale of two halves… if we’re still pretending we aren’t playing quarters now, courtesy of FIFA’s latest rule changes.
First half
Senegal arrived at the World Cup with a reputation as a dark horse contender. The Lions of Teranga made that abundantly clear in their first half display against tournament favorites France.
Moussa Niakhaté and Kalidou Koulibaly provided the foundation for a disciplined Senegalese defense, while the midfield three of Idrissa Gueye, Pape Gueye, and Lamine Camara worked tenaciously to screen their back line against the French attack. The defense-midfield combination provided Ismaïla Sarr, Sadio Mané, and Nicolas Jackson the launch-pad to spring fast, ferocious counter-attacks.
Senegal’s game plan almost came to fruition in the 25th minute as Nicolas Jackson’s venomous left-footed strike rattled Mike Maignan’s post. Ismaïla Sarr then squandered his opportunity to put his side one goal up, skying his shot right in front of goal on the stroke of half time.
Devoid of creativity, lethargic, and wasteful, the half-time whistle couldn’t have come sooner for Didier Deschamps’ men. Despite boasting a terrifying front line of Désiré Doué, Michael Olise, Ousmane Dembélé, and Kylian Mbappé, France were unable to create anything meaningful, and were at major risk of becoming the latest addition to the World Cup’s list of giants felled.
Second half
After a drab first half, Deschamps had to change something — he did, and it won France the game.
Olise was deployed on the right wing in the first half while Dembélé deputized the central-attacking area behind Mbappé. Blame it on Dembélé’s creative deficiency or France’s lack of urgency, either way, it didn’t work. But Deschamps’ decision to shift Olise to the center, pushing Dembélé out wide, that worked.
The 2025/26 Bundesliga player of the season proved to be France’s attacking linchpin. His ability to find pockets of space between Senegal’s midfield and defense allowed his side to bypass the press, creating wave after wave of attacking threat. Eventually, Olise’s defense-splitting pass cracked Senegal’s defense, setting up Mbappé’s 66th-minute opening strike.
Olise continued to play puppet-master, pulling the strings until Senegal’s defense unraveled. France’s depth shone as Bradley Barcola came on to score with a lovely dinked finish over Édouard Mendy, while Ibrahim Mbaye’s late consolation goal, gifted through a mistake from Maignan, only shook the bees nest as Mbappé responded with a late, long-range screamer.
Kylian Mbappé is not France’s best player
Kylian Mbappé’s World Cup pedigree cannot be underestimated. After all, the Frenchman is only two goals away (14) from equalling Miroslav Klose’s World Cup scoring record (16) after his brace against Senegal.
But make non mistake, anyone who watched France versus Senegal will know that Michael Olise was the best player on the pitch — even if Mbappé may have scored the goal of the tournament so far.
The Bayern Munich winger single-handedly changed the game. Any and every meaningful French attack was orchestrated by Olise’s mesmerizing play-making ability. Sure, Mbappé scored the goals. But if that makes him a goal-scorer, then by the same rights Olise is a game-changer. After all, it’s no coincidence both of Mbappé’s goals were a direct result of Olise.
Speaking of Mbappé’s goal…
To Valhalla! Haaland makes immediate mark on World Cup stage
Group I’s Norway and Senegal have something in common: both nations promise to be dark horse contenders for the World Cup. The difference between the two nations? Only Norway made good on that promise.
Everyone said it in the 2022 World Cup: “What a shame that Haaland isn’t here.” Fast forward four years and Haaland has officially arrived, wasting no time making his mark on the world’s greatest stage.
The Manchester City striker tapped home David Møller Wolfe’s pin-point cross in the 29th-minute, bagging his first World Cup goal. Haaland found his second later in the first half after pouncing on Zaid Tahseen’s poor-powered pass back to his keeper. A shame for an Iraq side who did well to get back into the game shortly before through a well-placed Aymen Hussein header.
While Haaland grab’s all the headlines, it is easy to forget just how much attacking talent the Norwegians boast. Antonio Nusa, Andreas Schjelderup, Oscar Bobb, Alexander Sørloth, and even Martin Ødegaard, round off a deep attack, granting Norway a plethora of options to chip away, or barge straight through whatever defense stands in their way. Hence lies Noway’s biggest problem.
The Scandinavians are extremely top heavy. Majority of their quality is in the attack, leaving the defense looking bare. Iraq were able to exploit that weakness despite their own limited quality in the attack. Conceding one goal isn’t the end of the world, especially when Norway scored four themselves. But it does reveal a chink in the Viking’s armor. A chink teams will certainly look to exploit.
The Norwegian fans also produced an iconic moment, displaying their intimidating and epic rowing chant!
