Full World Cup Semifinals Preview

24:31Frank Leboeuf:And I just feel that right now, for as good as they have been, for as exciting as they've made things, England will prove themselves to be too strong. And I say that, I feel that the England we've seen since the Mexico game just is a different animal right now. I saw them against Ghana up in Boston, a game that they drew and should have lost. Going into altitude when everybody counted them out and somehow they ground the result out showed a determination and I think showed a grit around this England that I cannot remember seeing from any England team in the past. that carried them through against Norway.

25:11Frank Leboeuf:I think that will also carry them through against Argentina. Ale, we know that, of course, Argentina have that grit. They know how to scrap. They are guerreros, like most teams in Conmebol. We questioned if England had it or if it was just relying on that individual talent. Do you think, to Xhaka's point, that England also now have that grit? Well, first of all, when you were first asking the question to Xhaka, you said that Argentina haven't been as dominant as we would expect them to be. They haven't been dominant at all. At all. At all. They're fortunate to be in this position. Honestly, if they played 10 more minutes against Cape Verde, they would have lost that match too.

25:48How they came back against Egypt, who knows? And they were being dominated prior to the red card by Brelo and Bolo, in which it felt like all the memento was with Switzerland. And yet here they are. And so while I appreciate all the things that Xhaka is saying about England, they're all true. The mentality and the fight that they showed in Mexico is something that I think brought this group together. And while a lot of people are talking about and making a whole big deal about this Thomas Tuchel-Jubankham situation, I honestly don't mind it. I don't mind the fact that the manager is doing what the manager does.

26:23He's not happy with performance. He lets you know as such. And if you're a player out on the field, you're happy with the fact that you've advanced and you know the amount of work that you've put in. So the last thing that you want to hear is the manager telling you that it wasn't the best performance. And so both parts are doing exactly what they're supposed to do. How they go about saying these things and how you package the message, some people think that's important. I don't. I honestly like Duke Bellingham like this. Edgy. Angry. Chip on his shoulder. Yes. Proving something to the world. That, I think, benefits England.

26:56And we haven't even talked about Harry Kane. Yeah. We haven't even talked about what he can do and how he, if you put Harry Kane in the position that he's going to be against Argentina, will be the best striker that Argentina has faced this whole World Cup by a mile, by a long distance. And so there's a lot of argument to be made for England. And the only argument that you have for Argentina is corazón, heart, passion. This courage, this mentality, this heart of a champion, if you will. There's no argument to be made for Argentina on what we have seen on the field. Because on the field, they have been second best for a while in a bunch of the games that they have played.

27:39But I'm not picking against Argentina. because they get to the stage. And if you tell me that this is going to be a fight, as much as I appreciate the work that England have put in, certainly since the Mexico game, if it is a grind out fight, I'm taking Argentina. I'm not taking Argentina now and forever as it pertains to this, because the struggles for Argentina, they feel natural. Whereas for England, it feels like they have to make an effort to enjoy the struggles. Whereas for Argentina, it feels like, yeah, we're struggling. Ha-ha! Yeah, this is amazing. This is awesome. Let's continue to struggle.

28:18It's true. And in that environment, I think Argentina thrives, whereas England, I'm not so sure. All right. Well, one of the great phrases that Arjan Agafiortov used to describe Erling Haaland is a get-out-of-jail-free card. And if we're talking about that, Argentina have the ultimate one in Lionel Messi. Let's hear what Lionel Messi had to say before this matchup. and this is what he said on facing England in the semis. He says, everything I have seen and remember is from videos and images that Argentinians constantly watch and relive. Personally, it's the first time I'm going to play against England, so it will be nice for that reason too.

28:55And we'll experience it for what it is, a World Cup semifinal against a powerhouse. A great team and we will try to arrive in the best possible shape to compete again. Right, let's talk about Lionel Messi in this one Because like I said, the ultimate get-out-of-jail-free card, Xhaka, which is what Ale was saying, that even if Argentina are struggling, they can look to this man and he does bail them out every single time. And even though they say, oh, maybe they're too dependent on him, we're seeing a Lionel Messi that's still playing some of his best football.

