FIFA World Cup Russia 2018 (Promo)

Lionel Messi wasn't available at the pre-match press conference for Argentina's World Cup semifinal against Croatia on Monday. He wasn't, in fact, expected to be; the PSG talisman hardly ever attends a press conference.

But that doesn't mean he is shying away from the focus or trying to steer off any controversy he caused during and after the game against the Netherlands.

We've already seen how Messi led his team against the Netherlands, with his skill and with his words, even turning violent at times. That is something Argentina team is apparently comfortable with – the feisty Messi, the Messi that rallies his team and teammates.

Lionel Scaloni, the Argentina coach and Nicolas Tagliafico, the midfielder, voiced their support to this new avatar of Messi, and they apparently want more of it.

"I am not surprised because I know him," Scaloni said of his talismanic forward. "It was always like this. He was always the same, a winner. And he has a pride and a desire to continue playing ball that they envy."

Taglificao, sitting beside Scaloni, was more forthright in his regards for Messi: "Having Messi motivates us, we are delighted that he is our captain"

Croatia's plans, meanwhile, will not centre around Messi only, as Bruno Petkovic said on Sunday that they would be looking to stop the entire team from working, not just Messi.

While Argentina had a rough start to the tournament with a stunning defeat against Saudi Arabia before kicking into gear in the group stages and then scripting exhausting wins over Australia and the Netherlands, Croatia too didn't make life easy for themselves with back-to-back shootout victories at the knockout stages. But that is something Croatia are happy to live with, having navigated the path to the final after extra-time in every knockout stage match in Russia four years ago. They are a battle-hardened side with plenty of strong characters in all the positions, with Luka Modric the creative spark, just like Messi.

Any notion of playing boring football was summarily brushed aside by Croatia coach Zlatko Dalic at the pre-match press conference. "We are in the semifinals and we are here by merit. That's the end of the topic," he said in reply to a question.

Selection-wise, Croatia are in a better position as they have no suspension and no serious injuries to contend with, unlike Argentina, who have defenders Gonzalo Montiel and Marcos Acuna suspended. However, the good news for the Argentines is that both Angel di Maria and Gonzalo Montiel are available for selection even though they are not likely to start.

With both teams having won twice against each other and the other match ending in a draw, there is not much to separate the two sides, even though the only time these two sides met in a World Cup ended in a convincing 3-0 win for the European side in Russia four years ago.

But that was a different Argentina team, who had only squeezed into the Round of 16 with a one-point advantage and made a meek exit after the Croatia thrashing. In Lusail tonight, they will certainly be a different beast, with a massive legion of fans egging them on for victory.

France won the match, but not the hearts.

The first semifinal between the two best sides of the World Cup failed to live up to its Battle Royale billing. It was a good match but could have been great had France not played negative football. There was no reason for France to play defensively.

Didier Deschamps could not emerge as a coach of attacking and entertaining football despite having all the weapons in his armoury to do so. He brought the most talented and balanced side among all 32 teams to Russia. Thirteen of the 23 players are of African origin. They were solid everywhere in the line-up, with equally qualified alternatives on the bench. They were all young, hugely talented and highly adventurous.

Yet, the game plan of France's 1998 World Cup-winning captain was solely aimed at winning the match, not the hearts of fans who love beautiful football. He was an orthodox defender in his playing days and has brought that defensive football gene into his coaching. What a disappointment!  

It was a sore sight during most of the first half when play was limited to France's half, with Roberto Martinez's men attacking and Deschamps's young talents defending. Thanks to a chancy header by Samuel Umtiti from a curling corner by Antoine Griezmann after the break, France could get away with their ugly game and reach the final for the third time. A goal came from a set-piece in an unlikely France way. It was the first goal by France from a set-piece in this tournament.

My heart really goes out to Belgium, and I can't agree more with captain Eden Hazard for feeling so bitter about France's style of play.    

"I prefer to lose with Belgium than win with France," said Hazard after the match. "We know Deschamps' France. We expected that, but we couldn't find that little spark to score a goal. I didn't find it. France scored first and it became difficult.”

Belgium indeed played brilliant football. They had far better ball possession (64 percent), number of passes (595 against France's 345) and corners (5 against France's 4). The Red Devils ruled the whole pitch yet something went wrong when their marksmen entered the D-box and tried to shoot or head into the net --  just some small things they could not do right in front of the goal like Brazil, their opponents in the quarterfinals.

Lady Luck was with them against Brazil, but three days later, against France, she switched sides.

A reversal of fate it may seem. Against Brazil, Belgium chose to keep fending off waves of attacks before knocking the five-time champions out of the tournament on fast counters. Tuesday night saw a role reversal, with Belgium, like Brazil, on the offence and France, like Belgium against Brazil, on the back foot. Belgium dominated the match and France got lucky on the counter.

