2022 is not an exception. La Albiceleste have landed on Qatar as one of the title contenders, but it’s not only pedigree that makes them a force to be reckoned with this time around.
Strong and balanced
On paper, the current Argentina squad is one of the strongest teams the Latin American nation has sent to the World Cup in recent history.
Historically, Argentina teams have been reliant on their incredible attackers. The 2022 World Cup Argentina also has some of the most exciting talents in the world. But the attack is not the only thing they are banking on.
Under Lionel Scaloni, Argentina has become a balanced unit.
The reigning Copa América champions did not lose a single match since July 2019.
They are unbeaten in 35 matches and only two matches away from matching Italy’s record unbeaten run of 37 games. He also ended Argentina’s 28-year wait for silverware when he masterminded La Albiceleste’s Copa América triumph in 2021.
Scaloni effect
Scaloni initially took charge on an interim basis after Jorge Sampaoli’s disastrous World Cup campaign that saw Argentina exiting the competition from the Round of 16.
Marcelo Gallardo, Mauricio Pochettino and Diego Simeone were the likeliest candidates to take over the job.
Still, Scaloni secured a permanent contract till 2026, showing his authority on the squad and his playing style.
What magic wand did Scaloni, who was Sampaoli’s assistant, wave to bring back harmony in a devastated Argentina camp?
The right position for Messi
First. He inspired the dressing room to become a united front.
Second, he focused on a stable system that could bring the best out of their most valuable asset, Lionel Messi, without compromising the team’s structural integrity.
Scaloni achieved that with a modified 4-3-3.
Messi starts the match as a right winger, but he has the license to roam freely across the pitch. To compensate for this, Scaloni maintains width with his right fullback, which will likely be Nahuel Molina in the World Cup.
Rodrigo De Paul plays a role that corresponds to Messi’s position on the pitch.
The Atlético Madrid midfielder drops deep and maintains a pivot with Leandro Paredes, when Messi surges forward. When the PSG-star drops deep to collect the ball, De Paul moves up to provide him with passing options.
De Paul’s role is crucuial
De Paul’s dynamism is crucial to the Argentina midfield, but Paredes’s role as the anchor cannot be undermined as well. Paredes has been elite in breaking up opposition plays and restoring possession for his team.
Giovani Lo Celso will be a big miss for Argentina, who plays as the playmaker behind the frontline.
Brighton’s Alexis Mac Allister has many of the attributes that make Lo Celso such a gem of a player in the Argentina set-up. Paulo Dybala might also become available to pull the strings if he gets fully fit before the group stage ends.
Left flank analysis
On the left flank, Argentina has the ever-reliable Ángel Di María, who continues to post excellent numbers for Juventus at the age of 34.
Up front, Inter Milan talisman Lautaro Martínez will lead the line, who has scored eight goals for the Nerazzurri this season. Manchester City’s Julian Alvarez can also wreak havoc on the opposition defence.
Solid in Defence
What about their own defence?
Argentina boasts two of the Premier League’s best centre-backs in Cristian Romero and Lisandro Martínez.
Veteran Nicolás Otamendi is also a reliable pick at the backline. Lyon’s Nicolás Tagliafico and Atlético Madrid’s Nahuel Molina will play as fullbacks.
Emiliano Martínez has established himself as one of the Premier League’s best goalkeepers.
In the last World Cup, Argentina’s number-one choice Sergio Romero had played only seven matches for his club before going to the tournament.
On the other hand, Martínez has been getting regular game time and will arrive at the competition with far more confidence.
Will Argentina win?
Argentina is a well-oiled machine.
They are incredibly difficult to break down, and the riches of attacking talent they have can punish any defences in the world.
So, Argentina will be one of the safest teams to bet on in this World Cup.
World Cup 2022 Football Prediction – Will England win the World Cup?