29:24Frank Leboeuf:Yeah, a Lionel Messi that I certainly didn't expect. At, what, 39 years old, biology tells us he should not be this good. But he's found a freedom. And I think the one thing, while Ali talks about the grit of Argentina or Argentinians, what I see from this team is a freedom to play. A freedom to show that grit. Whereas, and again, they won it one and three and a half years ago. But during that tournament, you felt there was this pressure to deliver because maybe at the time they thought it would have been Lionel Messi's last workup and their last opportunity to deliver that title to him. they are playing without that freedom, without that pressure.

30:07Frank Leboeuf:They are playing with a freedom that I did not expect and getting rewarded for it. And Lionel Messi continues to be at the center of that. We sit here and we watch Lionel Messi. You know he's a threat. You know where the biggest danger is going to come from. And he's just walking around and chilling. You're not sure whether to stand next to him and have a quiet chat. And then all of a sudden, he just comes to life and finds spaces, has an understanding of not just his position, but everybody else's position, particularly the opponent and where that ball will arrive. That instinct is, you don't teach that.

30:46Frank Leboeuf:He has it in abundance. And I'm not sure how you counter that is a challenge for anybody coming up against Argentina. We know how important Lionel Messi is for Argentina. Also important, the fact that against Switzerland, three goals, of course, none of them were Lionel Messi. Exactly. That in itself is important. But the most important thing is the noise that you hear right now. And the noise that you hear right now is the massage therapies banging their massage tables into the elevator as they're going up to the rooms to go and give these players a massage. Because Argentina's issue, far more so than whether they're experienced, whether they're old, whether they're producing, not producing, playing well, whatever the case may be, is getting this team fit enough to play and ready enough to play.

31:32What we have seen over the last three games is a team that is in decline physically. They are unable to keep up with the pace of the game. And because they're unable to keep up with the pace of the game, those legs look very, very heavy. And if they're unable to somehow revive these legs, then the responsibility is on England to pick up the pace of this match. And if they do, I think Argentina are in trouble. So number one priority for all these players, including Lionel Messi and Julian Alvarez and everybody else, is find some life in those legs that we haven't seen over the last three matches.

32:07Shaq, I know that you still are choosing England in this one, but to Ale's point as well, we just saw goal scorers that were not Lionel Messi and a stunner from Julian Alvarez, who kind of just reminded us that, hey, I've won it all at this stage and I can still be that guy.

32:21Frank Leboeuf:Listen, we know Argentina have talent. That's not been in question. Too often, I will say, particularly when you look pre-2022, too often those talents haven't stepped up, haven't delivered as they know they can. They've had their moments. They've had their moments against Switzerland. But even so, you know where the threat is. We could look at that all we like and break it down as much as we want. We know where Argentina's threat is going to come from. And I think... Nicolás Otamendi. Right. I couldn't remember his first name. That's what it is. And that's the challenge, I guess, if you want to call having Leila Messi on your team.

33:07Frank Leboeuf:That's the challenge. How do you get everybody else to step up with some consistency to support Lionel Messi, what he does? Yeah, well, a lot of history on and off the pitch between these two nations. And undoubtedly, we will see it spilling over on the pitch. But that always makes for an exciting game. Cannot wait for this one on Wednesday. And don't forget that ESPN FC, the morning show, will be back with you tomorrow at 9 a.m. Eastern time over on ESPN2.

33:37Good energy in. Ah, good energy out.

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34:24Right, well, we were just talking about England. Remember this goal from Jude Bellingham? It was the equalizer against Norway. And turns out it was quite a controversial one. There was all this talk about whether or not it hit the spider cam. and if the goal should have stood. Well, everybody, there's a spider cam right there, has been weighing in on it. But of course, we will have a look at what FIFA had to say after the match. This is the initial statement that FIFA put out. And it said, before England's goal in minute 45 plus two against Norway, the sensor in the connected ball showed no peak in the heartbeat of the ball.

35:01When in the air and therefore no evidence that the ball touched the overhead wire and changed the movement of the ball. Well, FIFA made an additional statement to an online German portal, and this is what it said. The spider cam footage clearly shows that the camera is neither shaking nor moving. So we're going to call this one WireGates because it seems to be dividing opinions. But, I mean, I guess if they have the footage and there was no movement in the shot, Ale, then no harm, no foul? I guess so. But in the images that were shown, it looked a lot like that ball changed direction. I don't know what footage they're referring to.