However, it was really eye-pleasing the way Eden Hazard played his game. He was always busy, doing something -- either winning the ball from his opponents' feet, making diagonal passes, dodging, turning and twisting to free himself from 2-3 chasing defenders or shooting on target. He was truly hazardous for France.

To me, Hazard was the best player with No. 10 jersey in this World Cup. And it is sad that he won't be the one to kiss the famous cup on July 15. But thank you, Hazard, for making football beautiful.

The writer is former Sports Editor of The Daily Star

We know that football players work extraordinarily hard to reach the heights of success and the payment they receive for it often makes us feel extraordinarily poor. Not only do we swoon over their lifestyle, some footballers' tastes, as reflected in their homes, have left us speechless more than once. 

So, here are 5 most beautiful houses of footballers that make us wish we could live there:

Didier Drogba

Drogba's $21 million ivory mansion looks like something straight out of a big-budget Hollywood movie. Complete with seven bedrooms, a leisure complex with an indoor pool, and a wooden staircase spiralling through the middle of the house, this insanely beautiful 11,000 square-feet property is complete with a sports museum within itself. The absolute show-stopper of this house has to be the pool that opens up to a beautiful garden through bi-folding doors. 

Wayne Rooney

Yes, this Manchester United striker has been among the highest-paid footballers in the world for many years and clearly has the money to buy a palace anytime he wants. But that is not what landed him on our list. After buying the Cheshire Mansion for $6 million, Rooney invested his time, effort, and a huge sum of money to turn it into his own dream home. Currently standing on a market valuation of approximately $18 million, his home now includes a large indoor pool, a home theatre, beautifully landscaped gardens, and a sports museum. There is also a golf simulator inside the house. You know, just in case Rooney gets tired of winning too many football matches. 

Cristiano Ronaldo

People say that you can tell a lot about a person from their house and it could not be truer for Cristiano Ronaldo. The star Portuguese player's $7.2 million house is a breath-taking beauty, perfectly portraying the extravaganza in the true Ronaldo fashion. Featuring a whole 8000 square feet of elegance and class, Ronaldo's house consists of seven bedrooms, two swimming pools, a beautiful garden, and a trophy room for him to showcase all his awards. The architectural beauty of this mansion's interior is also presented through various reflective surfaces in the bedroom, living room, and dining hall that speak class and elegance like none other. 

Andres Iniesta 

Andres Iniesta is someone who manages to make a gigantic house look quite homely. The beautiful house was custom-built for him nearly ten years ago, with almost every corner of the house containing a personalised touch as per the player's requirements. His name and shirt number are featured on the exterior wall while his badges from Barcelona and Spain adorn other walls. 

The star player has five bedrooms, a large swimming pool, and a small chapel built inside the house, along with a line of A-class facilities at his disposal. 

David Beckham

Any list of luxury is incomplete without mentioning this iconic English footballer. Beckham and his family currently reside in a mansion befitting their royal image, with eight bedrooms, a spa, a gym, nail bars, and an indoor waterfall! 

The $65 million property has been dubbed the "Beckingham Palace II", with their previous estate in the British countryside to be known as Beckingham Palace I. Oh! And let's not forget David and Victoria's latest purchase, a countryside estate with ten bedrooms overlooking a land large enough to have 380 football pitches. A mic-drop moment for the Beckham pair, and a jaw-drop for us!

L-R: KYLIAN MBAPPE, EDEN HAZARD, LUKA MODRIC, HARRY KANE

The semifinal line-up is complete and two intriguing, all-European ties lie in wait. But while the teams in the last four of Russia 2018 hail from the same continent, the similarities end there. France, Belgium, England and Croatia all boast very different attributes. This article on FIFA.COM takes a look at the salient features of the four semifinalists.

FRANCE: VERSATILITY

Not so long ago, Didier Deschamps would have been criticised for this aspect of his France team, with some journalists alleging that Les Bleus had a thousand faces and no real identity. In fact, it is emerging as a vital attribute. Functional during their group matches, France were spectacular against Argentina, then solid and efficient against Uruguay. Three different French teams? No -- the same, but with different tactics.

France know how to adapt their style depending on their opponents, and that is a rare and precious ability. The tactical set-up can be 4-3-3 one match and 4-2-3-1 the next, while Deschamps can decide to use Olivier Giroud's size or Kylian Mbappe's speed to destabilise defences. As we've seen during this World Cup, there are no weak teams anymore and even giants like Germany and Spain had a hard time playing 'their game'. Possession doesn't ensure victory and experience doesn't guarantee success. Options are everything.

BELGIUM: TEAM SPIRIT

The Belgians arrived with one of the best squads on paper, but their biggest success in Russia has been establishing strong collective values.