Gareth Southgate had defied expectations when he oversaw a semifinal run in the 2018 World Cup. The 52-year-old would follow up that performance by making it to the final of the Euro 2020 three years later. The Three Lions did not win the title in any of those competitions, but those performances have set England as one of the favourites to go all the way in the upcoming World Cup. England will go to Qatar as the only team that has made it to the last four in each of their previous two major tournament campaigns. So, is it coming finally coming home this winter?Recent form is poor
Their recent form might cast a shadow of doubt over their title credentials. England did not win in any of their last six appearances. The 1966 World Cup champions did not have a worse run since the Graham Taylor days back in the early ‘90s.Southgate’s tactics are conservative
England has one of the strongest squads in the world at the moment. But Gareth Southgate’s ambiguous tactical approach is yet to convince some sceptics. They doubt whether the former Tottenham man has what it takes to bring the best out of this squad, despite being in charge in two of England’s most impressive major tournament campaigns in recent history. Harry Kane, Bukayo Saka, Phil Foden, Jack Grealish, Raheem Sterling-Southgate has an abundance of attacking options in his hands. But, he has always shown some reluctance to deploy a fluid, attacking system that can exploit the attacking acumen of the forwards. Southgate can argue that the results have gone his way, but the critics would also point out that the fixture was quite favourable for England in the 2018 World Cup. England lost their group match against Belgium but secured qualification by beating Panama and Tunisia. In the round of 16, England overcame Colombia in penalties before beating an inexperienced Sweden side 2-0 in the quarters. England’s Euro 2020 journey was more encouraging as they beat some top teams en route to the final. But Southgate could not win over all of his critics as his tactical vision remained questionable. We have seen Southgate rotating between a three-man and four-man defence over the years. He goes for the four-man backline against lesser oppositions and goes for three in the back plus two wingbacks against stronger teams.Who will play
Defence
Harry Maguire, Eric Dier, and John Stones are likely going to form the back three. Stones has been playing as a right-back this season, Maguire has lost his place in the Man United starting XI, and Dier has been shaky at times at the back for Tottenham. Kyle Walker has gone to Qatar with the team, but his availability remains uncertain as the Man City still struggles to return to fitness from his injury. Kieran Trippier, who has been a standout performer for Newcastle this season, will deputise at the right-back or right-wing-back position. Arsenal’s Ben White and Liverpool’s Trent Alexander-Arnold are also available to play on the right side of the defence. However, considering his poor form this season, the latter might not see much action in the World Cup. Ben Chilwell’s injury dealt a big blow to Southgate’s plans as England doesn’t have as many left-back options as they do in right-backs. So, Luke Shaw will be the go-to LB, who is not the most reliable defensive measure against fast, skilful forwards.Midfield
A three-man defensive system can expose England to a midfield overload. Jude Bellingham and Declan Rice are excellent midfielders. Still, they will not be able to dictate the tempo against formidable opponents without the help of a creative outlet ahead of them like James Maddison or Phil Foden.Attack
England has one of the best strikers in the world in Harry Kane. But who will be the supporting cast in the attack? Southgate needs to find the right balance to make England’s attack flourish and compensate for the defensive deficiencies.Will England win
Despite the sky-high belief fans have in this crop of England players, we don’t think the Three Lions can end their World Cup drought. England’s vulnerable backline and disorganised attack could lead to the premature demise of their World Cup dreams. To mount a formidable title challenge in a less-than-favourable climate, England need to be even better than they were in the Euros.Football Betting Predictions World Cup 2022 – Qatar vs Ecuador
