You would have thought Maradona made a comeback.

There he was, Argentina’s No. 10 being hoisted in the air following a hair-raising comeback victory over England in the 2-1 Semifinal win over England when they scored two goals inside the 85-minute mark ff the match.

Only this time it was Lionel Messi who threaded the needle better than any seamstress could with an off-foot 25-yard setup pass to Lautaro Martinez for the game winner.

For the moment it made Maradona, the iconic No. 10 who almost single-handedly carried Argentina to the 1986 World Cup, while producing both the "Hand of God" and the "Goal of the Century" against England, as new No. 2 on the Argentina Mount Rushmore soccer legends.

Ironically, Messi made a home in Spain for 17 seasons with Barcelona. Now, he'll look to rip out the hearts of the fans who cheered him during his formative years as he seeks to lead Argentina to an unprecedented fourth consecutive major title (2021 and 2024 Copa América, 2022 World Cup).

Spain are on the doorstep of their own unprecedented accomplishment, sitting on a 37-match unbeaten streak that ties Italy (2018-21) for the longest ever. One more victory, and they'll stand alone at the top.

The only game Spain failed to win in this World Cup was a scoreless draw against Cape Verde, who also pushed Argentina to the limit before falling late in extra time. A truly remarkable debut from the Blue Sharks, whose exploits won't soon be forgotten.

The bottom line is how can you not have a great weekend with the FIFA World Cup Final and the final round of Open each taking place this Sunday. Have a great weekend.

Five weeks and 102 games later — 103 if you count tomorrow's third-place consolation match — Spain and Argentina will battle on Sunday in the Meadowlands in a World Cup Final worthy of one of the most entertaining tournaments in recent memory.

The unstoppable force vs. the immovable object: Argentina's penchant for late-game heroics, fueled by arguably the greatest player ever to lace up a pair of boots, will square off against Spain's unyielding spine on the biggest stage in sports.

La Albiceleste simply never die, scoring 13 of their 19 goals after the 70th minute and winning all four knockouts despite never holding the lead in the 90th minute. Argentina are more than one player, but their unrelenting faith in Messi has been handsomely rewarded as he leads the team, and the tournament, in every conceivable attacking statistic.

La Roja, on the other hand, never let their opponents off the mat, allowing just one goal in the entire World Cup. And despite having an abundance of world-class talent, Spain are far less dependent on the output of any one individual. Six players have scored, seven have registered an assist, and Lamine Yamal has just one goal contribution. There is no truth to the rumor they are looking to switch their nickname from La Roja to Clean Sheets.

Preordained: These two sides, which have met just once before in a non-friendly competition (1966 World Cup group stage), were supposed to play this past March in the Finalissima, the quadrennial matchup between the reigning European and South American champions. That match, hosted by Qatar, was canceled due to the Iran War. But destiny arrived all the same, and now for the first time ever the world's top two teams will meet in the World Cup Final.

The only game Spain failed to win in this World Cup was a scoreless draw against Cape Verde, who also pushed Argentina to the limit before falling late in extra time. 

Argentina will be looking to become the first repeat World Cup Champion since 1958-1962.

With all of the champagne flowing following Argentina’s stunning late comeback win over England and, history clearly favoring The Clean Sheets from Spain, the edges tell us back Spain on Sunday. And I will.

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MLB returned from the All-Star break with yesterday's one-game appetizer, kicking off what should be a thrilling race to the postseason.

Almost everyone's in the hunt: 23 of 30 teams are within four games of a wild card spot. Additionally, just one division leader is more than five games ahead of second.

With it here are the Top 10 ranked teams at the break, per Yahoo! Sports...

1. Los Angeles Dodgers (61-36)

The Dodgers went 36-19 across May and June, building an enormous lead atop the NL West that dwarfed any other division lead in baseball. This has put the Dodgers in strong position to coast for the remainder of the regular season and gear up for another deep postseason run. A comfy cushion remains for the defending champs, but July has been less smooth, as Los Angeles suffered its first sweep of the season at home against Arizona in its final series before the break. Still, this is a team that even without several key contributors due to injury, ranks among the league's best in every aspect of the game: first in OPS (.777), third in ERA (3.55) and fifth in FanGraphs' all-encompassing defensive rating. The Dodgers hold onto the top spot until another team emphatically takes it from them.

