"Simply bad": Klopp harshly criticizes the opening match of the World Cup

Former Liverpool coach Jurgen Klopp harshly criticized the opening game of the 2026 World Cup, this Thursday (11), at the Azteca Stadium, in Mexico City. In the opening match of the first edition of the tournament played with 48 teams, Mexico beat South Africa 2-0.

The Global Head of Football for the Red Bull group signed a contract with MagentaTV to comment on the World Cup. Klopp called the game "simply bad" from a technical point of view. The German also added that neither team played well.

Another highlight of the match was Wilton Pereira Sampaio, who refereed the match, with Bruno Pires and Bruno Boschilia as assistants. VAR was handled by Colombian Nicolas Gallo. The confrontation was marked by three expulsions: Sithole and Zwane, for South Africa, and Montes, for Mexico.

When asked about the cards, Klopp said: "That situation pretty much sums up the whole game. Tactically, it was simply bad! Neither team played well."

"11 against 9 and then you get caught in the counterattack. Why? Because the last line was too far back," he added.

How the game went
With the result, Mexico won a World Cup opening game for the first time. The team, which is opening the World Cup for the sixth time, had not won on any of the five previous occasions: there were defeats to France (1930), Brazil (1950) and Sweden (1958), as well as draws with the Soviet Union (1970) and South Africa itself (2010).

In the eighth minute, Sithole made a mistake with the ball, Erik Lira disarmed and left Quiñones in a position to finish. The striker shot low, from inside the area, and opened the scoring, securing the first goal of the 2026 World Cup. With one more player, Mexico doubled in the 21st minute.

Even with the reduced numerical advantage, the Mexicans were not threatened in the final minutes. The match, which lasted until 52 minutes in the second half, ended with the home team's vast superiority in finishing: 16 to 4.

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Source: CNN