The recent international break was an opportunity to see the readiness of each of the 2022 World Cup qualifiers, 50 days before the start of the global football event in Qatar.
In the past few days, the teams played matches that may be the last before the start of the World Cup in Qatar on November 20, so did the results of those matches give us a look at the most prominent teams nominated to win the world title?
A report by the British newspaper "The Guardian" reviewed the position of all the teams participating in the tournament and their ranking according to the classification of the International Federation of Football Associations (FIFA).
Brazil and Argentina .. brilliance and doubts
It seems that Brazil, the world number one, is in the best position to compete for the title, as Neymar's teammates have only lost once in the last 29 games, but what casts doubt about this team is that it has not faced any European team since losing to Belgium in a championship The last World Cup.
Not far from Brazil, Argentina's team, led by coach Lionel Scaloni, looks more harmonious and coherent, which allowed him to achieve a series of 35 matches without defeat, two games away from the record recorded in the name of Italy.
Big friendly victory for Brazil 🇧🇷 over Tunisia 🇹🇳
⏯️ Watch the summary and goals of the Seleção match and the Carthage Eagles #International_Friendly_Matches |
#Brazil_Tunisia#FriendlyMatch pic.twitter.com/A6IKvFqT3o
— beIN SPORTS (@beINSPORTS) September 27, 2022
Argentina faces the same doubts because Lionel Messi's colleagues have only faced Italy and Estonia from Europe in the period following their exit from the quarter-finals of the World Cup Russia 2018 against France.
Brazil is in the World Cup in Group G along with Serbia, Switzerland and Cameroon, while Argentina plays in Group C along with Saudi Arabia, Mexico and Poland.
European teams .. an opportunity to continue domination
The teams of the old continent will have an opportunity to continue to dominate the World Cup title, which has not escaped the continent's teams since the 2002 edition in South Korea and Japan.
Some doubts surround teams such as Spain, which suffered its first home loss in 4 years against Switzerland last week, or France - the defending champion - which was hit by a series of injuries that removed a number of the team's pillars, or Germany, which needs to address blatant flaws revealed by its match against Hungary recently. Which was the first defeat for coach Hansi Flick after 14 games at the head of the machine team.
After he impressed by reaching the semi-finals of the World Cup in Russia and the final of the European Nations (Euro 2020), the England team won any victory in the last 6 matches to reduce the hopes of the team led by Gareth Southgate.
🇭🇷 Modrić making football look easy.
Again 👊#NationsLeague pic.twitter.com/PHwJiWRPF8
— UEFA Nations League (@EURO2024) September 28, 2022
On the other hand, other European teams seem able to achieve an ideal journey, such as the Netherlands, which regained its luster with coach Louis van Gaal, which revived hopes of repeating the achievement of the 2010 World Cup when it reached the final, while Belgium is chasing the dream of crowning the most expensive title and it seems that the last date will witness The presence of all the stars of this golden generation led by the brilliant Kevin De Bruyne, and Denmark does not stand far from these, which was evident in its clear superiority over France recently, a victory that boosted the confidence of the team that made a good march in the European Nations competitions (Euro 2020).
For his part, the Croatian national team will be on a date with confirming its worthiness for the title of runner-up in the previous version, and Luka Modric's companions will reach the World Cup in Qatar after they deservedly topped their group in the Nations League, which included Denmark and France.
And all the World Cup teams should be wary of Switzerland;
Not only did they beat Portugal last June, but they also beat Spain with an impressive display from a tactical point of view, and the Swiss team looks experienced and well-prepared to prove itself in the coming stages.
Arab teams..dreams and reality
After the dismissal of the Bosnian Vahid Halilhodzic last August, all eyes were on the new coach of the Moroccan national team, Walid Rekraki, who passed his first test and restored hope to the fans;
After a victory over Chile and a draw against Paraguay, with a good performance from the team that benefited from the return of star Hakim Ziyech.
After 3 consecutive victories, Tunisia suffered a heavy defeat against Brazil 5-1 in a match that constituted a setback for the team that built its recent success on defensive intelligence, and increased pressure on coach Jalal Qadri, who demanded to adjust the situation before arriving in Qatar to face France, Denmark and Australia in Group D.
📹 Summary and goals of the Qatar-Chile match 2⃣ - 2⃣ #International_Friendly_Matches #Qatar_Chile #FriendlyMatch pic.twitter.com/ckNpV10Ifi
— beIN SPORTS (@beINSPORTS) September 27, 2022
The Qatar national team did not provide a consistent performance in its last matches, and the opening match of the World Cup against Ecuador will be 50 days from now a serious test of Al Annabi's opportunities to exploit the ground workers and the public in order to achieve an honorable career in the first appearance in this global event.
For his part, the Saudi national team is providing a steady performance under the leadership of French coach Herve Renard, losing only once in the group 10 matches in the qualifiers, and after drawing in the last two friendlies against Ecuador and the United States, the "green" will face a difficult test in Group C against Argentina, Mexico and Poland. .