35:42And I don't know exactly what the heartbeat of the ball is. I know. Who knew balls have heartbeats? Well, I guess we're believing the information that they're putting out. But with my own eyes, what I saw is a ball that changed direction. Maybe I'm not seeing very well. And at this advanced age of mid-40s. Is that what we call it? 40s-ish. Yeah. Maybe. Maybe. My eyes are playing tricks on me, but it looked a whole lot like that ball changed direction. And if that's the case, it would seem like there was contact with something. And the only thing that was there in the vicinity were this wire. So that's just me.

36:20I don't know about anybody else. That's the way it looked to me. Shaka, what do you take of it?

36:24Frank Leboeuf:I'm a value on this. Listen, I get FIFA statement. All well and good. Players know. Players know when the flight of a ball is unnatural. And quite clearly, straight away, you see Norwegian players point to it. I believe that. Heartbeat and all. I believe the players' first instincts. They know. Cheka, you've held a lot of footballs. Did you feel the heartbeat? No, they were quite dead. They were quite dead back then. Your hands were. Maybe that was the problem. Maybe that was the problem. Oh, my goodness. Well, they were also talking about the censors and whatnot, Ale. Look, I'm sure that they have some sort of physical proof that they're going to put out or they already have with these statements.

37:17But honestly, live, it looked different. It looked like there was something going on. And to Shaka's point, I actually think that the Norwegian player could have done a better job of actually reacting even more. It's almost as if they were stunned by it or kind of surprised. Like, the flight of this ball changed. Why did it change? And it took a little while to process what had just happened. And it didn't feel like in the moment they were adamant enough to say, bro, it just hit the wire up here. And they were also kind of dismissed by the referee. Like, what are you talking about? Like, play on, yeah.

37:52What are you talking about? Which, that's the other thing. You imagine that the referee would be seeing what the players were seeing as well. That in itself, this feels a little yucky. It feels a little sticky. I don't really care much for it. But what I saw with my eyes, as I said before, it felt like that ball changed direction. As Xhaka said, the players know. And one thing we know about football players, right? You guys never lie. Well, some. Some. These two don't, that's for sure. All right, well, we have a couple more footballers as well over on our other show, Football Americas. We hope you've been enjoying it throughout the World Cup.

38:32We will be back again. Make sure to catch it over on ESPN+.

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39:45Well, the only other person that's been having more fun than us at this World Cup is our favorite comedian and freestyle rapper Chris Turner. He's been hanging out with all the fans across different cities, whether it was the Tartan Army, whether it was the Norwegian Vikings, whether it was the Dutch, but this was definitely our favorite. The Scots always brought a great vibe and now we want to bring a great vibe. That's why we've taken him off the streets and brought him into the studio.

40:10Frank Leboeuf:We've taken him off the streets. He's all right. He has a career. The man has a job. He has a home. He has a home. He doesn't live in the streets, but he likes being out in the streets. He has a cat as well that he has to take care of. He has a cat that he has to get home to. And a wife and child. Yeah, that too. That too. And none of them are on the streets. But he's been having fun on the streets, haven't you, Chris? It's been amazing. Yeah, like you said, the Tartan army in Boston was amazing. What they had in their bags was amazing. Yeah, that was great. I wasn't wearing this shirt up there.

40:39I was playing it very safe. Good professional decision. Yeah. It was so fun. I mean, everyone's been great. It's been even the Dutch guys who were saying player names that I'd never heard of. It's been so much fun. Do you have a favorite? Dare you pick one? A favorite one? A fan base. A favorite fan base? Oh, definitely, definitely the Scots. I think you have to say the Scots, otherwise they get upset. They will get upset. Yeah. And they will leave you in the streets. Battered. All right, well, let's move on now because, Chris, we're going to put you to the test as well in terms of football knowledge and get you involved in our World Cup predictions.

