One of the great strikers of all time, Zlatan Ibrahimović, did a bit the other day on Fox’s late-night World Cup show, “After Hours with James Corden,” in which Corden hooked up Ibrahimović to a lie detector for a skit.“You share a desk with fellow Fox analysts Rebecca Lowe, Thierry Henry and Alexi Lalas,” Corden read off the cue cards. “Do you think a panel of four Zlatans would be better than these four?”Predictably, Ibrahimović leaned on his “I am the most confident man in the world” schtick and said yes. The lie detector monitor said he was telling the truth.The actual correct answer so far for this World Cup is:Less Zlatan.Less Lalas.And Fox’s main studio show would be better.The Zlatan-Lalas dynamic is awkward. To Zlatan’s credit, he is not working in his native language. On many occasions, we wish Lalas had never learned English, especially in his chosen dialect of “Hot Take.”Give us more of the delightful, poised and informative combo of Lowe and Henry, and then Fox would really have something.During Wednesday’s pregame, Henry described the nuances of France star Kylian Mbappé’s first goal against Senegal on a diagonal run in the box.After Portugal’s 1-1 tie against DR Congo, Henry explained the selfishness of Cristiano Ronaldo’s movement, not opening space for a teammate.“The team needs to score, not you need to score,” Henry said.The breakdowns were elegant and illuminating.Going into this World Cup, Fox set out to create a premier studio show with Hall of Fame star power akin to its NFL and MLB pregames that feature Michael Strahan, Terry Bradshaw, Derek Jeter and David Ortiz.Fox brought in proven TV winners in Lowe, who leads NBC’s Premier League studio show, and Henry, who is part of CBS’s excellent Champions League presentation. The signing of Zlatan was an audacious swing.
Fox’s World Cup problem: Zlatan Ibrahimović and Alexi Lalas
Fox's World Cup games have been dramatic and satisfying. Its studio team's stars have yet to match — or mesh.











