FIFA World Cup is like one giant football crossroad, a meeting point of who-is-who in the world of this beautiful game, with hundreds of famous faces from past and present.And it’s the opportunity for many former and present players to see each other after years, to catch up and talk about the old days.But it’s not so usual to see such a charming – and, fair to say, a tad bit complicated – match-up like the one we’ll have in the World Cup semifinals. It includes as many as two coaches and two players from all four teams still fighting for the title – France, Argentina, Croatia and Morocco.France eye World Cup glory as Morocco loomIf you’re confused with our main article photo and those arrows going in all directions, here’s a reasonable explanation. Or at least, a nice attempt to do so…Basically, the man who connects the most guys and places here is the Atlas Lions’ coach Walid Regragui. He was quite a journeyman back in the day, playing in many European teams. Among them were the Spanish club Racing Santander and the French slot Grenoble. In the former, he spent two years, from 2004 to 2006, and for a while, he shared a locker room with current Argentina gaffer Lionel Scaloni, who made 25 appearances for the same team in the 2006-07 season.Of the 4 coaches to take part in the World Cup semi-finals, 2 played for Racing Santander in LaLiga in 2006. Lionel Scaloni and Walid Regragui never actually played together on the field, but who would’ve expected them to be leading World Cup semi-finalists 16 years later? pic.twitter.com/B3JA8jk5JW— Sam Leveridge (@samleveridge) December 11, 2022 After leaving Santander, Regragui joined Dijon before moving to Grenoble in 2007. There, as a veteran, he met a promising youngster who was just picking up his first senior minutes with the then-second division side. That young man was Olivier Giroud, one of the best French players in the previous decade and more.Olivier Giroud was teammates with Morocco manager Walid Regragui. Both of them played for Grenoble in 2008. 14 years later, their paths will cross again in the semi-final of the World Cup! pic.twitter.com/ugNeXzIstO— EuroFoot (@eurofootcom) December 11, 2022 Last but not least, the miraculous art of life connected the previously mentioned Lionel Scaloni with another participant in the 2022 World Cup semifinals. That is Croatia’s reserve forward Marko Livaja, who got a chance to play several games as Scaloni’s teammate back in the 2013-14 season in Serie A slot Atalanta.Arhivska 📷.Previše sam vremena potrošio, a ovo je najbolja (zapravo i jedina) fotografija na kojoj se nalaze Marko Livaja i današnji izbornik 🇦🇷 – Lionel Scaloni (igrač u pozadini) koju sam uspio pronaći.Njih dvojica su zajedno odigrali 8 utakmica u dresu Atalante 2013. pic.twitter.com/oGdnXkVEZR— Kristijan Kremenjaš (@kikikremenjas23) December 11, 2022 Yes, we know, like an infinite loop… But that’s just another virtue of this World Cup full of surprises. And surprising encounters.QATAR 2022 WORLD CUP1/2 FINALSTuesday22.00: (1.95) Argentina (3.40) Croatia (4.50)Wednesday22.00: (1.60) France (3.70) Morocco (7.50)***odds are subject to change
