World Cup 2022 Group F Preview

Seeds Belgium enter the tournament with a mixed record in their Nations League campaign. Three wins and a draw were sandwiched between two defeats to the Netherlands, resulting in Belgium narrowly missing a place in the Nations League Finals to the Dutch. The highlight of their campaign was a 6-1 rout of Wales, but the previous match had been very disappointing, a 4-1 home loss to the Dutch. They lost the final match, a shootout between themselves and the Dutch. Eleven goals for (with, as stated, six coming in one match) and eight against represents modest performance at both ends of the pitch. They have a friendly against Egypt in Kuwait scheduled before their first match against Canada. In that opening match, Belgium will play against a Canadian side full of confidence and pride. However, the Belgians possess abundant talent and will be confident they can outplay the Canadians and take all three points. If they do that, they will enter the second match against Morocco knowing that a win should secure qualification to the knockout stage. The Moroccans have several talented players and are capable of playing entertaining football. Still, Belgium have been strong for a long time and will look to win. The final match against Croatia represents a clash of two European nations, and there are similarities in both having a solid recent history and ageing golden generations. It might be a tight match, but Belgium will be confident of winning it. They will desire maximum points in this group.

Croatia arrive in Qatar buoyed, having won their previous four matches to top their Nations League group and hence reach next summer’s Finals. Those matches included a win at home to Denmark and victories in Denmark, France and Austria. Topping a group with the reigning World Champions and an impressive Danish side is quite the boost for the Croatians. They will look to do well in Qatar, especially after being runners-up in Russia. They have arranged a match with Saudi Arabia in Riyadh a week before their opening match. In that opening match against Morocco, they hope to use their technical ability and strong midfield to dominate the Moroccans and win. They will confidently enter the second match against an impressive Canadian side if they do. They will seek to impose their game on Canada and make it six points from six. If they can attain maximum points from their first two matches, and Belgium do the same, it will be a shootout between the two for first place in the final match. Belgium would have a slight edge in terms of quality. Croatia’s best players are getting older, but they will have their eye on first place regardless.

Morocco enter the World Cup in good form, having won four, drawn two, and lost one of their previous seven matches. Those wins included the victories over fellow African nations DR Congo (in the decisive 2nd leg play-off for the tournament) and South Africa and Liberia in Africa Cup of Nations qualifying. A win over Chile in a friendly in September was also impressive. However, there was the blemish of a 3-0 defeat to the United States in a June friendly. They have, however, kept three consecutive clean sheets. In their first tournament match against Croatia, they will be underdogs and up against a quality team. They will hope to use their energy to cause an upset. If they can gain a point or even all three, it would represent good insurance going into the middle match against Belgium. The Belgians are also ageing but will prove a very stern test for Morocco. Anything the Africans can get here is a bonus. They will still be in contention if they go into the final match against Canada with between one and three points. They will know that a victory over the North Americans could mean progress to the knockout stage. They will look to use their creativity to get in behind the Canadian defence and hope to qualify for the round of sixteen.

Canada come into the World Cup with great optimism, having led CONCACAF’s octagonal qualification group for so long and ultimately winning it. Their recent matches since summer, though, have been mixed. They comprised victories over Curacao and World Cup hosts Qatar but also defeats to fellow Americas nations Honduras and Uruguay. They have friendlies with Bahrain and Japan scheduled within the two weeks of their first match against Belgium. They are fully aware that they will be underdogs in that match, and anything they can take will be a bonus. If they can obtain a point, they go into the second match against Croatia, another talented European nation. They might be more expansive here as Croatia are arguably slightly weaker than Belgium, and the Canadians will need to up the ante in the search for points by this stage. If they can draw this match, they will go into the final match against Morocco, knowing that it represents their best chance of victory. Three points would be incredible against Croatia and much-needed, especially if the Belgium game does not go well. If they can win the Morocco match, they could finish the group with four or five points. The former would mean permutations such as goal difference coming into play. The latter may indicate qualification on points superiority. Regardless, qualification from this group in only their second-ever World Cup would constitute great success.