(Qatar World Cup) Tournament preview: Iran and Qatar face life and death against the Netherlands and England for two consecutive victories
China News Agency, Beijing, November 24 (Reporter Wang Zumin) On the 25th local time, the Qatar World Cup will start the second round of the group stage.
The two Asian teams, Iran and Qatar, who were defeated in the first round, will face a life-and-death battle, while the two European giants, the Netherlands and England, will strive for two consecutive victories.
Wales VS Iran (18:00 on the 25th, Beijing time)
In the current world rankings, the Welsh team ranks 19th, and the Iranian team ranks 20th, which is evenly matched.
But after losing 2:6 to the England team in the first game, the Iranian team not only hurt their vitality, but also lost their generals.
According to foreign media reports, Iran's main goalkeeper Beranwand, who suffered a head injury in the battle with England, will miss the rest of the game.
For the Iranian team, this is undoubtedly a heavy blow.
Beranwand is one of the most important stars of the Iranian team. The Iranian team suffered a disastrous defeat in the first game, and Beranwand's premature departure was an important reason.
The Welsh team, which returned to the World Cup for the first time in 64 years, performed well in the first game, drawing with the United States, the king of Central and North America, when they fell behind 0:1.
What's even more gratifying is that the 33-year-old former Real Madrid star Bale is not old. It was he who made a penalty and scored a penalty to equalize the score for the team.
In Group B, England thriving.
If the Welsh team wants to qualify for the group, they will strive to beat the Iranian team and score as many goals as possible.
As the world's highest-ranked team in Asia, the Iranian team has always been tenacious and tough.
Once the Iranian team loses again, it may be out early after two rounds of group matches.
Qatar VS Senegal (21:00 Beijing time on the 25th)
This is a contest between the Asian champion and the African champion, and it is also a battle between the two losers in the first round.
In the opening game 4 days ago, the host Qatar team was a different team than when it won the Asian Cup three years ago. It fell behind 0:2 in the first 30 minutes and finally lost to the not strong Ecuador team. This makes the famous law of "the host is unbeaten in the first game" in the history of the World Cup.
If it weren't for the opponent's lack of strength and no intention to expand the results, this game may be a big score.
Although the Senegal team lost with the same score, it faced the Netherlands, the runner-up of the World Cup for three times, and tried to keep the goal in more than 80 minutes.
Therefore, there are differences between the same failures.
And the Senegal team is currently ranked 18th in the world. Even if the team's core Mane retires due to injury, the strength of the new African champion should be higher than the Asian champion ranked 50th in the world.
At present, the Qatar team has been labeled as the "weakest host".
But "weakest" does not mean "worst". The Russian team in the last World Cup and the two hosts of the World Cup in Korea and Japan have all been "the weakest hosts".
However, if the Qatar team loses again in this campaign and is out of the group stage, this "weakest host" will replace the South African team (the host of the 2010 World Cup) and become the "worst host" in the history of the World Cup.
Netherlands VS Ecuador (0:00 on the 26th, Beijing time)
This is a battle between the two winners of the first round, but it is not a battle of strength in this group.
For the "Uncrowned King" Dutch team ranked No. 8 in the world, the group stage is only a "springboard" for them to pursue their ultimate goal.
Although the Ecuador team is also the winner of the first match of the group stage, due to the poor performance of the "weakest host" Qatar team, this victory also lacks sufficient "gold content".
Currently, the Ecuador team is ranked 44th in the world. It is a team with a tough style of play but a slightly rough technique.
Against the Dutch team, the originator of "Total Attack and Total Defense" at a low altitude, the "Plateau Devils" may be in a difficult situation.
The old coach Van Gaal, who is in charge of the Dutch team for the third time, said a few days ago: "We won the third place in the 2014 World Cup. This time, we can become the champions." At that time, the Dutch team still exposed the problem of weak striker.
The "10-minute strike" victory obviously did not match its championship goal.
Therefore, in this game, the "Orange Army" needs to further prove itself.
England VS United States (3:00 on the 26th, Beijing time)
England are by far the most amazing team in the opening round.
Since winning the Hercules Cup for the first time in 1966, the England team has been the favorite to win the World Cup in which it has participated.
However, the performance of the "Three Lions" in most competitions is far from the expectations of the outside world. Fans who hate iron and steel are called the competition "soft-footed shrimp".
In the first game of this cup, the England team changed its soft style of play in the past. Facing the fierce Iranian team, the "Three Lions" made a tougher counterattack and defeated the "Persian Iron Cavalry" 6:2. "Encountered the largest loss in the team's cup history.
In the first round, the US team ranked 16th in the world tied 1:1 with the Welsh team of similar strength, and their performance was quite satisfactory.
Judging from paper strength and competition experience, "Uncle Tom" is obviously difficult to compete with "Three Lions".
Therefore, after the big victory over Iran, England coach Southgate had the confidence to say that he did not like the way the war between Britain and Iran ended because "we conceded two goals."
Against the United States, England will "do better".
(Finish)