41:12Semi-final time, the top four teams in the world. Really enticing fixtures. A lot of bad blood in between some of the sides. I think you'll know that well. But let's start off with this one that many thought could be the final before the World Cup draw happened. France, Spain. How do you see this going, Chris? I'm going to go with France. You want me to do this for you? I've got a long arm. Primarily because I think if we played, if England, I'm assuming England are getting through. If we played Spain in the final, I think it would be a tight loss to Spain. And then England would feel bad. Whereas I think if we play France in the final, we're going to get absolutely hammered.

41:47I bet you know Shane is in the front. Seems like very sound reasoning. That's one way to do it. You know the English are very pessimistic though. So that goes along those lines. All right, Ale. Okay, well, you know the most important thing here, Chris, is not what you think, not your cat, not your family, but my bracket! Spain has been winning my bracket all along. I'm gonna continue to pick Spain. Ale, has your head changed and your heart? Are they still on the same page? What do you mean? Because France. France just looks so good. I know. Look, I know France are the best team. I know they're the favorites.

42:21But I am stubborn. I will not move from Spain. Spain is my pick. I tell you that, man. All the men in my life, stubborn. Xhaka, what about you?

42:30Frank Leboeuf:Speaking of brackets, I had France to win it all along. I'm not as stubborn as Ali. But I got France. All right. Well, you know what? My heart does say España. We love going to España, don't we, Ali? Barcelona, Ali. Barcelona, Alexis. you will never find a better bunch. But I am going with Le Bleu in this one because also my bracket. You built it up. Michael Olisse deserves a World Cup trophy. Michael Olisse alone deserves it. The likes of La Minha Miles still has more time. So does Olisse, but this time. We've got a way to go after this game. He doesn't get the World Cup trophy if he wins. I know, but he needs to get in the final.

43:08I feel once in the final, I've got that buttoned up. I don't want to tell you how to host this show, but do we move it along? We're going to move it along now because we do have this one. Chris, what's your heart telling you? What's your head telling you?

43:20Frank Leboeuf:My heart and my head and my soul. Shut up, Alexis. I know. Kind of. You've said enough. Let's move on. We're running out of time. He has to get back to his cat. He has to get back to his cat. Chris, England, Argentina, what's your heart telling you? I mean, look, I can't even put it across the Argentina square. And then bullseye right there. Oh, boy. It's coming home across the channel eventually. What's that about English being pessimistic? I think we've got this one. We've got this. We've got it. All right. Ale? All right. You know what? La Isla Marina. Oh! Vamos Argentina! Vamos! That's he caught me balling him.

44:03That's he caught me balling him. Argentina! I think he's angry that I'm standing on his side. Yeah, how did I get this? I mean Venezuela? Hey Jude!

44:21Copyrights, copyrights, we cannot afford them. We cannot afford them. We can only afford Chris. We cannot afford copyright. Nobody's copyrighted. All right. Let me make my pick then. I think honestly, I'm going to go with Argentina. I mean, come on. Come on. I feel like they just have that little extra bite. They're guerreros. They know how to fight. They know how to fight. England, not saying they don't know how to fight, but there's something about a South American scrapper, look at our boy right here, that gets it done in the year. Also, because I would love to see a rematch of France, Argentina, in the final.

44:58Is this more love for Argentina or dislike for England? Oh, there's a lot of that. I'm just saying. There's a lot of that. If we want to take a little trip down historical lanes, we will. But that's on another episode. Okay. All right. Well, I'm going for a cantina. Plus, it looks nice when we're split down the middle. Okay. All right. Well, now we're going to put Chris to the test. Chris, are you ready? I'm so ready. Because we brought you in off the streets. But we want you to give us the vibe from the streets. We're going to put you to the test with now some freestyling. On the spot, we're going to give you a bunch of words.

45:30and all of us get to choose not one, but two words that Chris is going to have to integrate into a freestyle. Are you ready? I'm ready. Yeah, okay. We just need the words. I know. Let's bring the words up. Chris has not seen these before, by the way. Full disclosure. And I'm wide enough to cover them. Yeah, he's blocking them. Half the way. He has his own method to his madness. It's a big TV too. It's a big old screen. Go ahead, Alexis. You're first. Oh, do you want me to go first? Yes. All right. Well, I am going to go with Vane. Alexis. Come on, mix me in, mix me in. And Alexis me, not Sanchez.