The much-maligned Qatar World Cup finally gets underway on Sunday night as hosts Qatar take on Latin American side Ecuador in the curtain opener. Qatar will play at the grandest stage of world football for the first time in its history, while Ecuador relish their first appearance in the showpiece event since 2014. Poor humanitarian records and a lack of football infrastructure could not stop Qatar from securing the rights to the 2022 World Cup. Investigations later proved that the Qataris bribed higher FIFA officials and agreed to buy Paris Saint-Germain in exchange for crucial votes that tilted the balance towards the Gulf Nation. Qatar will look to leave all the controversy behind and celebrate the win of their national team in the World Cup opener.Qatar is looking good
Felix Sanchez Bas’s men did not play in the World Cup before, but they are no pushovers. The Maroons are the reigning Asian champions and head into the tie with four consecutive friendly wins against Guatemala, Honduras, Panama, and Albania. If Qatar succeed in opening their World Cup campaign with a win, they will be the first debutant nation since Senegal in 2002 to win their first-ever World Cup match. Since the hosts will have to play Senegal and Netherlands next, they will feel this will be their best chance for a win.Ecuador has terrible record
Ecuador also had a controversial entry to the competition. They finished fourth in the CONMEBOL World Cup qualifiers to clinch the region’s last available direct qualification spot. But, later, Chile claimed that Ecuador had fielded an ineligible player against them and filed an appeal to expel Ecuador from the World Cup finals. But Gustavo Alfaro’a men got to board the Qatar-bound flight after all. Unlike their Sunday night opponents, Ecuador are no strangers to the thrill of the World Cup. They made their debut in the first Asian World Cup back in 2002 and returned to the competition in 2006 and 2014. Ecuador have made it out of the group stages only once so far, when they made it to the round of 16 in 2006. The other two of their World Cup missions ended in the misery of group stage exits. La Tri are having a barren run in front of the goal as they have scored only twice in their last six outings. However, they have been quite resilient in the back and posted four clean sheets in those games.Ecuador’s key players
Almoez Ali and Akram Afif will try to pick the locks of that stubborn defence at the Al Bayt Stadium as they will lead line for the hosts. Felix Sanchez Bas prefers a five-man backline. Veteran Abdelkarim Hassan will marshall the defence. Skipper Hassan Al-Haydos will operate behind the striking duo. Fenerbahçe star Enner Valencia will be Ecuador’s attacking-centrepiece. Moisés Caicedo has had an excellent start to the season with Brighton and will hope to mimic his Premier League performance for the national team. But the midfielder arrived late alongside Carlos Gruezo and Jeremy Sarmiento. Can they shrug off jetlag and get involved from the start? We will have to wait and find out. Our Prediction is a 1-0 win for Qatar.Football Betting Predictions World Cup 2022 – Switzerland vs Cameroon
Switzerland and Cameroon will lock horns for the first time on Thursday evening, hoping to get their World Cup journey going with a win.
Cameroon was not a part of the 2018 World Cup, but they had an impressive run in the African Cup of Nations earlier this year, finishing third. Switzerland will be making their fifth successive World Cup appearance.
Team Nati made it to the round of 16 in both of their last two campaigns. They also have a Euro 2020 quarterfinal run to draw inspiration from.
Recent form
Murat Yakin will step into the shoes of Vladimir Petković, who oversaw Switzerland’s last four international tournament campaigns.
The former Spartak Moscow has had a good start to his Switzerland career as he led Switzerland to the World Cup finals finishing ahead of current Euro champions Italy in their group.
A string of defeats in the UEFA Nations League did put Switzerland’s League A status under threat. But they recovered well to avoid relegation.
Switzerland lost to Ghana in their final warmup game, but they will still be confident of getting the full three points when they take on another African team to kickstart the World Cup proceedings in Group G.
Captain Granit Xhaka and Monaco forward Breel Embolo are the players to watch in the Switzerland side as both of them enter the tournament in red hot form.
Cameroonian Football Federation Samuel Eto’o made headlines when he said he believes his nation can win the World Cup this year. While that remains an over-ambitious take at this moment, Cameroon have shown that they are not a team to be taken lightly.
The Indomitable Lions qualified for their eighth World Cup campaign at the expense of Algeria. Earlier, they had made it to the semifinals of the African Cup Of Nations.
