From The Guardian: Our sports picture editor rounds up the highlights from the tournament in Brazil and explains why these photographs stood out from the 250,000 shots we’ve received over the past month
• Check out 25 of the best World Cup photos of all time
Arjen Robben’s histrionics against Mexico in their last-16 encounter would have you believe he’s been whacked around the back of the head with a shovel. Behind him, Rafael Márquez pleads his innocence, but replays showed there was some contact between the two players. Enough for a penalty? Perhaps not. Either way, Robben’s swan-dive is caught nicely in this photograph
Photograph: KOEN VAN WEEL/EPA
Another stunning goal and thankfully this action photo does it justice. This time it’s Robin van Persie of Holland scoring a diving header in their 5-1 rout of Spain. The timing of the shot is perfect, capturing the flight of both the player and ball close to their apexes, while the aerial vantage point affords the shot its overall simplicity. But what’s quite critical here is a minor detail: the penalty spot in the bottom corner of the photograph. It hints at the outrageous distance from which Van Persie scored (similar shots by rival snappers lack that telling detail)Photograph: Jeff Gross/Getty Images
Yacine Brahimi of Algeria was very nearly dispossessed of his shorts by Philipp Lahm of Germany during their last-16 match. I like the outrageous nature of the foul and the fact that all we can see of Lahm is his grasping hand. It smacks of desperationPhotograph: Jamie Squire/Getty Images
Despite all the pictures of Brazilans in tears during their 7-1 humiliation to Germany, pictures which could easily have made the cut here, I still couldn’t overlook this image from the group stages. The mirroring of the two fans is critical and the transfixed expression on the face of the woman in the foreground says much about the hopes and fears of Braziian football supporters. There’s so much detail in this picture, particularly in her face and hands, it’s almost hyper-realPhotograph: Dario Lopez-Mills/AP
A World Cup in Brazil was always going to mean one thing: colour. This shot makes the most of it, exploiting the divide between the two sets of fans from Brazil and Mexico during their group encounter. It’s a simple, long-lens shot made by a photographer who knew the value in turning his attention away from the pitchPhotograph: Sipa USA/REX/Rex Features
