Croatia stun Argentina 3-0 to qualify for last 16 stage
Nizhny Novgorod (Russia), June 22 : A far superior Croatia stunned heavyweights Argentina 3-0 to qualify for the knockout stages and leave their opponents' fate hanging by a thread in a crunch Group D encounter here.
Second half goals during the match on Thursday from Ante Rebic (53rd), Luka Modric (80th) and Ivan Rakitic (90+1) ensured Croatia stretched their winning run to two games after they breezed past Nigeria 2-0 in their opener.
Lionel Messi's Argentina, who drew with minnows Iceland in their first game of the competition, will now have to depend on favours from other teams in their group after winning against Nigeria in their last engagement to harbour any hopes of advancing to the next stage.
The 2014 World Cup finalists have one point from two games while Croatia have six from two outings.
The game started with Croatia's Ivan Perisic forcing Argentina goalkeeper Wilfredo Caballero's into a low save for a corner in the 5th minute.
Messi nearly got on the end of a sumptuous lobbed ball into the box two minutes later, but his outstretched toe could not reach it with Croatia goalkeeper Danijel Subasic caught in no-man's land.
Real Madrid midfield mainstay Luka Modric and FC Barcelona counterpart Ivan Rakitic combined well in midfield as the European outfit looked the better team in the opening exchanges.
For Argentina, Maximiliano Meza was found free in the middle of the box but his low shot was well-blocked by Dejan Lovren.
At the other end, Argentina's relatively untested back three found their going difficult and on a couple of occasions almost paid the price for lack of communication.
Croatian defenders led by Liverpool's Lovren too looked out of sorts on one occasion and it was due to their incoherence that the ball fell to Enzo Perez who had an empty net in front of him but hammered a shot into the side netting just before the half hour mark.
Mario Mandzukic had the best chance of the half when Sime Vrsaljko's cross found the Juventus striker but 32-year old headed inches wide of target.
In first half stoppage time, Rebic also spurned a good chance from a super Modric through ball as both teams went into the break locked level.
Moments after the break, Gabriel Mercado received a yellow card for a tackle to stop Rebic from breaking through the midfield.
Sergio Aguero forced a save in the 53rd minute with a quick turn and shot from the left of the box. Seconds later, Croatia were celebrating their opener after a Caballero blunder handed Rebic a golden chance.
The Chelsea keeper tried a chipped pass over Rebic but the ball fell to the winger, who volleyed over Caballero to give his side the lead.
Rebic came off with an injury soon after and Argentina fans whistled their disapproval when Aguero made way for Gonzalo Higuain in the 64th.
Meza's shot at the near post was well-saved by Subasic as Argentina looked to equalise.
All their hopes, though, were dashed in the 80th minute when Real Madrid man Modric curled home a remarkable effort from outside the box.
Rakitic then completed the rout in second-half-stoppage time -- the FC Barcelona midfielder passing past Caballero after the Argentine defence gave up on the play in their own box.
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Ramesh flays BJP MPs' praise of Modi, compares Parliament to North Korea's Assembly
Thiruvananthapuram (PTI): Congress leader and senior parliamentarian Jairam Ramesh has criticised BJP MPs for "excessively" praising Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the Parliament, saying their actions sometimes give him the feeling that he is sitting in the Supreme People's Assembly of North Korea, a totalitarian Communist country.
In an interview with PTI, Ramesh responded to questions related to India's foreign policy in the wake of attacks on Iran by the forces of the US and Israel, alleging that all matters concerning the country- -including external affairs and finance- -are handled by a single man.
The longtime Rajya Sabha MP said he sometimes felt he was "sitting in the Parliament of North Korea"- -a reference to the actions of members of the SPA when their supreme leader, Kim Jong Un, enters- -when he listened to speeches from the treasury benches in New Delhi.
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"Today, it's a one-man show. It's a one-man band. So it's the PM's foreign policy, it's the PM's budget. Everything is the PM," Ramesh said.
The AICC general secretary in-charge (Communications) said that when he sat in Parliament in the morning, he was the first to arrive and the last to leave.
The senior leader said he came, sat regularly and diligently, and remained there throughout the day.
"Sometimes I get the impression that I'm sitting in the Parliament of North Korea. I listen to the people from the BJP. Whatever be the subject, whatever the issue, 90 per cent of the speech will be praising the Prime Minister. Nothing to do with the subject, nothing to do with the bill. They will be praising the Prime Minister."
"When the Prime Minister enters, slogans, you know, table thumping, sloganeering, 'Modi, Modi, Modi.' This is the Parliament of India," Ramesh alleged.
He said even at moments of national triumph, such scenes were rare.
Referring to the 1971 war with Pakistan, he said then prime minister Indira Gandhi may have received an enthusiastic response on December 16, 1971, when Pakistan surrendered, and when the late Atal Bihari Vajpayee called her "Durga".
"Maybe that day everybody would have cheered her. But this one, every time he walks in... Modi bhajanam," he said.
"This has never happened. When Mr Nehru walked in, nobody said, ‘Nehru, Nehru, Nehru," Ramesh said, launching a broader attack on the foreign policy of Prime Minister Modi, particularly in the context of developments in West Asia.
"It is very clear that the Modi government is totally allied with Israel. It is afraid of (US President Donald) Trump. It has embraced Israel. It is very unfortunate," he said.
Referring to the 2023 attacks by Hamas in Israel, Ramesh said: "What happened on October 7, 2023, was absolutely unacceptable. No question about it."
However, he added, "What Israel has done subsequently, and what the US has supported along with Israel to do in Gaza and in Iran, that also is equally unacceptable."
He accused the government of abandoning India's traditional position.
"We recognised the State of Palestine on November 18, 1988. We were amongst the first countries in the world. And look at what we are doing now. In this regard, India has demonstrated moral cowardice," he said.
On India's economic exposure to the Middle East region, Ramesh noted the scale of migration and remittances.
"The total number of Indians working in the region is almost 10 million. We get about 40 or 50 billion dollars in terms of remittances every year. Kerala's economy is heavily, absolutely dependent," he said, stressing that "the security and safety of Indian citizens is absolutely important."
Ramesh alleged that India's independent foreign policy was now "a thing of the past".
"It's not foreign policy, it's not diplomacy. I call it huggomacy. Hug everybody and show that you're personal friends," he said, taking a dig at PM Modi.
He alleged that key announcements were being made from Washington rather than New Delhi.
"The first announcement that Operation Sindoor was going to be halted came from Washington. The first announcement of the trade deal came from Washington. The first announcement of stopping Russian oil came from Washington. Why can’t we take our people into confidence," he asked.
Responding to suggestions that the Congress position amounted to a Leftist stance, he said: "It's not a left position. This is the nationalist position. We are taking a nationalist position."
He cited India's stand during the 1971 Bangladesh crisis.
"Look at 1971, the American position on Bangladesh, how they tried to make life impossible for Indira Gandhi and how she stood up to Richard Nixon," he said.
Ramesh said that India's strategic autonomy must be preserved.
"Nobody can dictate to us what our relationship with Russia will be," he said, referring to longstanding defence and energy ties.
He alleged India's standing had declined.
"In my view, our standing has come down dramatically," he said, alleging that foreign policy was increasingly being used for domestic political polarisation.
