|
|
Post by allezlesrouges on Nov 14, 2022 1:46:23 GMT
I will give a run down of each group, what my predictions are, and which players to watch out for from each country...
Group A Prediction
1st Netherlands
2nd Ecuador
3rd Qatar
4th Senegal
Netherlands
In group that is certainly tougher than it looks on paper, it's probably best to get the obvious out of the way first, I have the Dutch to top the group. They are on an incredible winning run and have strength throughout the team in each department.
Players to watch: Frenkie De Jong, Cody Gakpo
Ecuador
After that it gets a little trickier. I have Ecuador qualifying ahead of the favourites to come 2nd, Senegal. They had the 3rd best defence in South American qualifying (behind Brazil & Argentina). They also have a smattering of top flight European players now; Estupinian (Brighton), Caicedo (Brighton), Hincapie (Bayer Leverkusen), Gruezo (Augsburg), Plata (Valladolid). They are the type of team to pinch a 1-0 victory and I think they will do just that in the opener
Players to watch: Moses Caicedo, Pervis Estupinian
Qatar
They have been building up to this moment for over a decade and they seemingly timed their run perfectly by winning the 2019 Asian Cup. They have certainly progressed from where they were when they were awarded the tournament. That being said, all of their players play in the Qatari league, so it's a case of 'how can we actually tell their quality?' vs 'they have good chemistry because they all play together at club level'. I think they'll fall short but come close to getting out of the group
Players to watch: Hassan Al-Haydos, Almoez Ali, Boualem Khoukhi
Senegal
Touted as the best team in Africa with an array of top European stars and an AFCON win behind them. It’s true that on paper they should be coming 2nd in this group. Mane, Koulibaly & Mendy and the stars who play for top clubs, but supporting them there is a whole squad who play their trade in the European top flights. On paper they are definitely the African team who can have the most aspirations in this tournament. I just wonder if it becomes a shootout with Ecuador, whether Ecuador might be better organised and sneak it
Players to watch: Sadio Mane, Kalidou Koulibaly
|
|
|
|
Post by allezlesrouges on Nov 14, 2022 1:48:20 GMT
Group B Prediction
1st Cymru
2nd England
3rd Iran
4th USA
Cymru
Yeah I’m being optimistic about us, but I can see an overly hyped England side slipping up against Iran, might enable us to sneak in ahead of them
Players to watch: Neco, Brennan
England
They’re squad is ridiculously talented, but their defence/GK can be got at. I don’t feel that they are that cohesive, and I think they will be eliminated once they come up against a decent team
Players to watch: You know them all
Iran
I think they will be much better than the USA, far more organised and difficult to break down. They recently sacked the manager who qualified them, and brought back in Carlos Queiros, who loves to sit deep and frustrate teams. Add this to the fact that they actually have some good strikers in Taremi & Azmoun (69 international goals between them), they are not to be taken lightly. Remember teams from the region of the hosts tend to over perform too (Croatia 2018, Ghana 2010, S.Korea 2002), so Iran could be the beneficiary of this ‘host-region bounce’
Players to watch: Mehdi Taremi, Sardar Azmoun
USA
Not all that convincing in the CONCACAF zone, despite a bunch of players who play at good clubs in Europe. They finished behind both Canada and Mexico, and didn’t perform particularly well despite getting the results they needed. One thing in their favour is that they are a young team with exciting talent. It just feels like this is the beginning of their cycle in their gear up for a home World Cup in 2026, so I think this one will be a bad time for them
Players to watch: Tyler Adams, Brenden Aaronson
|
|
|
|
Post by allezlesrouges on Nov 14, 2022 1:49:33 GMT
Group C Prediction
1st Argentina
2nd Poland
3rd Mexico
4th Saudi Arabia
Argentina
This is arguably Messi’s best chance at winning the WC and it might well be his last. Here’s some stats; Argentina are undefeated in 35 games, and have scored 70 goals in that run, conceding only 17. They’re also coming off the back of winning the Copa America, and Messi is in the best form he’s been in for several years. Probably in the top 2 favourites to win the trophy
Players to watch: Just tune in for Messi
Poland