46:10And, oh, let me see what else we have. Go with Estadio Azteca. Balogun, mistaken. I'm going with mistaken identity. Because I do tend to get mistaken for Alexis Sanchez all the time.

46:24Frank Leboeuf:Okay. Shaq? My turn? Yeah, sure. I cannot resist. Infantino? I absolutely cannot resist that. Going to get this show taken off the air.

46:36Frank Leboeuf:Beacon of positivity. Oh, wow. Wow. All right. Beacon of positivity. That's him. That's him. We always call our resident beacon of positivity. You take mine. I'll take yours. Algorithm. and this would not be a World Cup in this country without Balogun alright so here are our words Alexis mistaken identity we've got Infantino, Beacon of Positivity Algorithm and Balogun Chris are you ready? DJ let's drop that beat like we said this is a freestyle made up on the spot Alexis Infantino, Algorithm, Mistaken Identity, Beacon of Positivity and Balogun so let's get this going No microphone up in the hand, but we check this respect.

47:30This lady's go first, so we're rhyming. Alexis, Alexis, Alexis, that A, A. It's awesome all the time. Yeah, you know we're going to play. Yeah, we know the guy's shaved head. Infantino Gianni going crazy over there. He goes in his private jet because he's trying to get. Making sure all the pitches are green and wet. I could say some other things, but I might get in trouble. I'm thirsty for the bubbles, get it on the double. I know that Ale chooses with precision. Getting on the feed there with the algorithm You can break it down, of course, they're Silicon Valley They come to town and this one, oh yeah, I'm a Mello fellow But if you make a mistake, hit VAR for that yellow Why?

48:09Because it's really not meant to be It's like this is for you, wait, wrong identity That'd be breaking the rules, mistaking the fools People say Miggie Algoron was cool Because he got the first one, they're switching it round But recently, Briel and Bolo tumbled to the ground and they had to switch it back, they persuade this. This was the Swiss Argentina done by Paredes. Next thing, yeah, looking so pretty. I'm stood right by him, Beacon of Positivity. I've got to give. People say you're pessimistic, but no, you're positive. You're like a lighthouse with a wide-mouthed grin. Feel all of the cheer, the vigour and vim.

48:45And now we're picking the last one. Oh, I've got to confront. This was a guy get a phone call from Donald Trump. It's like, OK, he went in dead hard. Please FIFA, can you take the red card? Balogun was like, I didn't even choose what is happening. All the people like, boo. People went against them, they tell them. USA sadly got knocked out to Belgium, but still the World Cup and we're having some fun. So we end it there, take it back like Balogun. Yes.

49:16Absolutely. Thank you. I could feel you guys get tense when I was rapping about Infantino. That's fine. No, that's all right. I thought when you said the bald-headed guy, I thought... That was your best yet, Chris. That was your best yet. Excellent suggestions. Thank you. That was brilliant. Go team. I'm glad we can take some credit for that. All right. Well, thanks so much, as always, to the one and only... Xhaka's dancing, though. ...the legend, Chris Turner, who came off the streets to freestyle and drop some bars here. Xhaka, Ale Moreno and Xhaka. His stuff will catch you next time. You know where on ESPN FC.

49:54All right, welcome into Extra Time where we can continue having some fun. Thankfully for everyone, Shaka won't be dancing.

50:01Frank Leboeuf:Never again in life. Is it because Alec called you out? Yeah. Alec. Shaka, you could have committed to it. No, no. Alec gave it a little sasun. A little, ah. Eso. Oh. Hey. No, I mean. Shaka gave it the shoulders though. Yeah, but with like this hand like. We don't have any questions. Okay, all right. Let's get into the questions. Let's get into the questions. If we played some carnival music, Shaka would come alive. All right. First question for Ale and Shaka. Are you excited about the greater likelihood of both Trinidad and Tobago and Venezuela making the next World Cup? This is, of course, after FIFA confirmed that they will be considering the option of expanding the World Cup even further.