Cameroon bowed out to a tiebreaker loss against Egypt in the semifinals. But, they did manage to clinch the third place by beating the tournament’s surprise package Burkina Faso on penalties.
Team News
Camerroon will be relying on the firepower of Bayern Munich forward Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting and Lyon’s Toko Ekambi to pick up a win in their opening match against the Swiss.
Alarm bells went ringing across the Switzerland camp when Yann Sommer injured his ankle playing for Borussia Mönchengladbach in the German Cup against Darmstadt back in October. But he recovered in time to stand between the sticks against Ghana last week. So, he will be back in goal again.
Denis Zakaria have been playing much for his new club Chelsea, but he will keep his national team position.
Zakaria’s Premier League peers Fabian Schär, Remo Freuler, Manuel Akanji, and of course, Granit Xhaka are expected to start. Veteran Xherdan Shaqiri will make his 110th appearance for the Swiss national team and play alongside Embolo in the frontline.
Cameroon boss Rigobert Song has a fully fit squad to choose from. Brentford’s Bryan Mbuemo might be called upon to feature in the attack led by Chupo-Moting.
Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa has been instrumental in Napoli’s title charge in Serie A. He will hope to replicate that form in the Cameroon midfield. Inter Milan’s André Onana will play on goal.
Our Prediction
As Saudi Arabia have shown by defeating favourites Argentina, ranking doesn’t matter in the World Cup. Switzerland sit well above the FIFA ranking ladder, but they can’t expect a walk in the park when they play Cameroon.
That said, we believe they have enough quality to edge the Cameroonians. We are expecting a 2-1 win for Switzerland.
Date: November 24
Kick Off Time: 3:30 PM
Venue: Al Janoub Stadium
Football Betting Predictions World Cup 2022 – Uruguay vs South Korea
South Korea might be without their star man Son Heung-min when they play Uruguay in their World Cup opener.
La Celeste are adjusting to life without Óscar Tabárez. Diego Alonso has enjoyed a solid start to his career as the new Uruguay boss, and he will hope to keep up the momentum with a win over South Korea on Thursday evening.
Recent form
Uruguay decided to cut ties with Óscar Tabárez, who had been at the job for 15 years, after Uruguay’s horrendous start to their World Cup qualification campaign.
Alves took charge when the two-time world champions had lost four consecutive qualifier matches, and the threat of missing out on the World Cup appeared rather genuine. But he immediately turned things around with four successive wins, which was enough to seal a place in Qatar.
Luis Suárez has thrived under Alves, and so did Uruguay’s other attacking players. Edinson Cavani, Darwin Núñez and Maxi Gómez have also been in excellent form for Uruguay.
However, Diego Alonso is yet to commit to a specific formation, as he has experimented with a handful of systems, mostly a 4-4-2 and 4-2-3-1. But that should not worry the fans as long as the results keep coming.
South Korea did not come to Qatar under the best of circumstances. Heung Min son has undergone an surgery in his eye socket and his involvement is a major doubt.
The Tottenham ace did travel with the South Korean squad, but South Kore manager Paulo Bento doesn’t know yet whether or not Son will be involved in the Uruguay game.
South Korea head into the tournament with a three-match unbeaten streak. They followed up their 2-2 stalemate with Costa Rica with narrow 1-0 wins over Cameroon and Iceland. But can they survive the ”group of death”, which also involves Portugal and Ghana, without a fully fit Heung Min Son?
Team News
Ronald Araújo made a miraculous post-op recovery to get into the Uruguay squad, but Alonso is unlikely to risk him in the first match.
So, we will likely see a classic Uruguay CB pairing of José María Giménez and Diego Godín. Sergio Rochet might keep his spot as the first-choice Uruguay goalkeeper instead of veteran Fernando Muslera.
Luis Suárez is a sure pick for Alonso, but the rest of the frontline depends on the formation he chooses to go with. Regardless, Edinson Cavani is not expected to start.
