Top 5 Flops of the 2018 World Cup
Really? Is that the best you could do? These teams really stunk up the World Cup. WatchMojo counts down the Top 5 Flops of the 2018 World Cup.
Top 5 Flops of the 2018 World Cup
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Really? Is that the best you could do? Welcome to WatchMojo.com, and today, we’ll be counting down our picks for the top five disappointing teams of the 2018 World Cup. For this list, we’ll be looking at the teams that came into this tournament with an abundance of expectation but didn’t quite live up to the hype that surrounded them. Whether they were thought to be a dark horse or a full-blown World Cup contender, the teams will be ranked according to their own standards and how far they flopped from them. Alright, who disappointed us first?
#5: Peru
Coming into the World Cup, Peru were flying, with their 14-match winning run - including both qualifiers and friendlies - blazing around the world with ease. On top of that, their previously-banned captain and all-time top scorer of the Peruvian national team Paulo Guerrero was cleared to play shortly before the tournament kicked off. All things pointed to a Group C shock, but Peru faltered, failing to score in their opening two matches against Denmark and France. They found their scoring touch in their final match against Australia, but it was too little too late: Peru dropped out of the group stage after a 36-year absence from the World Cup.
#4: Morocco
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If you saw Morocco's performances in qualifying, then you know that there was something special about them. Hervé Renard had his Moroccan side playing lights out football, winning three, drawing three, and not conceding a single goal. Placed in the tricky Group B alongside Iran, Portugal, and Spain, Morocco got off to a false start with a loss thanks to an own goal against Iran. Then, against Portugal, they dominated, but couldn't score. Against Spain, it was the same situation, but they only managed a 2 - 2 draw, blowing the one-goal lead in the 91st minute. The result? Morocco at the bottom of Group B with one point, and no African teams in the round of 16 for the first time since 1982.
#3: Argentina
Now, this is where the “according to their own standards” part of the criteria kicks in. Sure, Argentina was very guilty of tactical naivety, had a non-existent defense at times, and was guilty of just giving the ball to Messi in impossible situations and hoping for the best. But, considering they finished in second at the last World Cup and made two Copa America finals since then, you’d have thought they would have at least made the quarter-finals or semis. The seeds of their misfortunate were planted during a qualification campaign that again relied upon Messi’s magic. But despite this being the last chance saloon for many of the Argentinian players, they crashed out against France after barely escaping the group stage.
#2: Poland
Yes, we know, Poland has flopped at every World Cup they have qualified for, besides those from the ‘70s and '80s. But this team just seemed too good to flop! With the talismanic Robert Lewandowski spearheading the Poles' qualification campaign with 16 goals, Poland easily topped their group by a full five points over Denmark. However, by the time the team got to Russia, they looked a shadow of themselves. With some wet noodle performances in their opening two losses to Senegal and Colombia, Poland was eliminated after just two matches. They got a win in their final match but were still rock bottom in Group H.
#1: Germany
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The Curse of the World Cup Champion lives on, with the last three champions that preceded Germany all getting eliminated in the group stages. If that wasn't tilting the scales enough against them, Germany also inflicted themselves with the curse of the Confederations Cup when they won it in the summer of 2017. Yeah, that isn't good. In their opening loss against Mexico, they were defensively negligent. Against Sweden, they came from behind only down to heroics from Toni Kroos. And against South Korea, they tripped and fell at the finish line with a 2 - 0 shocker of a loss. Germany out at the first hurdle, the fourth European World Cup defending champion in a row.