50:47Frank Leboeuf:I will say, as I said, when they expanded, announced the expansion to 48 teams. 64, again, is pushing way too far. We're going to qualify anyway for 48. I'm not so sure about Venezuela. Oh. We will qualify. For what? What's going on? For the 2030 World Cup. You're qualifying? Yeah. Soccer? Yeah. Already no. Okay. I didn't like 48. I certainly don't like 64. And so, look, Venezuela qualifies. I'll be there singing the national anthem in whatever stadium they're in and I'll be supporting my national team but It doesn't fill me with a whole lot of pride to say well I'll tell you what We made that 64 team World Cup It feels like less of an accomplishment No, absolutely Again, as I said when they went to 48 it should be an exclusive tournament not an inclusive tournament This is not open mic night.

51:45It's not karaoke night not everybody gets a chance. 48 was good, though. I've enjoyed this. Yeah, you've enjoyed, Ale. You've enjoyed the likes of Cabo Verde and stuff coming up. I have. I have not. Ale. Cabo Verde against Argentina? You didn't enjoy that one? Cabo Verde qualified out of their group in Africa. Yeah, but I mean... No, no, no. They qualified in their group out of Africa. They left Cameroon out. So, look, they would have made it into the 32. Yeah. So don't use Cabo Verde as the argument. You want to make an argument for somebody else. Give us more Cinderella stories. I don't care about Cinderella stories.

52:23No, I care about this being an exclusive tournament and the best teams making it into the tournament. Now, once they're here, then of course, you want these teams to participate and do well and get as far as they possibly can because they're representing their nations and what it means to their countries. Absolutely, I'm all for that. But in terms of getting to the tournament itself, it should be 32 teams that should have been it. 48 is not doing anything for me. And 64 certainly will not do anything more for me. Y punto. All right, next question is also for Ale. Ale, do you really not think that almost all 50-50 referee calls in Argentina's games went in favor of Messi's Argentina?

53:02No one is saying that the World Cup is rigged, but isn't that a fact? Whoever this person is that sends this question, did he sit down and count all the calls that went for Argentina that should have gone, and that's in his judgment. So, no, it's not fact. It's an opinion just like it's my opinion and it's your opinion. This is based upon your own biases, that you tend to believe that these things are happening because it is Argentina, because Lionel Messi. I would agree that Lionel Messi should have been thrown out of the game against Algeria. That should have happened, and it didn't. You want to hang on to that as a conspiracy theory?

53:41Go ahead. The Egypt situation is completely different. And I think people need to separate these things. Was it a foul on Lissandra Martinez? Yes, it was. He got stepped on. And that's fact. You can visually see that he got stepped on. And what was supposed to be the foul against Mohamed Salah, it happens as a continuation of a play in tackling the ball. So no foul. We play on. I mean, these are things that I don't think. You cannot argue against Bill Mbolo's red car. Get on Mbolo for being that dumb. Already in a yellow car, you decide to go, hey! You know, and let me just tell you, we don't teach this on the diving camp.

54:23No, no, no, no. That's frowned upon in the diving camp. Frowned upon. The flat-out diving is frowned upon. There has to be some contact, not whatever Bill Mbolo just did. Jack, any issue with Alessia? Nope. Nope, we're moving on.

54:36Frank Leboeuf:Not this version of Vali. Not this version of Vali. It's a little spiky, isn't it? Yeah. No, no, I'm just saying. I just dislike the fact that 50-50 referee calls, that's almost, you're making it sound as if it is fact. That's just an observation bias. That's an opinion. It's not based on fact. It's not based on actually watching every single call and then breaking it down through the laws of the games. So if you're gonna bring opinions, has to be stronger than these opinions. Spicy Ale. I'm just saying. Spicy Ale. You put a little music and then this is what happens. Oh, there we go. We just had some rap music for you.

55:13Spicy Ale is giving Jude Bellingham post-match. Well, yes. I can understand. I appreciate that from Jude Bellingham, actually. Yeah, see? It's just a little bite. We love that. We love that. All right, next question. Ale again. Jeez. Boy, what about you? I'll go up now. I'll just go up now. It's like I just do this. Ale, well, you'll understand why. As yourself, being a forward, Could you understand why Sorloff didn't make that pass to Haaland when it appears Haaland had a clear opportunity at goal? Or did Stones have a good enough position where Sorloff made the right decision to attempt a shot on goal?

