[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"header-nav":3,"footer-nav":29,"article-world-cup-semi-final-combined-xi-the-battle-for-places":82,"category-counts-nav":94,"related-world-cup-semi-final-combined-xi-the-battle-for-places":104},[4,8,11,14,17,20,23,26],{"label":5,"to":6,"exact":7},"Home","\u002F",true,{"label":9,"to":10},"World Cup","\u002Fworldcup",{"label":12,"to":13},"Standings","\u002Fstandings",{"label":15,"to":16},"Football","\u002Fcategory\u002Ffootball",{"label":18,"to":19},"Basketball","\u002Fcategory\u002Fbasketball",{"label":21,"to":22},"Tennis","\u002Fcategory\u002Ftennis",{"label":24,"to":25},"F1","\u002Fcategory\u002Ff1",{"label":27,"to":28},"Long Reads","\u002Fcategory\u002Flong-reads",{"brand":30,"columns":32,"tagline":80,"copyright":81},{"description":31},"In-depth sports journalism covering football, basketball, tennis, F1, and beyond. Daily analysis, long reads, and expert opinion.",[33,51,59],{"heading":34,"links":35},"Leagues",[36,39,42,45,48],{"label":37,"to":38},"Premier League","\u002Ftag\u002Fpremier-league",{"label":40,"to":41},"La Liga","\u002Ftag\u002Fla-liga",{"label":43,"to":44},"NBA","\u002Ftag\u002Fnba",{"label":46,"to":47},"Formula 1","\u002Ftag\u002Fformula-1",{"label":49,"to":50},"Champions League","\u002Ftag\u002Fchampions-league",{"heading":52,"links":53},"Content",[54,56,57],{"label":55,"to":16},"Analysis",{"label":27,"to":28},{"label":58,"to":16},"Data & Stats",{"heading":60,"links":61},"Company",[62,65,68,71,74,77],{"label":63,"to":64},"Terms of Service","\u002Fservice",{"label":66,"to":67},"Privacy Policy","\u002Fprivacy",{"label":69,"to":70},"Editorial Policy","\u002Feditorial",{"label":72,"to":73},"Contact Us","\u002Fcontact",{"label":75,"to":76},"About Us","\u002Fabout",{"label":78,"to":79},"Website Disclaimer","\u002Fdisclaimer","Built for the love of sport","© SportPulse. All rights reserved.",{"title":83,"slug":84,"category":85,"badge":55,"author":86,"excerpt":87,"date":88,"readTime":89,"image":90,"imageAlt":83,"tags":91,"body":92,"_path":93},"World Cup Semi-Final Combined XI: The Battle for Starting Spots","world-cup-semi-final-combined-xi-the-battle-for-places","football","Marcus Wright","With World Cup glory on the line, we break down the ultimate combined XI from the final four teams remaining.","2026-07-12 14:01:21","1 min read","\u002Fimages\u002Farticles\u002Fworld-cup-semi-final-combined-xi-the-battle-for-places.webp",[9],"## The Midfield Engine Room\nThe midfield is where tournaments are won. You need destroyers, creators, and relentless runners to survive the grueling **120 minutes** of a semi-final. The modern game demands midfielders who can operate in tight spaces and transition instantly from defense to attack.\n\n[Content continues with full analysis...]","\u002Farticles\u002Fworld-cup-semi-final-combined-xi-the-battle-for-places",[95,96,97,98,85,99,100,101,102,103],"analysis","basketball","cricket","f1","general","golf","mma","long-reads","tennis",[105,119,128],{"id":106,"stem":106,"path":107,"title":108,"category":85,"badge":109,"badgeType":110,"author":111,"authorRole":112,"authorInitials":113,"date":114,"readTime":115,"image":116,"imageAlt":108,"tags":117,"excerpt":118},"bbc-extends-home-nations-broadcasting-deal","\u002Farticles\u002Fbbc-extends-home-nations-broadcasting-deal","BBC Locks Down Home Nations Football Amid Fierce Broadcasting Wars","Feature","category","James Chen","Senior Football Analyst","JC","2026-06-24 16:18:21","7 min read","https:\u002F\u002Fichef.bbci.co.uk\u002Face\u002Fstandard\u002F976\u002Fcpsprodpb\u002F9376\u002Flive\u002Faf89ca40-6fdb-11f1-b763-7be8e457290d.jpg","International Football, BBC Sport","BBC secures Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland internationals, reinforcing its grip on home nations football in a shifting media landscape.",{"id":120,"stem":120,"path":121,"title":122,"category":85,"badge":109,"badgeType":110,"author":86,"authorRole":123,"authorInitials":124,"date":125,"readTime":115,"image":126,"imageAlt":122,"tags":9,"excerpt":127},"2014-world-cup-brazil-germany-7-1-beloved-million-tying","\u002Farticles\u002F2014-world-cup-brazil-germany-7-1-beloved-million-tying","2014 World Cup Brazil vs Germany: The 7-1 Shock That Defined a Generation","SportPulse Contributor","MW","2026-07-09 18:21:34","\u002Fimages\u002Farticles\u002F2014-world-cup-brazil-germany-7-1-beloved-million-tying.webp","Ten years on, revisiting the 2014 World Cup semifinal where Germany humiliated Brazil 7-1 in Belo Horizonte.",{"id":129,"stem":129,"path":130,"title":131,"category":85,"badge":55,"badgeType":110,"author":111,"authorRole":112,"authorInitials":113,"date":132,"readTime":133,"image":134,"imageAlt":131,"tags":135,"excerpt":136},"tuchel-hydration-breaks-world-cup-tempo","\u002Farticles\u002Ftuchel-hydration-breaks-world-cup-tempo","Tuchel vs Hydration Breaks: Why England Crave Chaos","2026-06-28 05:46:38","6 min read","https:\u002F\u002Fichef.bbci.co.uk\u002Face\u002Fstandard\u002F976\u002Fcpsprodpb\u002Fd1c8\u002Flive\u002Fd29407b0-6ea2-11f1-895f-31d43a4d39ba.jpg","World Cup, England","Thomas Tuchel despises World Cup hydration breaks, and his tactical disdain reveals exactly how he plans to rebuild England."]