Mark Langdon: The best and worst of the World Cup – Messi magic, Murphy's cat and one sickening 'Siuuuu!'

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We are nearly at the finishing line – 102 matches down, with just two fixtures to go and one of them barely counts. 

Congratulations for surviving the 2026 World Cup however you managed it, whether that was in North America with the heat, humidity, altitude, long distance travelled and extraordinarily high expenses, or closer to home with the late nights and the remarkable tales of BBC co-commentator Danny Murphy's cat.

Going into the World Cup Lord of the Rings was widely seen as the greatest trilogy of all time but that was until Murphy's cat, Bob, entered this World Cup. From jumping in a Royal Mail van and going missing, to becoming feral and bullying his sister Mary to eventually being moved on to live in Preston – it was a story that, much like this World Cup, had it all.

There are too many reasons to list here as to why this World Cup should not have worked, but despite everything being against it, this has been a strong tournament. Here are my highs and lows from the past five weeks, or at least the ones I remember.

Best match

It's got to be England's 3-2 win over Mexico. The camaraderie of knowing you were putting in the hard yards with everyone else up at 4am on a Monday morning. The ten men. Dan Burn's header to the halfway line. The Djed Spence redemption arc. The brilliance of Jude Bellingham. The Azteca atmosphere. Bloody hell. It was brilliant.

Best goal

I will admit this is partly the pocket talking as I backed Eldor Shomurodov to be top Uzbekistan scorer and this at least meant he dead-heated in the market but the inch-perfect lob against DR Congo was still a thing of beauty.

Best player

It's Lionel Messi. When is it not Lionel Messi? He is level with Kylian Mbappe for most goals (eight) and only one behind Michael Olise in the assists chart with four. He is 39. Sunday might be the last time we get to watch him in an elite fixture. Drink it in and never take it for granted you lived through the Messi era.

Best performance

This is possibly recency bias but Spain put in an absolute masterclass in control to beat France in Tuesday's semi-final. Rodri was exceptional in midfield, the full-backs defended like lions and attacked like, er, tigers, and it was all done with the feeling that there is still more to come from Lamine Yamal. Maybe he is saving that for Sunday's final with Argentina.

France deserve a shoutout too for their desire to play attack-minded football and the swashbuckling demolition of Sweden when Mbappe sizzled but the lopsided nature of their team was eventually found out.

Best kit

What's French for chic? Their minty, light green away kit was a winner.

Kylian Mbappe and Desire Doue look cool in the French away kitCredit: ISI Photos via Getty Images

Best fans

The Scotland takeover of Fenway Park for a baseball match was actually quite emotional. No Scotland, no party indeed but the Tartan Army should demand more from their team.

Best refereeing announcement

"After review, number ten, Paraguay, covers his mouth. Decision is red card!" That is what Salvadoran referee Ivan Barton belted out after sending off Miguel Almiron and "Decision is red card" has now become a popular social media meme.

Breakthrough star

Phil Neal was a smash hit for all the wrong reasons as England assistant manager during Graham Taylor's "Impossible Job" documentary but there was no "yes boss" from this year's number two. 

Step forward Anthony Barry and his short and sweet half-time interviews which came to be one of the highlights of England matches. But his first, unexpected one, where he spoke honestly of a "confusing and complicated" performance was a genuine WTF moment.

Moment of the tournament

Surely even the miserable sods enjoyed Cape Verde's celebrations after their 0-0 draw against Spain? Goalkeeper Vozinha had the match of his dreams and is now the most popular goalkeeper on Instagram with 29 million followers. It was a life-changing moment for the out-of-contract keeper, who said: "I will choose a club that wants to sign me for my footballing ability, not for marketing." Yeah right. 

Cape Verde keeper Vozinha is a World Cup heroCredit: AFP via Getty Images

Most sickening moment of the tournament

I was in the US watching Fox's coverage of Portugal against Uzbekistan when British commentator Darren Fletcher shouted "Siuuuu!" after Cristiano Ronaldo scored.

Biggest disappointment

Fifa have shown us who they are on more than one occasion but even by their standards the decision to allow Folarin Balogun to avoid suspension after a red card was disgraceful. It was just as well the US went out to Belgium the following day.

What I got wrong

I thought it would be a low-scoring tournament and therefore ante-post I took on the big guns in the belief it would be a World Cup of extra-time and penalties, but trusting Roberto Martinez to make the right calls was the biggest mistake. How could he look at that Portugal midfield and think Ronaldo is what they needed up front? And when it was not working he lacked the courage to change it. What a coward.

Cristiano Ronaldo and Roberto Martinez's relationship was too friendlyCredit: AFP via Getty Images

All aboard the hype train

What's that? An exciting and dynamic player from Switzerland? That will soon get knocked out of him but Johan Manzambi's impact on this tournament was clear for all to see. Unfortunately for Newcastle, it looks as if they have been gazumped by Aston Villa, who will be hoping he doesn't turn out to be the 2026 version of El-Hadji Diouf or Kleberson.

Betting lesson

There was a clear advantage to playing later in the race for third-place spots. 

Senegal (Group I) knew they had to chase goals when beating Iraq 5-0 whereas South Korea (-1 goal difference Group A) and Scotland (-3 goal difference Group C) were unsure of what good looked like when their last fixture was played.

Iran (Group G) were piling forward during their draw with Egypt but were unable to find a winner in a game where a point would have been considered a decent result in normal circumstances, while Uruguay (Group H) were simply not good enough to get near Spain.

Guilty pleasure

I don't hate the "hydration" breaks. There I said it. They are a bit annoying inside the stadium but, whisper it quietly not to annoy the proper football men, on TV it works fine. An extra break to go to the toilet, or grab some food, or quickly do a drink run in the pub is perfect.

Erling Haaland cools off during a hydration breakCredit: FIFA via Getty Images

Read more on the World Cup:

Spain vs Argentina: 13-2 Bet Builder tip, odds, team news 

Spain vs Argentina World Cup Bet Builder tips, picks and odds 

France vs England: 4-1 Bet Builder tip, odds, team news 

France vs England World Cup Bet Builder tips, picks and odds 

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