Fantastic four

Unsung heroes of the World Cup

- BY KARTHIK RAVINDRANATH

Three-Lungs Park is a lucid nickname. It is clear what the player who earned such a moniker-Park Ji-sung-would be all about. Speed, energy, stamina and hard work. Italian legend Andrea Pirlo said Park, who man-marked him more than once, was one player he could not get the better of.

Wayne Rooney, who played with Park for Manchester United, said the South Korean midfielder was as important to the club's success as Cristiano Ronaldo. In his column in The Sunday Times, Rooney wrote that players like Park were overlooked because they consistently sacrificed themselves for the team.

But, Park, 41, is now widely admired for his selfless feats of grit and discipline for the great United side of the late 2000s. In that regard, Park was lucky, because there are many workhorses who never got the recognition they deserved. This World Cup, too, has seen its share of such unsung heroes.

Rodrigo De Paul

THE ARGENTINE did receive due credit after the team's Copa America triumph in 2021. But, he had a bad World Cup debut against Saudi Arabia. He has recovered since then and was at his best against Australia in the round of 16-his pressing forced the error from the goalkeeper that led to his team's second goal. But, the headlines, deservedly, belonged to Lionel Messi.

The central midfielder's contribution to Argentina's progress in Qatar has not got the attention it merits. He was the only Argentine midfielder to play every minute of the team's campaign in the first four matches. This is because he is key in allowing Messi to conserve his energy for when Argentina need their talisman most. He runs more so that Messi can walk. "The analysis that I do [during matches] leads me to try to make him run less," he told The Athletic ahead of the World Cup, adding this was to reduce Messi's "wear and tear" and to give him more space to play with.