This may represent their most important asset simply because it has not always been present in the past. Nor has this Belgium team previously been famed for resilience, which they showed in bucket-loads against both Japan and Brazil. Their star individuals, including the magic trio of Eden Hazard, Kevin de Bruyne and Romelu Lukaku, have stepped up when needed. But it's also worth noting that the Red Devils have had nine different goalscorers in Russia. Everyone is playing their part.

Roberto Martinez, too, seems to be the right man at the right time, as he looks to have found a way to get the best from his collection of stars and bring them together as a unit. In this Belgian squad, everyone is fit to play and ready to make sacrifices on the pitch or, in some cases, to accept their status as substitutes and support their team-mates.

ENGLAND: VARIETY

Picking a single strength to define England is increasingly difficult, as Gareth Southgate's side continue to find new and different ways to win. We're all becoming accustomed to how this young, ever-improving side uses confidence, a modern system and togetherness to its advantage. They are prepared for any match situation, any opposition and their game management is ruthlessly effective.

England have even won their first World Cup penalty shootout here in Russia, and that is before we even begin to examine the individual stars, from their heroic goalkeeper Jordan Pickford to the talisman and tournament top-scorer, Harry Kane - each just 24 years of age.

This could be the most complete England side we have seen since 1990, the last time the Three Lions reached a semi-final. Yet this team, with its modern, patient and composed approach to the game, is also breaking the Three Lions mould. They are here to make their own history.

CROATIA: MIDFIELD TALENT

Given the manner in which they sailed through arguably Russia 2018's most difficult group, and survived two stern tests in the knockout stages, Croatia have been one of the teams of the tournament. The greatest asset that Zlatko Dalic's side possess is undoubtedly their midfield, which ranks as one of the best at this World Cup. The players in that department of the team almost always seem composed, organised and unruffled.

Luka Modric and Ivan Rakitic are the lynchpins of this Croatia team. It is not often that players from Madrid and Barcelona combine to such devastating effect, but that is exactly what Rakitic is doing with Modric at the heart of the Vatreni engine room. They are far from alone though. Add in Inter Milan's Marcelo Brozovic, Real Madrid's Mateo Kovacic, Fiorentina's Milan Badelj and it all adds up to a truly superb generation of Croatian midfielders.

If you discount World Cup pedigree, which has actually had little or no bearing in Russia 2018 so far, there is little to choose from between France and Belgium when the two European nations lock horns in the first semifinal at the Saint Petersburg Stadium today.

The weather is very conducive -- not hot like Samara or Kazan. It was actually overcast when the French trained yesterday. And Petersburg is expected to be as cool as 17 degrees Celcius when France will look to keep their World Cup record intact against a Belgian side that has conquered five-time champions Brazil in a hard-fought quarterfinal.

France are a young side. They came into this tournament as the most talented side, which Belgium was bracketed as four years ago in Brazil. The Belgians might have failed to live up to their potential then, when they were eliminated from the quarterfinal stages, but France have showed more maturity in their youth to battle their way past Argentina in the round of 16 before dispatching two-time champions Uruguay 2-0 in the quarterfinal.

Both teams have got the firepower to surprise the other despite the fact that they play almost the same style and their players know each other very well. It will be a golden opportunity for France coach Didier Deschamps to win the title both as a player and manager for the Les Bleus after leading the side to their first-ever World Cup glory in 1998.

However, Belgium have showed the tenacity needed to overcome adversity in this World Cup so far. They came from 2-0 down to beat Japan 3-2 and then kept Brazil at bay to make it to the last four for only the second time since 1986, when they finished third. It was also the year they met France at the biggest stage and lost the position deciding game 4-2.

For Deschamps it will be a challenge to confront his Belgian counterpart Roberto Martinez, who successfully adopted a different formation against Brazil. The French coach however said that he was well aware of that and ready to counter any changes in formation in the game.

Martinez said after the victory against Brazil that it was the best thing that happened for him and his side but yesterday he said that the mission is yet to be accomplished.

“We have a tough game against France. And a win will take us to the final. We will be proud if we can do that,” Martinez told reporters.

Out in the middle, it will be a battle within a battle. It will be Kylian Mbappe's time to take his growing reputation one notch higher after his exploits against Argentina. Belgium's Romelu Lukaku will try to emulate the speed and guile of Mbappe. It will be a classic battle between Antoine Griezmann and Eden Hazard, a clash between Paul Pogba and Kevin De Bruyne, a fight between Vincent Kompany and Raphael Varane.

More importantly, it will be a clash of titanic proportions for the tournament's two most impressive goalkeepers -- Thibaut Courtois and Hugo Lloris.

Four years after the Brazil disappointment, Belgium have matured and that will probably be their biggest strength against a French side who have got more depth in attack and defence. But whoever wins, it promises to be a cracker of a semifinal, even for those who have lost their appetite for the World Cup following the departure of the two South American rivals -- Brazil and Argentina.