2022 FIFA World Cup - Qatar, November 21-December 18

[Asta]

Morocco is overrated, and in 2018 Iran made a better impression in that group than Morocco.

The best african team (on paper) participating in the world cup is Senegal by far.

Iran has made the World Cup many times in recent years, and regularly advances past the group stage in Asian Cup so their performance was not surprising, at least for me. 2018 was Morocco's first World Cup since 1998 so I didn't even think much of them.

[GenerationTerrorist]

If I was a gambler, I really would have a cheeky £10 on England not qualifying from the group stage. I know it is "only" The Nations League, but that defeat at home to Hungary (who were excellent, by the way, and fully deserved to win) was the worst I have seen us as a team since THAT game against Iceland in 2016.

[Asta]

If I was a gambler, I really would have a cheeky £10 on England not qualifying from the group stage. I know it is "only" The Nations League, but that defeat at home to Hungary (who were excellent, by the way, and fully deserved to win) was the worst I have seen us as a team since THAT game against Iceland in 2016.

It's long been a mystery as to why England routinely underperforms in World Cup when, on paper, they have one of the best squads perennially. A part of it, of course, is that England is terrible in penalty shootouts, a game deciding method which I think is an abomination, even though many fans love the masochism of watching it.

Seeing that La Liga teams tend to beat Premier League in Champions League, I may be overestimating the strength of English roster though.

[Santander]

If I was a gambler, I really would have a cheeky £10 on England not qualifying from the group stage. I know it is "only" The Nations League, but that defeat at home to Hungary (who were excellent, by the way, and fully deserved to win) was the worst I have seen us as a team since THAT game against Iceland in 2016.

It's long been a mystery as to why England routinely underperforms in World Cup when, on paper, they have one of the best squads perennially. A part of it, of course, is that England is terrible in penalty shootouts, a game deciding method which I think is an abomination, even though many fans love the masochism of watching it.

Seeing that La Liga teams tend to beat Premier League in Champions League, I may be overestimating the strength of English roster though.

England is very good at blowing their own trumpets. Look back at some of those squads from the past decade in retrospect - just terrible. This squad is better than those, but many of the players will be looked at rather poorly in 10 years' time. Tactical ineptitude from a manager who got the job because the last guy was an open sleazebag doesn't help.

[Alcibiades]

If I was a gambler, I really would have a cheeky £10 on England not qualifying from the group stage. I know it is "only" The Nations League, but that defeat at home to Hungary (who were excellent, by the way, and fully deserved to win) was the worst I have seen us as a team since THAT game against Iceland in 2016.

It's long been a mystery as to why England routinely underperforms in World Cup when, on paper, they have one of the best squads perennially. A part of it, of course, is that England is terrible in penalty shootouts, a game deciding method which I think is an abomination, even though many fans love the masochism of watching it.

Seeing that La Liga teams tend to beat Premier League in Champions League, I may be overestimating the strength of English roster though.

England is very good at blowing their own trumpets. Look back at some of those squads from the past decade in retrospect - just terrible. This squad is better than those, but many of the players will be looked at rather poorly in 10 years' time. Tactical ineptitude from a manager who got the job because the last guy was an open sleazebag doesn't help.

I still remember the hype before the 2010 World Cup. Most of the media predicting they’d reach the semi-finals at worst with their ‘golden generation’. Hilarious stuff. Of course it happens before every tournament, but that was probably the most comical in terms of the gulf between expectations and reality.

[Cassius]

If I was a gambler, I really would have a cheeky £10 on England not qualifying from the group stage. I know it is "only" The Nations League, but that defeat at home to Hungary (who were excellent, by the way, and fully deserved to win) was the worst I have seen us as a team since THAT game against Iceland in 2016.

It's long been a mystery as to why England routinely underperforms in World Cup when, on paper, they have one of the best squads perennially. A part of it, of course, is that England is terrible in penalty shootouts, a game deciding method which I think is an abomination, even though many fans love the masochism of watching it.

Seeing that La Liga teams tend to beat Premier League in Champions League, I may be overestimating the strength of English roster though.

England is very good at blowing their own trumpets. Look back at some of those squads from the past decade in retrospect - just terrible. This squad is better than those, but many of the players will be looked at rather poorly in 10 years' time. Tactical ineptitude from a manager who got the job because the last guy was an open sleazebag doesn't help.

Southgate's England of course profited from a mixture of luck and easy paths to the final four/two in 2018 and 2020. Their performances in the group stages of both contests were nothing special and in World Cup they almost got knocked out by known football titans Colombia (I remember watching that penalty shoot out in some seedy Birmingham pub, those were the days). In the Euros they essentially had one good performance against a (weak) German side and still managed to lose on home soil against a decidedly undercooked Italian side. We'll see whether Southgate can keep up the streak of bumbling his way into semis/finals, but it seems unlikely. He'll probably hang onto the job though (unless it's a truly abysmal outing), for lack of anyone more appealing and his ability to ride the media zeitgeist.

