The Round of 16 produced a record number of goals and only one surprise.

A total of 28 goals were scored in the Round of 16 in Qatar. According to Opta data, in no other World Cup have more goals been scored since this stage began to be played. That was in Mexico 1986.

In fact, the record was held by the edition held in Aztec lands, which ended up being won by Diego Maradona's Argentina. At that time, two more goals were scored than in the current orbital event.

The podium was completed by the tournament held in 1994 in the United States, where Brazil won the title. Twenty-five goals were scored in the Round of 16, one more than in Russia four years ago.

This means that 188 goals have been scored so far since the round of 16 has been played in World Cups. Portugal, with the six goals scored on Tuesday, is the team that has scored the most goals in a round of 16. It surpassed the five scored by Spain against Denmark in 1986.

Surprises in the Quarterfinals of the World Cup.

The Qatar 2022 World Cup is still underway and only eight teams remain in the race. The big surprise in the quarterfinals of the championship is undoubtedly the Moroccan national team. The Lions of Atalas joined the list of surprises in the history of the World Cup at this stage.

Morocco is taking part in the World Cup for the sixth time and, to date, had managed to get out of the group stage only once (Mexico 1986). It is clear that this is not a team that counts as a candidate, but it has made a splash at the Qatar 2022 World Cup.

The team coached by Walid Regragui got through the group stage, leaving out a strong team like Belgium. Then, when it seemed that they had everything uphill against Spain in the round of 16, they drew 0-0 and won in the penalty shootout. Now several of the surprises of the quarterfinals of previous World Cups are coming back to the fans' memory. 

Brazil and Croatia open the Qatar World Cup quarterfinals.

 The match between the green and yellow team and the Croatian team will be played at the Education City Stadium, in the city of Al Rayan, seven kilometers from downtown Doha.

Brazil, perhaps the top candidate for the title in Qatar 2022, will face Croatia, current world runner-up, this Friday in an attractive match that will start the quarterfinals of the World Cup.

The match will be played at the Education City Stadium, in the city of Al Rayan, seven kilometers from downtown Doha.

The referee will be the Englishman Michael Oliver, who will be accompanied by his compatriots Stuart Burt and Alan Beswick and the Algerian Mustapha Ghorbal as fourth official, while the Dutchman Pol Van Boekel will be in charge of the VAR.

The winner of this match will play in the semifinals against the winner of the match between Argentina and the Netherlands, which will also take place this Friday but later, at 16:00.

If the match between Brazil and Croatia ends in a draw at the end of the 90 minutes, there will be another 30 minutes of extra time, and if the match is still tied, the semifinalist will be decided by a series of penalty kicks.

Just by mentioning the two "10" players that will offer the show at Al Rayan, one can become aware of the hierarchy of the match: Neymar for Brazil, recovered from the ankle sprain suffered in the debut against Serbia, and Luka Modric for the Balkan team.

A level of excellence between teams with players of enormous quality, with verticality in attack and talent, qualities that will give the tie a "sense of goal" at the start of each attack.

Brazil's performance on the field is impressive, Neymar, the "different one", is joined by Lucas Paqueta, Vinicius Junior, Raphinha and Richarlison. If they play the same score, the team achieves a remarkable volume of play.

Moreover, as if the offensive facet were not enough to speak of a huge candidate for the title, a midfield with a dominant Casemiro is added, plus the experience of Thiago Silva at the back, along with Marquinhos and an important goalkeeper like Alisson Becker.

Argentina vs Netherlands: a tactical battle for a place in the semifinals.

 This is the sixth meeting between the two teams and Argentina has never beaten its opponent in regulation time. On the benches are the oldest coach (Louis van Gaal, 71) and the youngest (Lionel Scaloni, 46). 

On Friday, Argentina faces a tactical battle against the Netherlands, one of the four unbeaten teams in Qatar 2022, with the aim of qualifying for the semifinals of the FIFA World Cup.

The match will be played from 16.00 at the Lusail Stadium, with capacity for 88,966 spectators, under referee Antonio Mateu Lahoz, who will be accompanied by his compatriots Pau Cebrian (assistant 1), Roberto Diaz (assistant 2) and Alejandro Hernandez (VAR).

The winner of this quarter-final will know beforehand the opponent for the next stage, as the five-time champion Brazil and the reigning runner-up Croatia will meet at 12:00 at Education City stadium.

The meeting between the Argentines and the Dutch, the sixth in the history of the World Cups, will be a rematch of the semifinal of Brazil 2014, when Alejandro Sabella's national team won on penalties against the team led, as it is now, by the prestigious coach Louis Van Gaal.

At 71 years of age, Van Gaal is the oldest coach at Qatar 2022 and his tenure is reflected in the statistics. His third cycle in the "Oranje" began in September 2021 due to the lack of results of his predecessor Frank De Boer and gave birth to an unbeaten streak of 14 wins and 5 draws.

The current squad, without the stars of the past but with players of proven hierarchy, is faithfully behind a leader who wanted to stay in the national team despite fighting a cancer.

The Netherlands, the eighth best team in the world according to the latest FIFA ranking, won undefeated Group A, which they shared with Qatar, Ecuador and Senegal, and later eliminated the United States in the round of 16.

His style of play distances himself from the traditional Johan Cruyff school, a characteristic accepted naturally by the coach. "I changed the way I think about soccer," said the manager of the aesthetic Ajax European and Intercontinental Cup winner in the 1990s.

Van Gaal did not want to reveal the cards to face Argentina, but hinted that he has very well studied the reigning champion of America, who went from less to more in this World Cup after opening with an unexpected defeat against Saudi Arabia.

His Argentine colleague, Lionel Scaloni, at the other end of the age pyramid, as he is the youngest coach at the World Cup at 44 years of age, also played this game of hide-and-seek without giving any clues as to the tactical design, strategy or formation he will use for the return to Lusail, the venue for the "Albiceleste's" first two matches.

Speculation about the names of the full-backs, midfielder Rodrigo De Paul and striker Angel Di Maria.

"We never play 4-3-3 because we don't have a left winger," said Scaloni, who in the part of the training session that was not observed by the press also tested a 3/5 line in defense, with Lisandro Martinez playing as a center back on the left and not Di Maria, "the only winger that the team has," the coach from Pujato completed his description.

And it was precisely Di María who was on Van Gaal's lips due to a personal dispute they have had since they coincided at Manchester United. "Fideo" went so far as to say that the Dutchman was "the worst coach" of his career. "I didn't like him, but he is one of the few who has said it," downplayed the coach with a past in other European giants like Barcelona and Bayern Munich.

Scaloni assumed in advance the complexity of the confrontation but avoided projections on how the match could be approached, aware that "all rivals play differently" when facing his team.