2018 World Cup: Group B preview
Photo credit: Jonathan Nackstrand/AFP/Getty Images (Creative Commons license)
Who is in Group B? Portugal, Spain, Morocco, Iran.
Who are the favorites to go through? Portugal and Spain are heavy favorites in this group.
GROUP B TEAM PREVIEWS
Portugal – The reigning European Champions possess a team full of recognized names such as defenders Pepe and Jose Fonte, midfielders Joao Moutinho and the supremely gifted Bernardo Silva, and forwards such as the promising Goncalo Guedes. But there’s one name that stands above the rest: Cristiano Ronaldo. It is only due to the existence of someone named Lionel Messi, that Cristiano will not go down in history as a “once-in-a-generation footballer.” Speaking of generations, this is the final hurrah for a fantastic international cycle of Portuguese footballers.
Ronaldo’s club career has far exceeded that of his predecessor, Luis Figo. Ronaldo’s goal now will be to emulate or succeed Portugal’s greatest ever international player, the legendary Eusebio, who led Portugal to a third-place finish in the 1966 World Cup.
Unlike Eusebio, however, Ronaldo will not benefit from a strong enough supporting cast to make it far into the knockout stages.
Prediction – Winners of Group B, QF finish
I expect Portugal to win the group, narrowly beating Spain, while playing some effective, if unimpressive, football along the way. I expect them to beat the second-place team from group A (I predict Egypt). I predict Ronaldo & Co. will go out in the quarterfinals to Messi-led Argentina.
Spain – Eight years ago, this author remembers watching the final between Holland and Spain and watching the brilliant Andres Iniesta lead his country to the greatest prize. After an embarrassing performance in the 2014 World Cup, Spain will be hoping to tiki-taka their way back into international relevance. Spain possesses an incredible midfield which includes the metronomic Sergio Busquets, the seasoned genius of Iniesta, the mercurial Isco, the industrious Saul Niguez, the playmaker Thiago and the experienced Koke.
Any of those players would walk into most other midfields in the world.
But there are still questions about Spain. For example, both Gerard Pique and Sergio Ramos have won everything in the game. Yet, in key moments, both players are prone to strange lapses in positioning and/or concentration. Additionally, it is unclear who soon-to-be Real Madrid manager Jolen Lopetegui will select as his primary forward (in what will likely be a 4-3-3). Update: This morning, Lopetegui was fired as head coach of the Spanish NT.
Will the imprudent Diego Costa supercede his Madrid counterpart Lucas Vasquez? Unlike the 2010 World Cup, Spain possesses a strong line of accomplished forwards, and we are unlikely to see the deployment of a false nine.
One position that will have no questions will be that of goalkeeper. In spite of his recent mistake during Spain’s pre-World Cup friendly, David De Gea remains the best goalkeeper in the world. And only a German Liverpool supporter would argue otherwise.
Prediction – 2nd in Group B, QF finish
I expect Spain to play the best football in the group, but finish second, thereby setting up a matchup against the Group A winner (I predict Uruguay). I expect Spain to beat Uruguay rather comfortably, then lose in a narrow game against France.
Iran – Asia’s highest-ranked FIFA team, Iran is about to make its third-successive (and fifth all time) appearance at the grandest stage. Coached by experienced Portuguese manager Carlos Queiroz, Iran has played some strong counter-attacking football on their way to the World Cup. While off-field troubles are never far away, Iranian players have consistently shown grit to catapult themselves onto the football sphere.
Via a smattering of players playing in Europe, such as captain Masoud Shojaei, Nottingham Forest’s Ashkan Dejagah and Olympiacos’ Karim Ansarifard, Iran’s national team possesses experienced and technically gifted footballers. However, the gap between Asian teams and the rest of the world is large.
Nobody exemplifies this more than Iran’s star forward, 23-year old Sardar Azmoun. Having narrowly missed out on the 2014 World Cup squad, Azmoun has been excellent while representing Iran in both friendlies and World Cup qualifying since then. Azmoun has racked up 23 goals in 33 appearances for Iran. However, his performances for his parent club Rubin Kazan tell the whole story in terms of his preparedness for the big stage — Azmoun has only managed five goals in 26 appearances for Rubin Kazan.
Prediction – Iran will finish third in the group, losing games to Spain and Portugal, but beating Morocco.
Morocco – Morocco last qualified for the World Cup in 1998 when they were eliminated in the group stages. On paper, Morocco possesses a stronger team than fellow Group B runts Iran. They have a number of players who play at a high level in Europe, including Mehdi Benatia, their captain and center back for Juventus.
Benatia will be the defensive stalwart of an ultra-defensive 4-2-3-1, with either Khalib Boutaib or Ajax’s Hakim Ziyech leading the forward line.
Prediction: Though Morocco’s side is technically superior to Iran’s, manager Herve Renard’s tactical inflexibility will cost them against Iran during their opener on June 15.
I expect Morocco to lose both games against Spain and Portugal and finish last in this group.
Follow Nipun on Twitter: @NipunChopra7.
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