I didn’t rate them at all at ours. If you ask me it’s a travesty they took 6 points of us in the NL. Lewandowski didn’t even stand out against us, and all the play acting left a sour taste in my mouth. I think the Mexicans and the Argentines will do them at their own game
Players to watch: Robert Lewandowski, Piotr Zielinski
Mexico
They failed to beat Canada and the USA in qualification, yet they’ve made it out of the group every World Cup since 1994, and have failed to go any further than that round every time. This is known as the 5th game curse by their fans. They will always have decent players, and will likely always be the strongest team in CONCACAF, and I hope this sees them overcome Poland
Players to watch: Edson Alvarez, Hirving Lozano
Saudi Arabia
Struggling to say anything interesting about these. All players play in the Saudi league, they have a defensive coach in charge. None of their players have interesting records. Will be going home winless in all likelihood
Players to watch: None
|
|
|
|
Post by allezlesrouges on Nov 14, 2022 1:50:57 GMT
Group D Prediction
1st Denmark
2nd France
3rd Tunisia
4th Australia
Denmark
On a real high after their Euro semi final and Nations League group win, which involved 2 wins against France! Of course France could turn it around and get the better of them here, but Denmark certainly seem to have a cohesion that makes them greater than the sum of their parts, and that’s with many experienced top level internationals
Players to watch: Christian Eriksen, Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg
France
Probably the deepest talent pool in international football, yet they have been on a very poor run. Pogba’s injury may just be a blessing in disguise. Their midfield is surprisingly light on caps without Pogba and Kante, which could either bring them out of this rut or make it difficult for them to control games. I think they could beat anyone, but could also lose to anyone. Very strong chance they get out of the group though
Players to watch: Eduardo Camavinga, Aurelien Tchouameni
Tunisia
Very consistent performers at qualifying for World Cups. They follow the north African trend of being well organised and decent in defence, but also possess some skilful midfielders to complement this. Could be another team to benefit from the ‘host-region bounce’ but hard to see them overcoming France.
Players to watch: Ellyes Shkiri, Youssef Msakni, Naim Sliti
Australia
Not the most exciting Australia side, 7 of their squad play in Scotland, with a further 7 playing in Australia. I can’t see them upsetting anyone here.
Players to watch: Aaron Mooy
|
|
|
|
Post by allezlesrouges on Nov 14, 2022 1:52:12 GMT
Group E Prediction
1st Germany
2nd Soain
3rd Japan
4th Costa Rica
Germany
It feels like they’ve struggled to really click in recent years, despite a very strong squad. They could come good at a moment’s notice, and their game against Spain should give us a good indication of where they are at. They will probably be able to put out one of the strongest XI’s at the tournament, so if they do start clicking they could challenge.
Players to watch: Nico Schlotterbeck, Leon Goretzka
Spain
The only thing they are really lacking is a top striker. Elsewhere on the pitch they are fantastic, and in Pedri they posses one of the most exciting young players in the world. Despite only being 19 he will be the cornerstone of this team. If they had a Fernando Torres, or a David Villa up front I think they’d go close to winning the tournament, but I think lack of a number 9 will harm them in the end
Players to watch: Pedri, Unai Simon
Japan
They have actually improved a fair amount in recent years, and they will feel aggrieved to have been put in this group which means they will struggle to get out of it. Had they been put in a few of the other groups they may have had aspirations of making the knockouts. Nagatomo, Tomiyasu and Yoshida are experienced defenders, and then exciting prospects like Mitoma and Kubo will line up in further forward alongside experienced seniors such as Minamino and Kamada. Don’t rule out a shock result here
Players to watch: Kaoru Mitoma, Takehiro Tomiyasu
Costa Rica
I loved watching their run in 2014, but unfortunately they are very much the same team as they were back then. In other words, they are relying heavily on the same group of players as they were back then, as they’ve hand talent come through. Navas (35), Borges (34), Duarte (33), Oviedo (32), Ruiz (37), Campbell (30), Calvo (30), Waston (34) will all likely start for them again, and none of the players filling in around them play at a high enough level to provide legs with the experience.