[NewYorkExpress]

If I was a gambler, I really would have a cheeky £10 on England not qualifying from the group stage. I know it is "only" The Nations League, but that defeat at home to Hungary (who were excellent, by the way, and fully deserved to win) was the worst I have seen us as a team since THAT game against Iceland in 2016.

It's long been a mystery as to why England routinely underperforms in World Cup when, on paper, they have one of the best squads perennially. A part of it, of course, is that England is terrible in penalty shootouts, a game deciding method which I think is an abomination, even though many fans love the masochism of watching it.

Seeing that La Liga teams tend to beat Premier League in Champions League, I may be overestimating the strength of English roster though.

England is very good at blowing their own trumpets. Look back at some of those squads from the past decade in retrospect - just terrible. This squad is better than those, but many of the players will be looked at rather poorly in 10 years' time. Tactical ineptitude from a manager who got the job because the last guy was an open sleazebag doesn't help.

Southgate's England of course profited from a mixture of luck and easy paths to the final four/two in 2018 and 2020. Their performances in the group stages of both contests were nothing special and in World Cup they almost got knocked out by known football titans Colombia (I remember watching that penalty shoot out in some seedy Birmingham pub, those were the days). In the Euros they essentially had one good performance against a (weak) German side and still managed to lose on home soil against a decidedly undercooked Italian side. We'll see whether Southgate can keep up the streak of bumbling his way into semis/finals, but it seems unlikely. He'll probably hang onto the job though (unless it's a truly abysmal outing), for lack of anyone more appealing and his ability to ride the media zeitgeist.

Pep Guardiola's expressed interest in coaching a national side after his contract at Manchester City expires. England could make a run at him (or possibly Wayne Rooney, who has done an amazing job with practically nothing at Derby).

[Santander]

Pep Guardiola's expressed interest in coaching a national side after his contract at Manchester City expires. England could make a run at him (or possibly Wayne Rooney, who has done an amazing job with practically nothing at Derby).

lol and LOL

[Asta]

If I was a gambler, I really would have a cheeky £10 on England not qualifying from the group stage. I know it is "only" The Nations League, but that defeat at home to Hungary (who were excellent, by the way, and fully deserved to win) was the worst I have seen us as a team since THAT game against Iceland in 2016.

It's long been a mystery as to why England routinely underperforms in World Cup when, on paper, they have one of the best squads perennially. A part of it, of course, is that England is terrible in penalty shootouts, a game deciding method which I think is an abomination, even though many fans love the masochism of watching it.

Seeing that La Liga teams tend to beat Premier League in Champions League, I may be overestimating the strength of English roster though.

England is very good at blowing their own trumpets. Look back at some of those squads from the past decade in retrospect - just terrible. This squad is better than those, but many of the players will be looked at rather poorly in 10 years' time. Tactical ineptitude from a manager who got the job because the last guy was an open sleazebag doesn't help.

To be honest, I don't exactly blame them for it. Anyone would be excited at the prospect of names like Beckham, Gerrard, Lampard, Rooney and Kane in their roster during the past decades. I feel as though England wised up and are becoming more of a complete team instead of trying to star-stud their team.

They need to realize goalkeeping/defense are just as important as offense. See 2006 Italy (Buffon) or 2010 Spain (Casillas) or 2014 Germany (Neuer). All world class defense and/or goalkeepers.

[Santander]

To be honest, I don't exactly blame them for it. Anyone would be excited at the prospect of names like Beckham, Gerrard, Lampard, Rooney and Kane in their roster during the past decades. I feel as though England wised up and are becoming more of a complete team instead of trying to star-stud their team.

They need to realize goalkeeping/defense are just as important as offense. See 2006 Italy (Buffon) or 2010 Spain (Casillas) or 2014 Germany (Neuer). All world class defense and/or goalkeepers.

Everyone agrees those are good players, but the England setup and players convinced themselves they were the best players and the best team in the world, when they were not - they were just the players they saw on Sky every week. Nobody outside England thinks Kane is the best striker in the world, but England have convinced themselves he is. England have hardly been blessed with exceptional talent compared to other major European countries and the idea of a "golden generation" was arrogant nonsense. England got results like the 8th-best team in the world because they were about the 8th-best team in the world and never had the manager or tactics to achieve above that level.

