[Sohel]

1986 was a devastating year for me and my family, and the World Cup was an ephemeral break from the tragedy and grief. I took summer school that year and stayed in the dorms with a bunch of European students, mostly French, Spanish and German. There was also a Moroccan guy by the name of Brahim. We'd watch the games on Univision in the TV lounge and play soccer later. That was Maradona's World Cup. A showcase of godlike skill matched only by his disgusting personality and the habit of cheating like most of his countrymen playing the game. Morocco was very impressive much to Brahim's joy. They beat Portugal 3-1. France and the USSR also played brilliantly. Zico's penalty miss coupled with the brilliance of Platini, Giresse and Bats knocked Brazil out of the tournament. The West Germans played mechanical soccer with everyone executing well, but Rummenigge was truly a class apart. Denmark also had a great team with Larsen and Laudrup. They beat Uruguay 6-1 and West Germany 2-0 and raised a lot of hope before Butrageno's Spain murdered them in the quarterfinals 5-1. Then Spain's hopes were upset by Belgium in the semis. France's helpless loss in the semis was devastating for all of the French guys and gals staying in the dorms. The final was an excellent contest with Argentina winning.