Players to watch: Celso Borges, Joel Campbell
|
|
|
|
Post by allezlesrouges on Nov 14, 2022 1:53:20 GMT
Group F Prediction
1st Croatia
2nd Morocco
3rd Canada
4th Belgium
Croatia
In what I think will be a tight group, I think Croatia have enough to top the pile. Their midfield is still so good and they should control games against Morocco and Canada. They lack some cutting edge up front but are now pretty stable at the back with Gvardiol a pacey left footed CB joining the backline. I don’t expect them to mirror their 2018 run, partly because they’ll probably play Germany or Spain in the next round, but it will be a joy to watch Modric on the biggest stage once again
Players to watch: Luka Modric, Josko Gvardiol
Morocco
I’m predicting that these are the team who experience the ‘home-region bounce’. They have the most quality out of all of the Arabic nations, with players at top clubs such as; Hakimi (PSG), Mazraoui (Bayern), Ziyech (Chelsea), En-Neysri & Bounou (Sevilla). Furthermore, they have several players at top-flight clubs in the big 5 leagues to play support act to their stars. They have been consistent for a while, but have yet to have any break-out results, and I think this group provides opportunity for that
Players to watch: Achraf Hakim, Hakim Ziyech, Noussair Mazraoui
Canada
Along with us they probably have the best narrative of any team at the tournament. Only their 2nd ever appearance and they got here by starting in the CONCACAF first qualifying round, meaning they had to play Aruba, Suriname & the Cayman Islands. In the end they topped the CONCACAF region ahead of Mexico and the USA. There’s plenty of interesting stories throughout their squad. Ex-Cardiff man Junior Hoilett will actually play at an international tournament. 39 year old midfielder and captain Atiba Hutchinson will also finally play at a tournament after spending the last decade at Besiktas. Bayern left-back Alphonso Davies is listed in their squad as a forward, with 12 goals in 34 games. Lille striker Jonathan David has 22 goals in 34 games. And their midfield contains a former Portugal youth international and Porto player, Stephan Eustaquio. There’s every chance their magical story continues and they make the knockouts, but I have them just missing out but maybe shocking Belgium. If anyone from CONCACAF is going to make an impression at this tournament it will be Canada
Players to watch; Alphonso Davies, Jonathan David
Belgium
They didn’t really impress me in their last 2 games against us, especially considering we were under strength. I wonder if they’re going a bit stale under Martinez, and their defence just isn’t that great for a top team. Yes De Bruyne et al should see them qualify out of this group, but if I had to predict an upset I think Canada and Morocco are two of the standout picks to do it
Players to watch: Kevin De Bruyne, Leandro Trossard
|
|
|
|
Post by allezlesrouges on Nov 14, 2022 1:54:21 GMT
Group G Prediction
1st Brazil
2nd Serbia
3rd Switzerland
4th Cameroon
Brazil
Probably favourites for the tournament. Their squad is brimming with talent, and they don’t really have a weak spot in their XI (maybe RB if you had to single something out). Such is their strength in depth that it’s likely that the following will all be benched; Ederson, Raphinha, Fabinho, Bruno Guimaraes, Gabriel Jesus, Antony, Martinelli, Alex Telles. They’ve been performing well defensively in qualifying and topped the South American region with 35+ GD and no losses. Given this is the hardest qualifying zone it’s a very impressive result. The real test will come up against the western European teams, who have knocked them out of World Cups each time since winning it in 2002, (France 2006), (Netherlands 2010), Germany (2014), Belgium (2018). If they can break this hoodoo in the first knockout games then expect them to grow in confidence and have a real run at winning it
Players to watch: Lucas Paqueta, Vinicius Junior
Serbia
I think they are a more interesting side than Switzerland and I feel their star power could help them pip the Swiss into 2nd. Mitrovic’s recent injury is really bad news for them given the incredible run he’s on for them. Overall he has 50 goals in 76 games for them, including 48 goals in his last 58 appearances for them. Despite this, there are good options behind him. Luka Jovic’s move to Madrid didn’t work out, but that shows how highly regarded he was a few years back. Likewise, Dusan Vlahovic is now the main man at Juventus after an amazing start to the season. Their midfield is also quality with Tadic, Kostic and Milinkovic-Savic in there. Their weak spot is their backline.
Players to watch: Filip Kostic, Dusan Vlahovic
Switzerland
They were strong at the last Euros, and it wouldn’t surprise me to see them progress, but it feels they are still reliant on the same group of older heads; Shaqiri (31), Sommer (33), Rodriguez (30), Xhaka (30). Their experience will surely help them, as will Xhaka’s recent form with Arsenal where he seems to be playing his best football. I can’t help but feel they are lacking fire-power though.
