Every four years the greatest show on earth hits our screens as 32 of the best football nations on the planet come together for the World Cup.
Millions of fans will watch the games live in Qatar and over a billion will tune in worldwide to see the finest talents in football fight it out for the ultimate international prize. The build up in the big football nations such as Brazil, Argentina, France and Germany will be relentless and fans everywhere believe this could be their year.
But there will only be one winner, and for many other teams who arrive in Qatar with high hopes of the perfect tournament, those hopes will disappear without trace. Some of the best teams will come up with a set of World Cup 2022 results which, ultimately, will lead to failure.
It might seem a bit mean but I’ve picked out three nations which I suspect will flatter to deceive, and then… either crash spectacularly or go out of the competition with a whimper.
Okay here we go and, as a proud Englishman myself, there is only one place I can start…
England
Yep; 56 years of hurt and counting! I remember Euro 96 when we all sang ‘Football’s Coming Home’ and we really believed that we were about to lift some silverware just 30 years after the 1966 World Cup. But, after dominating Germany for 120 minutes, the Three Lions went to penalties with the Germans and lost, Gareth Southgate missing the crucial penalty.
England lost a World Cup semi-final to Germany in 1990 by the same method, but didn’t come as close again until the 2018 World Cup semi-final, losing to Croatia, and then they nearly broke the sequence again in 2021. There’s plenty of talent in this young side but England showed a desperately soft belly in the Euro 2020 final when, after going ahead early in the game thanks to a Luke Shaw goal, they retreated into a shell. By the time we reached the penalty shootouts the Three Lions were more like mice as the Azzurri swept their spot kicks home and grabbed the trophy.
There was no redemption for Southgate, now the manager of England’s chokers.
A group containing Iran, United States and Wales shouldn’t present too many problems for England but I won’t be on the edge of my seat when they go to a penalty shootout in the latter stages of the competition.
The World Cup 2022 betting odds place England in the top five alongside Brazil, France, Argentina and Spain and that’s about right. Since Euro 2020 England’s form has been patchy and a semi-final or quarter-final exit looks on the cards.
Belgium
They are known as the ‘Beautiful Losers’ by their neighbours in France and Belgium can’t really complain at that mantle. They boast some of the best players in the world and have spent much of the last six years at the top of the FIFA World rankings; but the nearest Roberto Martinez’s side has come to success was a third place finish in the 2018 World Cup, when they beat England into fourth.
With players of the quality of Kevin de Bruyne, Romelu Lukaku, Thibaut Courtois and Eden Hazard (I could go on) they should have won something, but a recent 4-1 defeat to Netherlands in the Nations League suggests Belgium’s best chances may have passed.
They are in a group which contains Canada, Morocco and Croatia and, as my SBOTOP colleague says, we can expect the Red Devils to make a statement at the group stage; but does anyone really think they will outlast the likes of Brazil, Argentina and France at the Qatar World Cup?
I don’t.
Senegal
The Lions of Teranga kick off the World Cup with a Group A match against the Netherlands, before meeting hosts Qatar and Ecuador in the next few days.
Following their first ever African Cup of Nations triumph, expectations will be sky high for the Lions. But while Qatar should be beatable, Ecuador came through South American qualifying ahead of both Chile and Colombia and will be a force to be reckoned with.
After winning the AFCON in 2022, FC Bayern striker Sadio Mane was named African Footballer of the Year for the second time running and he’s one of a number of world class stars in the team. Kalidou Koulibaly, recently signed for Chelsea, and his new team-mate Edouard Mendy, as well as PSG midfielder Idrissa Gueye will all be on show.
When the tournament opens up with Netherlands vs Senegal on 21st November the eyes of the world will be watching and the hopes of Africa will rest on the Lions’ shoulders, but I suspect their dreams of more glory will end sooner rather than later.
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