55:45It's just, it's a wrong player in the wrong position. Alexander Sorloff just doesn't have that in his game. To be able, there was a passing lane. And John Stones did a good job on trying to deny the angle. There was an angle, but the pass had to be very precise. and he was on Sorlo's right foot initially. He is not right-footed. He didn't want to come around the ball to go and hit the pass because he would have thought that maybe the angle was going to close up. And so he decided to go on his own. I don't think he ever really looked for Haaland to begin with because, again, it's not in his makeup.

56:18It's not what he does. Should have gotten his head up, should have found Haaland. It should have been a different outcome, but he did not. Checo, we agree with Ali, right? Mm-hmm. As a goalkeeper, he agrees as well. And I thought it was well thought out. No anger whatsoever behind it. No edge. Very matter of fact. No, I thought it was an edge, Shaq. Well, not as edgy as he was before.

56:43Frank Leboeuf:That was a pretty high bar. Ale, not a fan of conspiracy theories. No. All right, next question. Also for Ale. No, what is happening? Hey, Shaq, I had enough of this. I'm going to have Shaq. No, Ale. I'm going to have Shaq. We're bringing Xhaka back for the last question. The last question is for Xhaka. All right, Xhaka's just having a little sit-down. Quick question, though. Do I need to move over or do I save myself? Do I be aware of this? It's your extra time, apparently. The next question is for Xhaka. Ale, has playing two consecutive seasons in a deeper position in the midfield under Hansi Flick completely killed off the creativity of our boy, Pedri.

57:21Throughout the tournament, he has barely done anything that made him special in the eyes of a lot of people in the first place? What's going on with our boys? I do think that Pedri hasn't had the tournament that I would have expected him or expected from him. And there have been times in which I find him trying to do too much. There are moments in which his first touch gets him away from pressure and then he starts running with the ball. And I'm like, this is not what he does. This is not what he does. You find the next pass and combine and find the next pass and combine and he's able to break that line of pressure for Spain.

57:56And when I see him running with the ball, it makes me think that he's trying to squeeze a lot more out of his game than he should. He's trying to do too much, maybe because he knows that he's not having determined that he would have won it. I don't think this is a handsy flick situation. I just think sometimes players just don't play well. And sometimes players are not able to find their rhythm. Spain did not have their rhythm early on in the tournament. That may have affected Pedri. but Pedro is going to be critical to the success of Spain if indeed they're going to advance past France. I imagine that he's going to be on the field and he has to play at his best just like Laminya Mal has to play at his best.

58:34Hey, Xhaka! Xhaka, you can call that. Xhaka. Xhaka sleeping. Well, that's not new. That's not the Xhaka sleep. Xhaka, the final question is for you over there. Are you coming over this way?

58:45Frank Leboeuf:Let me see the question first. Okay, the question is, Xhaka, what's going through David Raya's head sitting on the bench as a Premier League champion? Hey, Shaka's back. Hey, that's better dancing than what you were doing before. The show. All right, let's not get on Shaka. Shaka, what's going through David Raya's head, sitting on the bench as a Premier League champion and three-time Golden Glove recipient? Nothing. He must feel some way, though. He knows. He knows he's second behind Unai Simon. He may not even be second, by the way. And he just has to hold that up? Yeah. Mm-hmm. Until Unai Simon does something to be out of the team, that's what you got to do.

59:30Frank Leboeuf:That's the nature of your position. It sounded a lot like Alexis was saying, Chaka, you know very well about being the guy on the bench for the national team. I would never. What was going through your head? What was going through your head? Nothing. Nothing. How is that different than now? So that's just an everyday. Just an everyday thing. I'm going again. I'm going again. No. We have more questions. Actually, no. That was their last question. But I was saying, when Shaka's opportunity came off the bench, he took it by the horns. Shaka, come over here a second. No, no, no, seriously, seriously, seriously.

1:00:04I think we have found my best place on TV. Just do what you were doing with your hand right there. I've never looked better. I've never looked better. This is fantastic, Shaka. All right, well, thankfully for Shaka, that's it for Extra Time. Thank you everyone for sending in your questions. Remember ESPN FC, we are on every day of the week. We hope you come and join us, especially to make Shaka feel appreciated.

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