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Welcome back everyone who already had a look to our first article about Brazil, France, Argentina. Now let's see the second group of favorites by TopSportie:

1. Netherlands

Group A: Qatar, Ecuador, Senegal, Netherlands
Odd for their victory: 15.10
The Netherlands World Cup 2022 squad will be announced on 11 November, the Dutch FA has announced. But fans of the Oranje already have a good idea of who might be involved after Louis van Gaal revealed a 39-man provisional list. That will need to be cut down to a 26-man selection before the World Cup, though, where the Dutch have been drawn in Group A. The 2010 runners-up, who failed to qualify for Russia 2018 four years ago, are up against hosts Qatar as well as Ecuador and Senegal.

After a disappointing European Championship experience in 2021, where they fell to the Czech Republic in the knock-out stage, the Netherlands rehired the legendary Louis van Gaal to be their manager. Qualification for the World Cup wasn’t always easy but in the end, they topped the group containing the youthful and unpredictable Turkey, the young superstars of Norway as well as Montenegro, Latvia, and Gibraltar.
They lost early to Turkey in the early rounds, but eventually topped the group by 2 points, securing their place in Qatar via a 2-0 win in the last round over Norway with late goals from Steven Bergwijn and Memphis Depay.

How do they play?

The Netherlands remains one of the most exciting sides in international football – practicing technical, fast, and very direct football. This led to them having the most shots per game in the European qualifying, with only Germany coming close. They love to keep the ball and had the highest possession alongside Germany and Spain in qualifying. What makes their ball possession different is that they rarely pass it around slowly at the back between defenders and midfielders – they were absolute #1 in terms of forward passes in the qualifiers and also in terms of the success rate of forward passes. Usually, they play it short and move forward quickly, long ball is an option they very rarely use.
It’s also well known that the Dutch are some of the tallest people on earth, making it no surprise that physicality is a big part of their playing style. No team had more headed shots than them during the qualifiers, making them a fearsome force around set pieces too. And they usually get a lot of set pieces as they like to utilize their fast wingers on both sides of the pitch, leading to a lot of crosses and corners. They had the 2nd most corners per game.

Why can they win?

Playing the Dutch style of fast and direct football and finding the form of their X-factor Memphis Depay, keeping their opponents on the back foot and utilizing their physicality in defense as well as in attack. The Dutch are particularly dominant in the air, earning and converting set pieces into goals as they have a huge aerial advantage through the likes of Virgil van Dijk and Matthijs De Ligt, and Luuk de Jong.

Why can they lose?

While Depay is their X-factor, he is also the big question mark, as the explosive forward has received very limited playing time this season in Barcelona due to injuries and managerial preferences. The squad also lacks depth and alternatives in terms of playing style, in particular in the defensive department they might struggle if opponents manage to play fast enough to avoid getting into physical battles, at which point the turn of pace no longer favors the big Dutch defenders.

The leading stars:

The Netherlands might not have the scary names it had 15-20 years ago, however they still have a formidable squad. The leading face throughout the qualifiers was Memphis Depay (Barcelona) who scored a total of 12 goals and seems to enjoy the Oranje shirt more than any other. He is backed up by the likes of Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool), Matthijs de Ligt (Bayern), Stefan de Vrij (Inter) in defense, and Frenkie de Jong (Barcelona) in midfield.
 

The fresh faces:

Right-back Denzel Dumfries already shined at last summer’s European Championships, earning a move to Inter Milan thanks to vibrant attacking plays. Time in Italy has also improved his defensive abilities. Despite playing as a right-back he’s already scored 5 goals for the national team. The young midfielder Kenneth Taylor (Ajax) and forward Cody Gakpo (PSV) also look to emulate the success of Dumfries and use the big tournament as a platform to make a name for themselves if the opportunity arises.
 

2. Spain

Group E: Spain, Costa Rica, Germany, Japan
Odd for their victory: 9.20

Football will take center stage as the world of sports, and football fans in particular get ready for the FIFA World Cup one nation tipped for great things in the forthcoming World Cup is the Spain men’s football national side, who are without a doubt fired up for the 22nd episode of the FIFA World Cup slated to be held in Qatar this November. The La Rojas are one time champions and will have to be on their A-game to reignite a once solid and fearful Spanish-style football that once ruled the world of football, which is a testament to their being World Cup Champions at the 2010 FIFA World Cup. 