England have the worst managers and least tactical innovation of any major European country by a big margin. But instead of really finding solutions to bad tactics and selection, they choose the easy route of blaming fringe factors like the media, club rivalries, and psychoanalyzing penalty shootouts. If you think the English media is bad, try working in Spain or Italy.

[NewYorkExpress]

Embattled Wales Manager Ryan Giggs stepping down ahead of the World Cup.

[buritobr]

Tourists in the 2022 World Cup should pay attenction to the local law in Qatar in order not to go to the prison.

https://www.marca.com/en/world-cup/2022/06/21/62b1b8e446163f7e7a8b45af.html


Extramarital sexual encounter in Qatar is illegal, no matter the sexual orientation.

One-night stands will be illegal at the Qatar World Cup
Any extramarital sexual encounter that takes place in Qatar during the 2022 World Cup could result in a seven-year jail sentence.

It is the first time that a World Cup has been held in a Gulf state, which means there are some cultural differences that many spectators may struggle to adapt to.

Qatar's Supreme Committee said in a statement that "Qatar is a conservative country and public displays of affection are frowned upon regardless of sexual orientation".

[Anzeigenhauptmeister]

Brazil defeats Germany

A quick reminder...

I expect to happen what is usual: no national team wins 2 world cups in a sequence, so, I think France won't win. There were only 2 exceptions: Italy 1934-38 and Brazil 1958-62

In fact, the latest World Cup winners perform even worse than that:
Since 2002, the title holders usually don't even manage to advance to the knockout stage (with Brazil 2006 being the only exception).

Extramarital sexual encounter in Qatar is illegal, no matter the sexual orientation.

Does that mean same-sex couples are allowed to consummate marriage in Qatar? 😅

[Lechasseur]

Brazil defeats Germany

I've traditionally rated Germany quite well (like as far as I've been following football myself, which is like 16-17 years now), and Brazil's quite low, but I do think this is the first time in like 20 years that Brazil CLEARLY has a better team than Germany.

Brazil for me are favourites or joint favourites to win the World Cup this year, while I don't see Germany getting past the quarter finals.

I'd say Germany were similar to Brazil in terms of quality in 2006, Germany was clearly a league above Brazil in 2010-2018 (2018's failure was due to unrest in the dressing room, not due to lack of talent), but now Brazil are clearly the better team again. For the first time since 2002 imo.

And for the record, I've predicted the last 3 World Cup winners correctly along with 2 of the 3 losing finalists (I only got 2018 wrong where I thought Germany would lose to France instead of Croatia).

[thumb21]

England, Iran, USA and Wales, looks fun

[Red Velvet]

Brazil defeats Germany

I've traditionally rated Germany quite well (like as far as I've been following football myself, which is like 16-17 years now), and Brazil's quite low, but I do think this is the first time in like 20 years that Brazil CLEARLY has a better team than Germany.

Brazil for me are favourites or joint favourites to win the World Cup this year, while I don't see Germany getting past the quarter finals.

I'd say Germany were similar to Brazil in terms of quality in 2006, Germany was clearly a league above Brazil in 2010-2018 (2018's failure was due to unrest in the dressing room, not due to lack of talent), but now Brazil are clearly the better team again. For the first time since 2002 imo.

And for the record, I've predicted the last 3 World Cup winners correctly along with 2 of the 3 losing finalists (I only got 2018 wrong where I thought Germany would lose to France instead of Croatia).

Pretty much my perception, based just on the vibes of watching. Brazil team was mediocre in 2010, 2014 and 2018 and I didn’t really get the excitement of watching them play. Everyone acted like we were favorites (inside and outside) based on name tradition only.

In 2002 and 2006 (the only other years I followed, those as a kid), I remember being excited to watch the games. Sometimes that culminated in a victory like 2002, sometimes in another Quarters elimination like 2006 (France was really strong that year, finishing 2nd after basically a tie in the finals against Italy), but regardless of result the games were just fun to watch.

I kinda attributed that to the child magic of following these competitions since they’re a novelty, but I do see more people bringing up that Brazil after 2006 lost quality.

I don’t know yet if this year will be a return to form since I haven’t been following that closely, but I see people bringing up that at least it looks like a better team than these few last years. And the CONMEBOL qualifications performance was the best ever, although that doesn’t mean anything for the actual WC. But I will wait for the Group games to say whether I believe this team has real shot of winning or not. In 2014 and 2018 my answer was a clear NO!.

I feel like Brazil, Argentina and France are the favorites this time. Maybe Spain too? But important to remember surprises always happen in these competitions. Would be fun if a team won for their country the 1st Title ever.

[buritobr]

Brazil defeats Germany

I've traditionally rated Germany quite well (like as far as I've been following football myself, which is like 16-17 years now), and Brazil's quite low, but I do think this is the first time in like 20 years that Brazil CLEARLY has a better team than Germany.