Son’s availability is the biggest fitness concern for South Korea. If he’s not fit to start, Bento might choose to go with a more defensive setup.
The Portuguese tactician has been under fire for his defensive brand of football, but he might feel it’s the best approach to grind out a positive result against an in-form Uruguay side.
Our Prediction
Diego Alonso reportedly stated that his team came to Qatar as title contenders. Under Alonso, Uruguay has been a fantastic side and if they can retain that form, they will mount a formidable title challenge.
They are a more balanced side than South Korea right now. That’s why we will go for a 2-0 win for Uruguay.
Date: 24 November
Time: 6:30 PM IST
Venue: Education City Stadium
Football Betting Predictions World Cup 2022 – Portugal vs Ghana
Eight years after their group stage face-off in the 2014 World Cup, Portugal and Ghana will meet again in the grandest stage of world football.
Portugal will try to brush aside the controversy regarding Cristiano Ronaldo’s Man United exit and start the World Cup with a win for the first time since 2006.
The Black Stars will try to celebrate their return to the World Cup with a memorable victory over the European giants.
Ronaldo’s antics
Cristiano Ronaldo brought unwanted distractions to the Portugal squad ahead of their World Cup opener. In an interview with British talk show host Piers Morgan, the 37-year-old publicly criticised Manchester United and the Red Devils manager Erik ten Hag.
In response to Ronaldo’s scathing outburst, Manchester United announced that they had terminated the forward’s contract upon mutual agreement.
Ronaldo has asked reporters to focus on Portugal’s World Cup mission instead of his club career. But that did little to clear the air of discomfort around the Portugal camp regarding the situation.
Portugal manager Fernando Santos will not be happy with the furore Ronaldo’s actions has resulted in as he demands full focus from his squad to win a group which has been dubbed as the ”group of death” by many.
Recent form
Other than reaching the semifinals in 2006, Portugal have underperformed in the World Cup in recent history despite having a vast pool of talents.
They crashed out of the group stages in 2014 and only managed to make it as far as the round of 16 in 2010 and 2018.
Portugal finished their World Cup preparations on a high note. They ran to a 4-0 win against Nigeria on Friday, with Bruno Fernandes hitting the target twice. Gonçalo Ramos and João Mário struck late to extend the margin of victory.
Ghana will get the opportunity to avenge their controversial defeat to Uruguay in the 2010 World Cup quarterfinals. But before they take on La Celeste, they will have to deal with another World Cup rematch when they play Portugal at Stadium 974.
The West African nation could not qualify for the World Cup in 2018, and in early 2022, the chances of Ghana’s World Cup return appeared slim.
They could not win a single match in their African Cup of Nations group. Then Otto Addo came as the new manager and waved his magic wand to transform Ghana into a more confident and cohesive unit.
Ghana enter the fray with seven wins in the last eight matches. So, they will fancy their chances against an opposition who have a poor opening-day record.
Team News
Cristiano Ronaldo did not feature in Portugal’s friendly win over Ghana, but he has confirmed that he will start against Ghana.
Bernardo Silva is another automatic choice in the Portugal frontline.
AC Milan ace Rafael Leão might beat João Félix, Otávio, and André Silva to claim the last spot in the Portugal attack.
Thomas Partey, Alexander Djiku, Kamaldeen Sulemana watched on from the bench as their teammates secured a 2-1 win over Switzerland to wrap up Ghana’s World Cup preparations. But the trio will return against Portugal.
Our Football Betting Prediction
Portugal have a host of world class talents, but Fernando Santos’s tactics have been put under scrutiny lately.
There’s also the undesired attention from the Cristiano Ronaldo saga. We don’t think Portugal are at their best right now.
We think Ghana are about to pick up an upset victory against the 2016 Euro champions. We call a 2-1 victory for Ghana.
Date: 24 November
Kickoff Time: 9:30 PM IST
Stadium: Stadium 974