Seconds out. Round number two. The first round of the World Cup has come and gone in a heated seven-day rush: 24 matches, 75 goals and, thanks to Bafana, three red cards. Argentina have a hot Messi, Ronaldo is a hot mess, while Cape Verde have as many points as those other Portuguese-speaking nations — Brazil and Portugal.Seven days in, and there have already been some crackers, near-classics. England 4, Croatia 2 on Wednesday night was a rollicking affair; the Netherlands and Japan match was dramatic; Iran and New Zealand’s 2-2 draw had frustration and anger; and even Bafana’s catastrophe against Mexico was equal parts theatre of the absurd and Hunter S Thompson’s Fear and Loathing.There have been loads of goals, which is always good, and some stubborn, resilient defending, which is also always good for the thrilling tension it provides in those David and Goliath battles predicted to be blow-outs. Cape Verde goalkeeper Josimar José Évora Dias, known as Vozinha, put on a fine show as Gandalf from Lord of the Rings, bellowing “You shall not pass!” to the demon Balrog on the Bridge of Khazad-dûm, keeping Spain at bay.Vozinha means “little grandmother” in Portuguese, a name the Cabo Verde ‘keeper was given because when he was upset he would head to his grandmother for comfort. His grandparents raised him on the island of São Vicente while his parents worked to support the family.There have been loads of goals, which is always good, and some stubborn, resilient defending, which is also always good for the thrilling tension it provides in those David and Goliath battles predicted to be blow-outs. “The nickname comes from my grandparents. I never lived with my parents; when I was born, my father was in the army and my mother worked every day. I grew up with my grandparents,” he told Fifa.com. “I played very well with my feet, I was very competitive, and I didn’t like to lose. When they hit me and I couldn’t hit them back, I would go home angry. The other kids would make fun of me, saying I was going to complain to my grandparents.”He wasn’t complaining after being named man of the match against Spain, having made seven saves. Spain had 74% of the possession; 27 shots to Cape Verde’s six, with seven on target; made 734 passes (Cape Verde had 205); and had 11 corners (one for Cape Verde). The islanders did not kick their way into history, giving up just one foul in 90 minutes. Spain were blown for nine free kicks.Spain are European champions, for heaven’s sake, ranked as joint 5/1 favourites with France to win the whole damned thing. One bookmaker took a $1m bet on Spain to win. The return would have been $85,000, a sure thing you would have thought.This is not a World Cup of sure things. We came into it uncertain and tricky. The speculation about immigration controls and ICE, the war with Iran, and Americans not entirely buying into this soccer thingy hung over like a cloud. We had forgotten, though, about the travelling fans.The Norwegians “rowed” up escalators, the Scots drank Boston dry, and the Japanese cleaned up after themselves after cleaning up the threat of the Netherlands. The South Koreans necked tequila with the Mexicans, while the English and Australians have behaved themselves. The Aussies may not behave for much longer and have been heard singing, “Aussie boys on a bender; Donald Trump is a sex offender.” That should go down well with the man who is an expert in the shart of the deal.It has been a World Cup of stories off the field. Vozinha was tearful; his mother could not watch him play because she had issues with her visa and the costs applied to it. House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries got involved, and with secretary of state Marco Rubio, got the US state department to step in to help. “No mother should miss the chance to see her child make history,” said Jeffries.There are things that annoy about the World Cup. US commentators are right up there with utterances such as: “Chance creation, vertical runs, hit it in transition, recoverability and recirculation.” Americans love words that end in -ion, except for globalisation and publication (of the Epstein files). But that’s an aside.There are 80 matches to go at the time of writing. If the rest of this World Cup is anything like the first week, we are in for a belter.