Based on the way they performed on the past journey, experts can rank them in this order: France, Spain, Norway, Argentina, England, Morocco, Switzerland and Belgium. But if there is any connection with life, the Belgian team is the "dangerous one", because in them there is a shadow of pretending to be stupid to live long.
The strength of the French or Spanish teams has been shown both in the group stage and the past 2 knockout rounds. Norway became a "phenomenon" with the strength and effectiveness of Erling Haaland. Argentina is strong with the policy "all for Lionel Messi". England is full of stars and is entering an explosive phase. Morocco has remained stable since the 2022 World Cup. Switzerland is wise and calculated.
What does the Belgian team have? 2 lifeless draws against Egypt and Iran leave many doubts. The 5-1 victory over New Zealand does not say much when the level gap is too far. More than 80 minutes of the match against Senegal in the round of 32 was also the soulless face of the "Red Devils", until they suddenly exploded with 2 goals to equalize and score the decisive goal in extra time. The 4-1 victory over hosts USA is a completely different image.
Some people say they are "masters", who know how to pretend to be foolish to distract opponents. Even the way they "take hits" is similar to the "lucky fool". Therefore, it is completely understandable that they can only be "underdogs" when playing Spain in the quarter-finals. But it is that "true and false" style that forces La Roja not to be subjective.
Maybe the Belgian team did not return to glory, but compared to many other ostentatious names that had to return early, they were much more successful. There is a saying, "wiseness thoroughly and knowing how to pretend to be foolish is the wisdom of the great mind". Life is inherently a stage full of competition and judgment, where expression and ostentation often turn oneself into the first target to be eliminated.
On the contrary, brave people always know how to hide themselves under a normal facade, silently accumulate and endure storms. They do not need to prove to the world how strong they are, but choose to walk calmly, pushing subjectivity towards the opponent. At the decisive moment, a "beating from nothing" decides the situation, helping them survive the longest in a volatile world.
