The China Mail - England finish third as Spain and Argentina brace for World Cup final

While Lionel Messi's Argentina and Spain prepare for the World Cup final in New Jersey on Sunday, the two losing semi-finalists clashed in the humidity of Miami for the bronze medal match.

The first half was not the performance France coach Didier Deschamps wanted in his final match in charge as his team collapsed.

France made multiple changes from the line-up they used for the semi-final defeat to Spain -- and the new defence was in disarray as Declan Rice kicked off the scoring with a long-range effort before defender Ezri Konsa nodded in.

Saka notched two more goals to put England 4-0 ahead at half-time.

An angry Deschamps described the first-half performance as "catastrophic" and bolstered his line-up at the break with a clutch of first-choice players.

Within three minutes of the restart, Mbappe scored his ninth goal of the tournament and Bradley Barcola notched another.

Mbappe, 27, then scored the goal that took him past Messi to become the top scorer in the history of the World Cup, with 22 goals over three tournaments.

Messi will have a chance to reclaim the record in the final.

Saka rounded off his hat-trick with a penalty but when Ousmane Dembele scored in the sixth minute of added time, it gave France hope of an improbable draw.

Up stepped Jude Bellingham to cap a superb tournament and became the first England player to score seven goals at a World Cup when he dribbled around the French defence to score his side's sixth.

"I would have preferred not to be the all-time top scorer and to be playing tomorrow's match," said Mbappe.

- Smoggy -

As the two finalists fine-tuned preparations, a persistent, choking smog blanketed the eastern United States.

Wildfires burning in Canada have sent heavy, acrid smoke billowing across the border, with residents in New York, Washington and the US Midwest urged to stay indoors due to poor air quality.

At one point on Saturday, the smoke made New York City the most polluted city in the world.

The MetLife Stadium is in New Jersey, just across the river from New York, where the city skyline early Saturday was obscured by dense smoke.

Some respite came from a storm that brought torrential rain on Saturday, and Sunday is expected to be sunny.

US President Donald Trump will be in the 80,000-crowd at the MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford -- the first game he has attended at the tournament.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney will also attend, meaning the leaders of all three host nations will be at the match.

Trump on Friday hailed the World Cup as "the most successful sporting event, maybe in the history of the world" as he held a reception in New York with FIFA chief Gianni Infantino.

Infantino also reached for hyperbole, saying the event had "exceeded all expectations".

"This has not just been and is not just the greatest World Cup of all times," Infantino said. "It is the greatest human, social, and cultural event that mankind has ever witnessed."

Argentina are striving to become the first team since Brazil in 1962 to win back-to-back World Cups, while Spain are trying to win a second title after their maiden victory in 2010.

- Messi farewell? -

Sunday's showpiece is likely to be the final World Cup curtain call for Messi, widely considered the greatest player of all time.

Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni urged fans to make the most of seeing Messi lead out his team at the age of 39.

"He has made history. He is a legend," Scaloni said of the former Barcelona player, who helped Argentina to win the World Cup in Qatar in 2022.

The battle-hardened three-time champions have shown an astonishing never-say-die attitude during the 2026 tournament, including in the dramatic late comeback against England in the semi-finals.

Spain, on the other hand, have been almost flawless, conceding just a single goal in their seven matches so far and sweeping past France in the semi-finals.

V.Liu--ThChM