Germany
Odds to Qualify from Group: 1/12
Qualification: Germany dominated their World Cup qualification group. They won all 10 games, scoring 43 goals and conceding just 4. Twenty-one different players scored for Germany during the campaign, outlining their strength in depth.
Injuries and Team News: Manuel Neuer has missed the majority of the season with a broken foot but looks likely to recover in time for the tournament. Jerome Boateng should also be ready after recovering from a recent groin strain. World Cup 2014 hero Mario Gotze has not made Joachim Low’s squad this time around and neither has Dortmund forward Andre Schurrle. Freiburg centre-forward Nils Peterson has been a surprise inclusion in a 27 man provisional squad and will hope he is not one of the four players cut.
Projected XI (Taken from ESPN):
Marc-Andre Ter Stegen will fight it out with Manuel Neuer for the goalkeeping jersey. Ter Stegen has been fantastic for Barcelona this season but Neuer’s reputation might win him back the spot once fully fit. Jerome Boateng will partner Mats Hummels and Niklas Sule will drop out. Toni Kroos’ place is secure in the centre of the park, while Ilkay Gundogan and Sami Khedira will compete to partner him. Thomas Muller and Mesut Ozil seem to have locked down their starting places, but Marco Reus will have competition from Leroy Sane and Julian Draxler on the left. Bayern Munich striker Sandro Wagner has retired from international football after not making the squad so clearly won’t be leading the line as this projected line-up suggests. The more likely candidate young Leipzig star Timo Werner. Mario Gomez will start instead if a more experienced head is required.
Fantasy Potential: 4.5/5. For a defensive asset, look no further than Joshua Kimmich. He scored 6 goals and 17 (yes, seventeen!) assists from right-back for Bayern Munich in all competitions this season. Jonas Hector offers much less of an attacking threat, but should be the cheapest of the Germany backline. Toni Kroos has assist potential, but Ozil looks the best bet for midfield points; Reus is less nailed-on than the Arsenal man. Werner is a pacy forward with 21 goals and 10 assists in all competitions this season – he should lead the line and be in the mix for points.
Prediction: Germany come into another tournament looking good everywhere. Anything less than retaining their trophy will be a disappointment. Expect them to top the group.
Odds to Qualify from Group: 1/12
Qualification: Germany dominated their World Cup qualification group. They won all 10 games, scoring 43 goals and conceding just 4. Twenty-one different players scored for Germany during the campaign, outlining their strength in depth.
Injuries and Team News: Manuel Neuer has missed the majority of the season with a broken foot but looks likely to recover in time for the tournament. Jerome Boateng should also be ready after recovering from a recent groin strain. World Cup 2014 hero Mario Gotze has not made Joachim Low’s squad this time around and neither has Dortmund forward Andre Schurrle. Freiburg centre-forward Nils Peterson has been a surprise inclusion in a 27 man provisional squad and will hope he is not one of the four players cut.
Projected XI (Taken from ESPN):
Marc-Andre Ter Stegen will fight it out with Manuel Neuer for the goalkeeping jersey. Ter Stegen has been fantastic for Barcelona this season but Neuer’s reputation might win him back the spot once fully fit. Jerome Boateng will partner Mats Hummels and Niklas Sule will drop out. Toni Kroos’ place is secure in the centre of the park, while Ilkay Gundogan and Sami Khedira will compete to partner him. Thomas Muller and Mesut Ozil seem to have locked down their starting places, but Marco Reus will have competition from Leroy Sane and Julian Draxler on the left. Bayern Munich striker Sandro Wagner has retired from international football after not making the squad so clearly won’t be leading the line as this projected line-up suggests. The more likely candidate young Leipzig star Timo Werner. Mario Gomez will start instead if a more experienced head is required.
Fantasy Potential: 4.5/5. For a defensive asset, look no further than Joshua Kimmich. He scored 6 goals and 17 (yes, seventeen!) assists from right-back for Bayern Munich in all competitions this season. Jonas Hector offers much less of an attacking threat, but should be the cheapest of the Germany backline. Toni Kroos has assist potential, but Ozil looks the best bet for midfield points; Reus is less nailed-on than the Arsenal man. Werner is a pacy forward with 21 goals and 10 assists in all competitions this season – he should lead the line and be in the mix for points.