Brazil for me are favourites or joint favourites to win the World Cup this year, while I don't see Germany getting past the quarter finals.

I'd say Germany were similar to Brazil in terms of quality in 2006, Germany was clearly a league above Brazil in 2010-2018 (2018's failure was due to unrest in the dressing room, not due to lack of talent), but now Brazil are clearly the better team again. For the first time since 2002 imo.

And for the record, I've predicted the last 3 World Cup winners correctly along with 2 of the 3 losing finalists (I only got 2018 wrong where I thought Germany would lose to France instead of Croatia).

The 2006 Brazilian national team looked like fantastic if you looked only to the individuals. There were players who had spetacular moments in their career, but not in that tournment. Some starts like Ronaldo, Adriano, Cafu and Roberto Carlos were old and fat. Ronaldinho Gaucho had just won the European Champions League in Barcelona in May 2006, and so he was tired and not competitive (it's hard to keep very competitive only 1 month after a great achievement). So, that German national team was better than Brazil and performed better. The defeat of Brazil against France was horrible. The Brazilian team failed to have at least one great oportunity to score a goal.
In 2010, 2014, 2018 we knew before the tournment starts that Germany was better than Brazil.

In 2022, Brazil and Argentina have very good teams. But we should also remember the Conmebol qualifying was very easy for both because except Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay, South American soccer is in a horrible shape. Peru, the Conmebol 5th, was not able to score a single goal in 120 minutes on Australia, the AFC 5th.

[buritobr]

Today, it is the 16th anniversary of the last game Italy played in the knockout stage of the World Cup, when defeated France in the final.

[NewYorkExpress]

Just four months before the World Cup, Iran has fired head coach Dragan Skokic.

Got to wonder who Iran will hire for the World Cup.

[NewYorkExpress]

Qatar's opening match against Ecuador has been moved up one day, to November 20.

This change means, that as per tradition, the hosts will kick off the World Cup.

[buritobr]

Qatar's opening match against Ecuador has been moved up one day, to November 20.

This change means, that as per tradition, the hosts will kick off the World Cup.

Yes, until 2002, the winner of the previous cup kicked off the World Cup.
Since 2006, the host kicks of.
It was weird that Netherland and Senegal would kick off according to the old version of the table

[LAKISYLVANIA]

Would be fun if a team won for their country the 1st Title ever.

Would definitely be fun, but I don't see who.

Netherlands is a possibility because of the draw they have, which should bring them in the QF, obviousl you can still disappoint and matches still have to be played.

Belgium used to be better in the past, it's not what it once was. I think we're a good pick for the disappointment of the tournament. If we wanted our first title, we should have done it in 2018. Same applies to Croatia, which just like us has a hard draw, and there's a good chance one of us is eliminated in the group stage already.

Portugal has technically a good team, but the Cristiano Ronaldo soap might hurt them. I think their chances would improve if Ronaldo is left at home, since currently many other players just tend to play the ball to Ronaldo and not play based on their talent. That's why I believe Portugal will be more exciting to watch once Ronaldo retires (that being said, obviously Ronaldo is one of the best players of all-time, he's just not much of a team player).

I just don't see the scenario as very likely. The most likely thing IMO is England ending their 56 year drought of winning a world cup. And it would actually fit within the new pattern we see. France losing the European championship at home and than winning the world cup 2 years later. In 2020 England lost at home in the finals.

[LAKISYLVANIA]

These are the favs to win the cup according to the bookies (dutch translation tho, but who is who should be clear from the "context".)

However i don't always agree with every value.

[NewYorkExpress]

These are the favs to win the cup according to the bookies (dutch translation tho, but who is who should be clear from the "context".)

However i don't always agree with every value.

The U.S and Mexico actually seem to have decent odds, at least according to that bookie.

Might be worth a flier.

[LAKISYLVANIA]

These are the favs to win the cup according to the bookies (dutch translation tho, but who is who should be clear from the "context".)

However i don't always agree with every value.

The U.S and Mexico actually seem to have decent odds, at least according to that bookie.

Might be worth a flier.

About average

Their draw isn't too bad, USA has a relative easy group (doesn't mean they're guaranteed to qualify, but it isn't the worst group).

And for the second round they'll encounter a team from the first group which is still a do-able draw (since the hardest team on paper would be Netherlands, otherwise possibly Senegal, maybe Ecuador or Qatar if they surprise). If they win both, they are in the quarter finals, from that point a lot can happen.

Mexico depends, the draw is average, beat Poland and you are likely second. If they win group stage, they would be favoured to get in QF if France wins their group too. Otherwise they might encounter each other, but it is a do-able draw that maybe will require some luck.