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Clinton Morrison looks back at the World Cup final, judges whether the 48-team tournament has been a success, and gives his view on Morgan Rogers’ big-money move to Chelsea

I’ll begin this week by looking back at the World Cup final last weekend, and I would say Spain were worthy winners. They were the better side, even though they did not start the tournament brilliantly against Cape Verde. But as I have said many times, it is not about how you start, it is about how you finish. And they were superb. In the final itself, they tried to play football the right way and were the team on the front foot, looking to create problems. Argentina were trying to make the match more scrappy and get in people’s faces. They used the same approach against England in the semi-finals, and were hoping for a bit of magic from Lionel Messi. But as soon as Enzo Fernández picked up that second yellow card, you knew Spain were going to win.

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Argentina's midfielder #05 Leandro Paredes (top) clashed with Spain's midfielder #09 Gavi during the 2026 World Cup football tournament final match between Spain and Argentina at the New York/New Jersey Stadium in East Rutherford on July 19, 2026. (Photo by CHARLY TRIBALLEAU / AFP)

The scenes after the match were very ugly as well, and I feel Leandro Paredes was one of the biggest culprits. He likes to get into people’s heads, and I saw the way he was trying to fight the young Gavi at the end of the final. I understand that you are disappointed after losing the game, but you do not need to turn to violence. Children are watching it, and they are thinking, “Is that the right way? When we lose matches, do we then start fighting?”

ATLANTA, GEORGIA - JUNE 15: Vozinha #1 of Cabo Verde applauds fans after the 0-0 draw during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Group H match between Spain and Cabo Verde at Atlanta Stadium on June 15, 2026 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Maddie Meyer - FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images)

So I think Paredes was the main instigator. The way they handled it did not look good. But Spain were classy in the way they dealt with the situation.

Looking at the tournament as a whole, I would have to say the 48-team competition was a brilliant success. Countries like Cape Verde got their recognition, and you only need to look at their goalkeeper Vozinha, who is now a superstar with millions of followers on Instagram! It puts you in the shop window. I also look at the centre-back Roberto Lopes, who was born in Ireland and plays for Shamrock Rovers.

Surely some Championship clubs are looking at him, because I thought he was outstanding for Cape Verde. When you look at Norway’s run to the quarter-finals, and Curaçao earning their first-ever World Cup point, those are examples of how the 48-team tournament has delivered.

However, I have to say a few words about the half-time show. I love the performers, but it needed more energy. I was thinking, ‘get back to the football.’ Or you might as well let me go and perform at half-time, and I would have kept the crowd going!

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It started well with Madonna, Ronaldinho and Ronaldo, while Shakira and Burna Boy were brilliant. But it all went very flat when Justin Bieber came on and dragged the whole atmosphere down.

Half time show

There is now talk about whether the World Cup will be expanded to 64 teams. I think that may be too many, and 48 is the perfect number for the tournament. It gives countries that you do not know much about in football terms a chance to go out and show their ability. Their families and the people living in their countries are proud of them. If you go to 64 teams, it will make the tournament too long.

Attention will now move back to club football, and there have been some huge signings in the Premier League. I’ll start with Morgan Rogers’ £117 million move from Aston Villa to Chelsea. Obviously it is a massive amount of money, but the reason he has gone for that much is because Elliot Anderson moved to Manchester City for £116 million.

Rogers is a top player. I feel he and Cole Palmer both like to play in the number ten role, so it will be interesting to see where Xabi Alonso fits them both into the team. But I think it is a very good signing. With that in mind, some people have said they did not need to sign him. Even so, when someone like Rogers comes into your squad, it can only improve the team. I thought he was going to go to Arsenal, but I do not think they were willing to pay that sort of money for him.

Alex Scott of AFC Bournemouth during the Premier League match between Arsenal and Bournemouth at Emirates Stadium on April 11, 2026 in London, England

Another player who could be heading to Stamford Bridge this summer is Alex Scott. Bournemouth rejected a £64 million bid for him, which surprised me, considering he is not signing a new contract there. I reckon an offer in the region of £70-75 million would get a deal done. And if I’m Steve Parrish at Crystal Palace and teams want Adam Wharton, I’d be thinking “He’s going to go for just as much, if not more than Alex Scott.”

Chelsea could also bring in John Stones, which is a no-brainer in my opinion. They need experience at the back, and a partnership of him and Maxence Lacroix would be brilliant. From a Palace point of view, I hope Lacroix does not go, but Stones is definitely a good fit for Chelsea.

It has certainly been a mad window overall, but Manchester United have made a very shrewd signing by bringing in Youri Tielemans from Aston Villa. He was outstanding last season, and Villa fans were talking about how much they missed him when he got injured. I think it is a brilliant piece of business, because you are talking about a player who has been there and done it. This transfer window has certainly delivered so far, and the rest of the summer will certainly be very interesting.