Prediction: Germany come into another tournament looking good everywhere. Anything less than retaining their trophy will be a disappointment. Expect them to top the group.
Mexico
Odds to Qualify from Group: 11/10
Qualification: Mexico comfortably finished above fellow World-Cup qualifiers Costa Rica and Panama to top their group. The frontline of Hirving Lozano, Carlos Vela and Javier Hernandez split the goals as ‘El Tri’ cruised to Russia.
Injuries and Team News: Boss Juan Carlos Osorio named a 28 man provisional squad after voicing big concerns over the fitness of Diego Reyes, Jonathan dos Santos, Giovani dos Santos, Nestor Araujo and Andres Guardado. Centre-back Araujo’s knee injury will now keep him out of the tournament entirely. Osorio will be hoping the other concerns ease as kick-off approaches.
Projected XI (Taken from ESPN):
Long-serving goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa impressed at the last World Cup and retains his spot this time around. 39-year old Rafael Marquez will participate in his fifth World Cup and might step in for Araujo. Otherwise, Carlos Salcedo could move into the centre with Edson Alvarez on the right. The rest of the back four seem to be first-choice. Jonathan dos Santos will be competing for a place in the middle of the park but the midfield three are expected to start. West Ham striker Hernandez takes the central role up top, with Lozano and Vela flanking him.
Fantasy Potential: 2.5/5. Hernandez has 49 goals in 100 games for his country so presents himself as a worthy option up top, while Vela has picked up good form since moving to LA. 22 year-old PSV winger Lozano could also be a decent fantasy asset. He posted 19 goals and 11 assists in 34 games for PSV this season and has 6 goals in his last 13 games for Mexico. Mexico begin the group stage with a difficult fixture against Germany – perhaps taking this game to scout the Mexicans before bringing their players into your team is the most sensible option.
Prediction: Mexico’s progress in this tournament will likely depend on how many players can get fit in time. The bookies give them only a slight edge over Sweden but this team always make it to the round of 16 and should have enough to get out of the group.
Odds to Qualify from Group: 11/10
Qualification: Mexico comfortably finished above fellow World-Cup qualifiers Costa Rica and Panama to top their group. The frontline of Hirving Lozano, Carlos Vela and Javier Hernandez split the goals as ‘El Tri’ cruised to Russia.
Injuries and Team News: Boss Juan Carlos Osorio named a 28 man provisional squad after voicing big concerns over the fitness of Diego Reyes, Jonathan dos Santos, Giovani dos Santos, Nestor Araujo and Andres Guardado. Centre-back Araujo’s knee injury will now keep him out of the tournament entirely. Osorio will be hoping the other concerns ease as kick-off approaches.
Projected XI (Taken from ESPN):
Long-serving goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa impressed at the last World Cup and retains his spot this time around. 39-year old Rafael Marquez will participate in his fifth World Cup and might step in for Araujo. Otherwise, Carlos Salcedo could move into the centre with Edson Alvarez on the right. The rest of the back four seem to be first-choice. Jonathan dos Santos will be competing for a place in the middle of the park but the midfield three are expected to start. West Ham striker Hernandez takes the central role up top, with Lozano and Vela flanking him.
Fantasy Potential: 2.5/5. Hernandez has 49 goals in 100 games for his country so presents himself as a worthy option up top, while Vela has picked up good form since moving to LA. 22 year-old PSV winger Lozano could also be a decent fantasy asset. He posted 19 goals and 11 assists in 34 games for PSV this season and has 6 goals in his last 13 games for Mexico. Mexico begin the group stage with a difficult fixture against Germany – perhaps taking this game to scout the Mexicans before bringing their players into your team is the most sensible option.