Magisterial Messi
Forget Lamine Yamal. Forget Kylian Mbappé. Forget Erling Haaland. Forget Vinícius Júnior. And forget Cristiano Ronaldo. There is only one player who can make me get out of my warm, comfortable bed at 3AM to watch a football game, and his name is: Lionel Messi.
He is the greatest player of all time, and he is proving it all over again in his last dance in the World Cup.
The Little Magician took 17 minutes to find the back of Algeria’s net, unleashing a cracking long-range shot that beat Luca Zidane, who certainly should have done better to keep Messi’s effort out. Messi tapped in Alexis Mac Allister’s deflected shot to score his second in the 60th minute, and then sent a delectable curling shot past Zidane to secure his hat-trick just 16 minutes later.
Austria and Jordan will be asking themselves the question that the footballing world has been asking for the last 22 years. How do you stop Messi? The answer is the same as it has always been: you don’t.
Despite Bayer Leverkusen’s Ibrahim Maza pulling the strings from the heart of the attack, Algeria couldn’t produce anything useful, besides an offside goal in the first half. The Algerians will be disappointed with their World Cup opener, although losing to Argentina is no great embarrassment.
Spain and France are the two favorites for World Cup glory, but don’t you dare count Argentina out. Credit needs to be given to Argentina’s manager Lionel Scaloni. The 48-year-old manager somehow manages to squeeze the absolute best out of every single one of his players despite age or experience.
Austria, the dark horse of dark horses?
You are probably as sick of reading the words “dark horse” as I am of writing them. But bear with me once more.
Ralf Rangnick has slowly transformed Austria from a European nation filled with quality players unable to translate it onto the pitch, into an aggressive, high-pressing unit, often resembling a pack of wolves hunting their prey more than a group of players chasing a ball.
But oddly enough, it wasn’t the high-octane Austrian press that earned them a hard-fought victory over World Cup debutants Jordan. The Jordanians opted for a brave approach, going toe-to-toe with Rangnick’s side rather than passively absorbing pressure. The result was a fantastic display of counter-attacking football. Despite matching the Austrian side in total shots (11), Jordan ultimately succumbed to their opponents’ superior squad depth.
Marko Arnautović’s half-time introduction changed the course of the game, causing Jordan all sorts of defensive headaches in the box, and eventually forcing an own-goal from the Middle Eastern side in the 76th minute. Austria killed the game in stoppage time after a penalty was awarded for a handball. Arnautović stepped up and made no mistake from the spot.
While it wasn’t Austria’s best game, they did what the great teams do best: they got the job done. With all the talk of dark horses in the World Cup, could the oft forgotten Austria be the underdog that everyone is forgetting about?
Here is a great view of Jordan’s first ever World Cup goal from the stands!
FIFA giveth, FIFA taketh… but mostly taketh
FIFA made a number of rule changes coming into the World Cup. Automated offsides, the five-second countdown for throw-ins and goal kicks, and the ten-second substitution limit have all done wonders to improve football’s most attractive quality as a sport: flow.
But FIFA have ironically undone any good work on improving game flow in what can only be described as a money-making farce posing as protection for player well-being.
Hydration breaks are necessary, not mandatory
A hydration break can be excused given the the unforgiving heat and humidity across the United States, Mexico, and Canada. Temperatures reach upwards of 90°F (32°C), the threshold for implementing hydration pauses according to FIFA and sport science guidelines.
Take the World Cup opener in Monterrey as an example. The temperature hit a staggering 100.4°F (38°C), not factoring in humidity as a result of the stadium’s bowl design pushing the thermometer up to a 110°F (43°C). In a scenario like that, a hydration break makes perfect sense, because the players do need protection from the elements.
But what about a late-evening kickoff in Vancouver where temperatures average a mild 62°F (17°C)?
Absolutely unnecessary. These are professional athletes in their physical peaks, not pensioners who need to stop for a breather every twenty minutes.
But here’s the biggest issue with the hydration break: it destroys momentum.
That may seem like a bold claim, but football analyst Yash Thakur broke down just how these hydration breaks impact the game’s momentum. The Independent’s Creative Director, Adam Clery, breaks it down in the post below.
Not only does it disturb momentum for the players, but for the supporters too. Sometimes it takes about twenty minutes just to settle into watching a football game. Now, viewers are launched into a commercial break, bombarded by ads, and forget they’re watching a football game altogether.
It destroys the flow of the game for players and supporters alike.
If FIFA had an ounce of sporting integrity, hydration breaks would only be mandatory once the temperature exceeds the danger threshold. Otherwise, the beautiful game should continue the way it always has: uninterrupted.
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