Spain FIFA World Cup 2022 potential squad:

The Spanish football team may be without the greats that were crowned as 2010 Kings of the World Of Soccer, but best believe that it does not in any way undermine the current abilities of the current squad. There are still a handful of players with experience in the side, mixed with a blend of new breeds who are all capable of causing damage to any team in the World Cup. Spain has found it difficult to replicate their outing in 2010, despite having fielded a world-class team in the past. Pending the final shortlist of players, Coach Enrique has the likes of Carvajal, Busquets, Morata, Ramos, Azplicueta, and Alba who all bring to the table a vast level of experience to the side. The Spaniards are expected to play a tick-tack passing system of football which will be controlled from the midfield, and may even play with a false 9 if they have to. The downside of this squad is that they are miles apart from what the world used to know, when Spain is mentioned in football, the shoes left for them to fill may be too big, and if they are not careful, may suffer a shocking outing.

Star Players: Alvaro Morata, Eric Garcia, Sergio Busquets, Jordi Alba, Ansu Fati, Ferran Torres, Rodri, Thiago Alcantara, Aymeric Laporte

Players to Watch: Alvaro Morata, Ansu Fati, Rodri, Ferran Torres, Laport, and Olmo

Captain and Vice Captain: Sergio Busquets, Jordi Alba

Spain's chances at the World Cup 2022

Only 4 teams are tipped with lower odds than Spain to win the Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup. There are loads of bookmakers who have pegged Spain’s outright win of the World Cup at 8.90 odds, making them top five amongst the clear favorites. The team's last outing during the UEFA Nations League, was somewhat impressive, as they were runners-up in the tournament. The Spanish side has what it takes to have a splendid World Cup feature this year, regardless of the fact the German national side occupies the same Group as Spain. Based on the permutations on paper, Spain will make it through from the group stage and is tipped to do great things at this year’s Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup.
 

3. Germany

Group E: Spain, Costa Rica, Germany, Japan
Odd for their victory: 11.20

Germany have truly paid the price for not being one of the top seeds for the World Cup, ranked 12th in the world at the time of the group stage draw. As a result, they were given a tough group alongside Spain, Japan and Costa Rica. Although Germany will still be expected to qualify from their group, the route to the final looks tough. With Hansi Flick still getting to know his best team, this tournament could come a bit too early and any dreams of a repeat of 2014 may be a bit farfetched. A good run to the quarter-finals should be okay, providing results in the other groups go their way. Germany are in possibly the toughest group at the 2022 World Cup and open their tournament against Japan at the Khalifa International Stadium. Then it’s the match many expect to be the decider of the group against Spain, with the winner of that likely to top Group E. Germany close their group stage, but hopefully not their tournament, against Costa Rica.

Who could Germany meet in the knockout rounds?

If Germany win Group E they will play the runners-up of Group F which, on bookmakers’ odds, would be Croatia. But after that there really isn’t a prize for Germany winning their group. In the quarter-final, they would play the winner of Group G or the Group H runners-up, which puts them up against the likes of Brazil, Portugal, Ghana, Uruguay and South Korea. And if they manage to get through that game (most likely against Brazil), one of England, Netherlands, Argentina, Senegal and USA are just a few of the teams who would await Germany. We’ve seen it before, but it might actually be better for Germany to finish runners-up in Group E. Although Belgium are likely to win Group F and therefore await in the round of 16, Germany would fancy their chances against a Red Devils side that is arguably on the comedown after failing to win anything at their peak. Should Germany get past them, the Group H winners or Group G runners-up would likely see Germany avoid Brazil and take on a much more manageable opponent such as Portugal, Ghana or Uruguay. However, the semi-finals do bring the difficult sides as France, England, Netherlands and Argentina are among the potential opponents.

New start, old glories for Germany?

With 20 days to go until the World Cup begins Germany head to Qatar without that aura of invincibility. They were eliminated four years ago in Russia in the group stages and suffered an early exit from Euro 2020 after losing out to England. That defeat ended Joachim Low's 15 years in charge. New manager Hansi Flick replaced him in August 2021. The former Bayern Munich manager won the treble with the German giants in 2020, including the Champions League Final, which was delayed due to the Covid-19 pandemic. He's still yet to taste defeat with the national team, and TopSportie football analytic Fabian is optimistic about the future of German football.
"We're coming now to, let's say, the better face of the German national team. I would say what's different - with Hansi Flick - is the communication. He communicates differently. He communicates to the team in a different way and to the media, the audience, and the fans in a different way. So, there is a bit more emotion and more enthusiasm in this new national team constructed by Hansi Flick now." Fabian say. Could a new coach give new life to the team and lead Germany to victory at the World Cup for the second time in three tournaments?
"It depends on the team's emotions and whether they can build a real team because this time, they won't be together for two, three, or four weeks before the World Cup starts. But every national team will have these difficulties. I think the coach is very well organised, so it may be possible to get together and (quickly) build a team." Fabian continues.

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