2. Milwaukee Brewers (59-37)

Much like last season, the Brewers continue to do everything well except hit home runs  — only Boston has gone deep less often (85) than Milwaukee (89), and the Red Sox have played two fewer games — which makes them a difficult team to evaluate as we head toward October, when the long ball becomes paramount. Even as the divisional competition has improved around them, the Brewers remain the class of the NL Central. Like the Dodgers, they too went into the break on a dour note getting swept in Pittsburgh, but the Brewers' +126 run differential is second-best in the league to only L.A. and miles ahead of the rest of their division. The reported trade for Lance McCullers Jr. and Colton Gordon underscores their need for pitching reinforcements due to some injuries on the mound, but we can usually count on the Brewers patching it together on the mound no matter the personnel.

3. Tampa Bay Rays (56-38)

A skid in early June suggested the Rays may have been playing over their skis in the early going, but Tampa Bay has since regained its stellar early form and taken advantage of an ugly stretch from the Yankees to reclaim first-place in the AL East. The rotation is a clear strength and the Rays are finding ways to score without much over-the-fence pop beyond Junior Caminero. The biggest question for Tampa heading into this part of the season: How aggressive will the Rays be in upgrading at the trade deadline? They have more often been a mix of buyers and sellers this time of year rather than boldly leaning in either direction. It'd be nice to see the Rays take a big swing at this deadline considering the opportunity in front of them, but they may be a bit gun-shy after trading Joe Ryan for two months of 41-year-old Nelson Cruz while chasing a division title in 2021. More discipline may be preferred regardless of the standings.

4. Philadelphia Phillies (54-43)

The Philadelphia crowd may have not been totally satisfied with their hometown stars' performances during All-Star week, but they still have to feel pretty good about where the team is at after the break considering how the season began. The Phillies were 9-19 and 10.5 games back on April 26. They have rallied under interim manager Don Mattingly to get within striking distance of the Braves atop the division and firmly back in the mix for a spot in the National League postseason field. Right field remains an enormous weak spot and there are some concerns on the mound to sort out, but the Phillies still have the opportunity to make this a worthwhile season, which seemed unlikely through one month of play.

5. Atlanta Braves (55-40)

Owners of the league's best record for much of the first two months, Atlanta has started to show cracks more recently, going 15-20 since the start of June. The rash of injuries on both sides of the ball have finally started to catch up, despite the rock-solid efforts of veteran All-Stars Matt Olson and Chris Sale. Getting star sophomore Drake Baldwin back on track will be crucial, as the 25-year-old catcher has hit just .154/.252/.220 across 24 games since being activated from the injured list. This is another team to watch closely as the deadline approaches, as the bevy of injury absences certainly call for some external upgrades (or replacements) via trade.

6. New York Yankees (54-42)

The Yankees are 18-19 since Aaron Judge went on the injured list at the end of May, which has allowed the Rays to surpass them in the AL East standings. With Judge's timeline to return still unclear — not to mention several other key veterans still sidelined like Giancarlo Stanton, Max Fried and Carlos Rodón — the Yankees need to find a way to play better shorthanded or risk Tampa Bay building an insurmountable lead atop the division. New York's ceiling is still higher than any other team in the American League, but we have no clue when we'll next be seeing the Yankees at full strength.

San Diego State

After snapping a 7-17 skid over the previous two seasons with a 9-4 breakout campaign last year, it’s safe to say Sean Lewis has quickly found his footing in San Diego. Better yet, history suggests the Aztecs usually keep rolling after rebound seasons. Following previous bounce-back years, SDSU answered with records of 8-5, 8-4-1, and 6-5-1 the next season. That’s encouraging news for a program carrying a 6.5-win season total entering 2026. With the Aztecs also owning the No. 34 overall ranking in this year’s RPR ratings – best in the Pac-12 – Lewis’ crew may want to order their bowling shirts early.

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14 Cubs players are currently on the injured list (seven on the 15-day; seven on the 60-day.

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