Prediction: Mexico’s progress in this tournament will likely depend on how many players can get fit in time. The bookies give them only a slight edge over Sweden but this team always make it to the round of 16 and should have enough to get out of the group.
Sweden
Odds to Qualify from Group: 5/4
Qualification: Sweden made tough work of qualifying for the World Cup but managed it by the skin of their teeth. They edged out the Netherlands on goal difference to finish 2nd in the group and earn a play-off with Italy. The Swedes won 1-0 at home before shutting down the Italians in the 2nd leg for a 0-0 draw to earn their spot in this summer’s tournament.
Injuries and Team News: Jakob Johansson has been ruled out of the squad after picking up a knee injury in the 2nd leg of the World Cup play-off against Italy. The AEK Athens midfielder was the scorer of the 1st leg goal that sent Sweden to Russia so will be sorely missed. Zlatan Ibrahimovic will not be at the World Cup – he retired from international football after Euro 2016. Manager Lasse Richt played down rumours of a comeback, claiming that Ibrahimovic had never indicated to him that it was a possibility. Hamburger SV midfielder Albin Ekdal recovered from injury towards the end of the domestic season to make the plane.
Projected XI (Taken from ESPN):
Sweden are somewhat predictable in their line-up and system. Manchester United centre-back Victor Lindelof partners Andreas Granqvist. Ludwig Augustinsson should keep Swansea’s Martin Olsson out of the team. Emil Forsberg can play on either wing and is nailed on. Ex-Premier League midfielder Sebastian Larsson is still plying his trade in the Championship and remains a steady player in the middle for his country.
Fantasy Potential: 2/5. Sweden look limited when it comes to fantasy options. Their back four offer next to no attacking potential, while star man Forsberg has only 6 goals in 34 games for his country and hasn’t been in fantastic attacking form at club level. Viktor Claesson offers more of a threat on the opposing wing, with 18 direct goal contributions this season for Russian side Krasnodar. Of the 2 forwards, Marcus Berg offers the most goal threat. He picked up a staggering 25 goals and 11 assists in just 21 games this season. However, that was in the United Arab Emirates, and he will expect to face far tougher backlines in Russia.
Prediction: A spirited Sweden escaped a tricky group and a tough play-off to qualify for the World Cup so it would be silly to write them off altogether. However, I expect them to struggle this time out and miss out on a place in the last 16.
Odds to Qualify from Group: 5/4
Qualification: Sweden made tough work of qualifying for the World Cup but managed it by the skin of their teeth. They edged out the Netherlands on goal difference to finish 2nd in the group and earn a play-off with Italy. The Swedes won 1-0 at home before shutting down the Italians in the 2nd leg for a 0-0 draw to earn their spot in this summer’s tournament.
Injuries and Team News: Jakob Johansson has been ruled out of the squad after picking up a knee injury in the 2nd leg of the World Cup play-off against Italy. The AEK Athens midfielder was the scorer of the 1st leg goal that sent Sweden to Russia so will be sorely missed. Zlatan Ibrahimovic will not be at the World Cup – he retired from international football after Euro 2016. Manager Lasse Richt played down rumours of a comeback, claiming that Ibrahimovic had never indicated to him that it was a possibility. Hamburger SV midfielder Albin Ekdal recovered from injury towards the end of the domestic season to make the plane.
Projected XI (Taken from ESPN):
Sweden are somewhat predictable in their line-up and system. Manchester United centre-back Victor Lindelof partners Andreas Granqvist. Ludwig Augustinsson should keep Swansea’s Martin Olsson out of the team. Emil Forsberg can play on either wing and is nailed on. Ex-Premier League midfielder Sebastian Larsson is still plying his trade in the Championship and remains a steady player in the middle for his country.
Fantasy Potential: 2/5. Sweden look limited when it comes to fantasy options. Their back four offer next to no attacking potential, while star man Forsberg has only 6 goals in 34 games for his country and hasn’t been in fantastic attacking form at club level. Viktor Claesson offers more of a threat on the opposing wing, with 18 direct goal contributions this season for Russian side Krasnodar. Of the 2 forwards, Marcus Berg offers the most goal threat. He picked up a staggering 25 goals and 11 assists in just 21 games this season. However, that was in the United Arab Emirates, and he will expect to face far tougher backlines in Russia.
