Let's start with an interesting fact, the four teams in Group G of the Qatar World Cup, Brazil, Switzerland and Serbia were in the same group at the 2018 World Cup in Russia. Four years ago, Brazil drew 1-1 with Switzerland and beat Serbia 2-0, making it 2-1 with Serbia. Four years passed in a flash, and the fourth partner in the group changed from Costa Rica to today's Cameroon. Can the "African lion" play the role of spoiler? Can the Serbian team "take revenge" on the Swiss team? Can the "Samba Legion", which is generally optimistic by the outside world, achieve six-star glory? All the answers will be revealed in this passionate winter.
Brazil team
Spear tip and shield solid favorite
It has been 20 years since Brazil last won the World Cup. In 20 years, they have repeatedly challenged for the championship, but they have returned again and again. In 2006 and 2010, they were eliminated in the 1/4 final. In the 2014 World Cup hosted in Brazil, the past was staged that Brazilian fans did not want to look back, and the defeat to Germany was 7-1.
In the last World Cup, Brazil finished first in the group. 1/8 final, they beat Mexico. In the quarterfinal, they faced the "European Red Devils" Belgium, who fell behind by two goals in the first half. Although the Jedi fought back in the second half, they lost 1-2 and missed the final four.
At the World Cup in Qatar, Brazil made a comeback and once again challenged the Hercules Cup. In the World Cup qualifiers, Brazil won 17 wins and 14 draws and drew 3, with an unbeaten record, scoring 40 goals and conceding 5 goals, which can be said to be "spear and shield".
Yesterday, Beijing time, the Brazilian team announced the 26-man squad for the World Cup. From the line-up point of view, the current Brazilian team has a strong strength in all positions. The goalkeeper position is guarded by Alisson and Ederson, two world-class goalkeepers. In the defensive line, Marquinhos, Thiago Silva and Militang are in central defence, while Danillo, Sandro and Alves occupy the wing. In the midfield, Casemiro, Fred and Fabinho can play at the back, and Guimaraes and Paqueta can provide support for the forwards. The attacking squad of nine strikers is luxurious, and star Neymar has matured and has been in good form this season, contributing 15 goals and 12 assists in 19 games for Paris Saint-Germain. Real Madrid duo Vinicius and Rodrigo have grown rapidly at Real Madrid, scoring 10 and 7 goals respectively this season. In addition, Jesus and Martinelli, who play for Arsenal, Anthony of Manchester United, Richarlison of Tottenham and Rafinha of Barca are all capable of providing firepower to the team. Compared to previous World Cups, this Brazilian team is full of talent, stars and strength. I believe that the team's coach Tite is facing happy troubles when arranging the squad.
Predictably, Brazil have little problem qualifying from the group stage, and perhaps they have already begun to plan their knockout journey.
Serbian team
The former Chinese Super League coach is in charge of the coaching whip
The Serbian team is tall and adept at using their height advantage to score headers, scoring six in eight World Cup matches.
In the World Qualifiers, Serbia is tied to Portugal, Luxembourg, Azerbaijan and Ireland. In the first seven matches, Portugal and Serbia shared 17 points and finished first and second respectively. In the final round, Portugal went head-to-head with Serbia. In the 90th minute of the match, Serbia's Tadic sent in a cross from the right, and the unguarded Mitrović headed in at the back point, and the ball bounced into the net to help the team defeat Portugal 2-1 and advance to the World Cup finals with the first place in the group.
In today's Serbian squad, 26-year-old midfielder Milinkovic, who plays for Serie A club Lazio, is the core of the team, worth 60 million euros. In 2013 and 2015, he led the team to the double of the European Under-19 Championship and the U20 World Cup. He has made 18 appearances for Lazio this season, scoring five goals and providing seven assists. Vlahović, who is 1.90 meters tall, is also a major offensive weapon of the team, although he is only 22 years old, he is worth more than 80 million euros. During his time at Juventus this season, he scored eight goals in 15 games. In the World Cup qualifiers, he also scored 4 goals for Serbia. There are also a number of players who play in the five major leagues in this team, and the overall strength should not be underestimated.
The manager of the team is Dragan Stojkovic, an old acquaintance of Chinese Super League fans and who has coached Chinese Super League club Guangzhou City for nearly five years. He took over the Serbian national team in March 2021 and has a record of 13 wins, 4 draws and 3 defeats since taking office.
In Group G, it is exciting to see how the "Samba Legion", "Swiss Army Knife" and "African Lions" and "Balkan White Eagle" can play.
Team Switzerland
The "saber" was unsheathed and eager to break through
Switzerland are a regular World Cup fixture and have not been absent since the start of the 2006 World Cup in Germany, with the Netherlands, recognized as Europe's powerhouses, and Italy alternating in recent World Cups. The overall strength of the Swiss team should not be underestimated, and in the World Preliminary Round, they beat Italy to directly qualify for the World Cup as the first in the group with an unbeaten record of 5 wins and 3 draws.
Today, the Swiss squad has a number of players who play in the five major leagues, and they are good in terms of personal quality, excellent defensive ability, teamwork and rich experience in the competition. Arsenal's main backman, Zhaka, Borussia Mönchengladbach's goalkeeper Sommer, Torin's Ricardo Rodríguez and other players have participated in the last World Cup in Russia, in addition to Shaqiri, known as "Swiss Messi". The 34-year-old is at the peak of his career, setting a Bundesliga record with 19 saves in a single game against Bayern this season. In the previous World Qualifiers, he played quite solidly, allowing his team's goal to be pierced twice in eight games.
Last year, the Swiss manager changed, and Petkovic, who had led the team for nearly seven years, left the team. Murat Jagin, who has been coaching in the Swiss Super League for many years, took office. Although the new head coach is not a big name, he has allowed the Swiss team to continue its consistent performance.
Switzerland has reached the World Cup finals three times, but has struggled to move further, most recently in Germany 2006. In the last World Cup, Switzerland drew 1-1 with Brazil and defeated Serbia 2-1 to finish second in the group, but lost to Sweden in the quarterfinals. The Swiss team, now ranked 15th in the world, is eager to break new ground.
Cameroon team
The "African Lions" had a hard time qualifying
After eight years of absence from the World Cup, the "African Lions" Cameroon team is back. Cameroon has qualified for the World Cup finals seven times in its history, being the first African team to reach the quarter-finals of the World Cup, having won the Africa Cup of Nations five times. But in recent years, Cameroonian football has declined. The last two World Cup finals were in 2010 and 2014, but they lost all six group stages.
Cameroon's journey to the World Cup in Qatar was also difficult. In their away match against Algeria, they won 2-1 thanks to Ekambi's goal in extra time to advance thanks to their away goal advantage.
Cameroon is coached by their legendary veteran captain, Rigobert Song. Captain Abubakar currently plays in the Saudi league and is familiar with the weather and environment in West Asia and will provide useful advice to the team. Goalkeeper Onana, who plays for Inter, is reflexive and good at saving. Another star to watch is Shupomotin, who has scored 10 goals in 14 games this season.
However, Cameroon must have beaten Serbia and Switzerland in order to qualify, but they have not won a European team in a World Cup since the 1990 World Cup.
(Original title: "Samba Legion" sword points to six-star glory)
Source: Beijing Evening News reporter Zhuo Ran
Drafts: Wu Wei Courtesy of Xinhua News Agency
Process Editor: U030
Copyright statement: The copyright of the text belongs to Beijing News Group, and may not be reproduced or adapted without permission.
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