Group G preview
Belgium: I think Belgium are going under the radar heading into this World Cup, they haven’t lost in their last 12 matches and have multiple players going into the tournament in red hot form. The likes of Jeremy Doku, Youri Tielemans and Leandro Trossard finished the season strongly along with the likes of Kevin de Bruyne and Romelu Lukaku who haven’t played that much football this season so will be keen to perform in this competition, the defence is almost certainly going to be their biggest issue with an ageing backline but they do have arguably the best goalkeeper in the world in Thibaut Courtois which is a huge advantage in a tournament like the World Cup. I think Belgium will progress from this group pretty easily which will undoubtedly help build momentum heading into the knockouts where I think this side can compete with any team in the tournament, can this finally be Belgium’s time to win a major tournament?
Player to watch: Charles De Ketelaere
Egypt: The Egyptians are coming off the back of a pretty good AFCON where they made the semi-finals going out to the eventual winners Senegal in a tight game that ended 1-0 so there is optimism heading into this World Cup, they find themselves in a group which they can be confident to get out off but I don’t see them going that far in this World Cup if I’m honest. Mohammed Salah is coming off a terrible season with Liverpool but he’ll be keen to perform in what’s likely to be his final World Cup for Egypt, alongside him will be Omar Marmoush who should be fresh heading into this tournament having played quite few minutes for Man City over the season so he may be keen to perform to try and get a move once the World Cup is over. At the AFCON they were quite defensive overall so I’m expecting more of the same at this tournament where they hit teams on the break and I do expect them to get out of this group, any further than that would be a success I think for Egypt.
Player to watch: Omar Marmoush
Iran: A lot of talk going into this World Cup for Iran was if they were going to even be allowed into the US to compete in the tournament but they have been kept in the tournament and I hope there’s no controversy in the games Iran do play at this World Cup, it’s going to be tough for this squad to keep the noise out as all three group games are played in the USA but they definitely have a chance to get out of this group even if it is as one of the best 3rd place teams as they are well capable of beating New Zealand which would probably be enough to qualify from the group. The squad is largely the same as the last World Cup with Mehdi Taremi leading the line yet again in a major tournament for Iran and he will have to be on top form for Iran to get out of this group, let’s hope the football does the talking for Iran during this World Cup.
Player to watch: Amirmohammad Razzaghinia
New Zealand: New Zealand are coming into this tournament in pretty horrific form to say the least, they haven’t kept a clean sheet in their last 10 games and have lost 4-0 to Haiti and 1-0 to England in the lead-up to the competition. Chris Wood remains their best player but has had very little game time for Nottingham Forest as he’s been battling with injuries all season so it remains to be seen whether he will be fully fit for the tournament, it’s not improbable that they get out of this group but I do think the other teams see New Zealand as an easy opportunity to get three points and progress which could play into their hands if teams underestimate them. The first game against Iran will probably be the most important of the group for New Zealand as a win would most likely put them in the Round of 32 which would be a huge success for the country in my opinion, that should be the aim for this side.
Player to watch: Elijah Just
Overall prediction for the group:
1.Belgium
2.Egypt
3.Iran
4.New Zealand