Players to watch: Manuel Akanji, Noah Okafor
Cameroon
Of the west African sides to qualify Cameroon have the least star power, and in my opinion the least capability to pull off an upset. Zambo Anguissa has been starring in Napoli’s midfield this year, and he’ll be their best player at the tournament. Aboubakar is their captain but plays in Saudi Arabia now. Choupo-Moting seems to have made a career out of being a back up player at Stoke, PSG and now Bayern, which is a strange sentence. Gaining Bryan Mbeumo’s eligibility is great news for them, but I don’t think that will be enough to save them in this group
Players to watch: Zambo Anguissa, Bryan Mbeumo
|
|
|
|
Post by allezlesrouges on Nov 14, 2022 1:55:26 GMT
Group H Prediction
1st Uruguay
2nd Portugal
3rd Ghana
4th South Korea
Uruguay
Real dark horses for the tournament. If they top the group they will likely have a favourable draw, and will play either Switzerland or Serbia in the knockouts. It wouldn’t surprise me at all to see them in a semi final, and even making the final or winning it isn’t beyond this squad. The have a magic affinity with the World Cup and with Nunez, Valverde and Araujo having great seasons coming into this tournament they could really hit the ground running. Their key game will be against Portugal to decide who tops the group. A grudge game against Ghana will also be tricky, but with some old heads like Godin, Suarez, Cavani & Vecino in the squad I think they will be fine. My outside tip to win the tournament as this year’s dark horse
Players to watch: Darwin Nunez, Federico Valverde, Ronald Araujo
Portugal
I think what we’ll see is a microcosm of Man United on the international stage. Ronaldo scoring goals but simultaneously making his team worse. He won’t care as long as he’s scoring, but it will negatively affect the performances of Bruno Fernandes, Bernardo Silva and Joao Felix. I won’t be totally surprised if they get surprised by Ghana or South Korea, but their quality should see them out of the group. I can’t see them reaching the latter stages though
Players to watch: Bernardo Silva, Joao Cancelo
Ghana
They have done a good job of recruiting dual-qualified players ahead of this tournament. Athletic Bilbao’s Inaki Williams has joined the cause, with Premier League players Mohammed Salisu and Tariq Lamptey also joining. I feel this means their low rank is a bit inaccurate for the quality they now possess, but I do wonder whether this might upset a squad who obviously worked hard to qualify, but they should stand to benefit from the extra quality. They also have Partey, Schlupp and both the Ayew’s still involved. That being said this is a tough group, so I’d be surprised to see them finish in the top 2
Players to watch: Inaki Williams, Thomas Partey
South Korea
Not the strongest of South Korea sides, and they will strongly rely on Son. They do have Wolve’s Hwang to help out, and Kim Min-Jae the Napoli defender to provide quality. However, the majority of their squad play in South Korea, and I can’t see them making it out of the groups this time unfortunately.
Players to watch: Son Hyung-Min, Kim Min-Jae
|
|
|
|
Post by allezlesrouges on Nov 14, 2022 1:56:01 GMT
Given this, these are my predicted knockout ties. I will return to this thread to see how accurate I am when we reach the knockouts, and then I will give my final set of predictions going up to the final
Predicted knockout ties
Wales vs Ecuador
Netherlands vs England
Argentina vs France
Denmark vs Poland
Spain vs Morocco
Germany vs Croatia
Brazil vs Portugal
Uruguay vs Serbia
|
|
|
|
Post by erasedcitizen on Nov 14, 2022 8:30:02 GMT
I've just done a predictor, and the winners of our group have Qatar, Denmark and Uruguay as their route to the final. 2nd place have Netherlands, Argentina and Brazil.
Might be an idea to win the group...
|
|
|
|
Post by allezlesrouges on Nov 14, 2022 11:21:02 GMT
I've just done a predictor, and the winners of our group have Qatar, Denmark and Uruguay as their route to the final. 2nd place have Netherlands, Argentina and Brazil. Might be an idea to win the group... Yep will make a huge difference, although sometimes upsets do make the paths look a lot different |
|
