DAY 17 PODCAST: Today's astounding games were packed with superlative moments that make the World Cup a tournament for the ages. Morocco's decisive penalty shutout of Spain brought tears of joy to literally billions of people for whom Morocco represented the last hope in this tournament: hope for the Arab world, hope for Africa, hope for the underdogs, and an anti-colonial sock in the eye for all the peoples victimized by Spanish colonization since the Battle of Ceuta in 1415. The Moroccan team celebrated their victory not with their own flag, but with the Palestinian flag - a huge show of international solidarity that has been a running theme throughout this World Cup. This triumph was no stroke of luck - Morocco simply outplayed Spain by playing smart and steady, beating Luis Enrique's tiki-taka at his own game, with the coup de grace delivered by Hakimi through a cheeky Panenka kick that brought the world to tears of joy. The last game in the Round of 16 saw Cristiano Ronaldo benched for the first time in a major tournament game since 2004; and the rest of the Portuguese team, finally free from the shadow of a singular global superstar, produced a stupendous runabout of the Swiss that showcased a brilliant new generation of football stars to the world. Ronaldo's replacement, 21-year-old Gonçalo Ramos who went into the game with just 35 minutes of experience at the international level, dazzled the world by scoring the first and only hat-trick of the World Cup; and, along with fellow goal-scorers Pepe, Guerreiro, and Leão, was supported by a fabulous ensemble team with a liberated spirit of play that mirrored the 'joga bonito' of their Lusophone counterparts in Brazil. We recap our favorite moments, trot out some fun facts, and figure out what to do with ourselves in the two days of darkness before the quarterfinals.
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