Prediction: A spirited Sweden escaped a tricky group and a tough play-off to qualify for the World Cup so it would be silly to write them off altogether. However, I expect them to struggle this time out and miss out on a place in the last 16.
South Korea
Odds to Qualify from Group: 5/2
Qualification: South Korea took second and an automatic qualification spot in Russia in a very close campaign. They could easily have been robbed of the spot by Uzbekistan or Syria had results gone differently in the final group games. Manager Uli Stielike was fired during the campaign and replaced by Shin Tae-Yong. He just about got the team over the line, but they will need to improve dramatically in the tournament proper if they have aspirations of progressing from Group F.
Injuries and Team News: As if South Korea weren’t already the underdogs of the group, a string of injuries has hit the camp to cause greater concern as the tournament approaches. News has recently broke that veteran striker Lee Keun-Ho will not be travelling to Russia after tearing a knee ligament. This is on top of injuries to centre-back Kim Min-Jae, and wingers Kwan Chang-Hoon and Yeom Ki-Hun.
Projected XI (Taken from ESPN):
South Korea will have the shuffle the pack with plenty of injuries to contend with. Swansea’s Ki Sung-Yeung will start regardless. Injury to veteran forward Keun-Ho might give the young Hwang Hee-Chan a chance to play up front with Spurs star Son Heung-Min. The Red Bull Salzburg striker has settled well in Germany with 13 goals across all competitions.
Fantasy Potential: 1.5/5. South Korea are an injury-hit team with very little going for them. Mexico and Germany are especially dangerous going forward so clean-sheets look unlikely, especially after losing a key centre-back. Their hopes rest on Son Heung-Min who has 20 goals in 63 games for his country and was in scintillating form for Spurs this season with 18 goals and 11 assists across all competitions.
Prediction: South Korea face an uphill battle to have a successful World Cup and on paper it is hard not to see them falling at the first hurdle.
Odds to Qualify from Group: 5/2
Qualification: South Korea took second and an automatic qualification spot in Russia in a very close campaign. They could easily have been robbed of the spot by Uzbekistan or Syria had results gone differently in the final group games. Manager Uli Stielike was fired during the campaign and replaced by Shin Tae-Yong. He just about got the team over the line, but they will need to improve dramatically in the tournament proper if they have aspirations of progressing from Group F.
Injuries and Team News: As if South Korea weren’t already the underdogs of the group, a string of injuries has hit the camp to cause greater concern as the tournament approaches. News has recently broke that veteran striker Lee Keun-Ho will not be travelling to Russia after tearing a knee ligament. This is on top of injuries to centre-back Kim Min-Jae, and wingers Kwan Chang-Hoon and Yeom Ki-Hun.
Projected XI (Taken from ESPN):
South Korea will have the shuffle the pack with plenty of injuries to contend with. Swansea’s Ki Sung-Yeung will start regardless. Injury to veteran forward Keun-Ho might give the young Hwang Hee-Chan a chance to play up front with Spurs star Son Heung-Min. The Red Bull Salzburg striker has settled well in Germany with 13 goals across all competitions.
Fantasy Potential: 1.5/5. South Korea are an injury-hit team with very little going for them. Mexico and Germany are especially dangerous going forward so clean-sheets look unlikely, especially after losing a key centre-back. Their hopes rest on Son Heung-Min who has 20 goals in 63 games for his country and was in scintillating form for Spurs this season with 18 goals and 11 assists across all competitions.
Prediction: South Korea face an uphill battle to have a successful World Cup and on paper it is hard not to see them falling at the first hurdle.
UPDATE (5/06/18): Germany – Manchester City winger Leroy Sane was a surprise omission from Joachim Low’s final squad. He hasn’t particularly impressed in a different role for Germany but was expected to at least make the 23. Nils Peterson unfortunately was also one of the four cut.