Former Arsenal coach Arsene Wenger believes the outcome of the World Cup group stages showed the teams that advanced without complication were those best prepared mentally and not distracted by political issues.Referring to shock exits by Germany, Belgium and Denmark during a technical analysis of the group stages by FIFA, Wenger said it was notable the teams that focused on football and started well – such as Brazil, France and England – had easier passages to the last 16.Arsene Wenger says teams who avoided political demonstrations played better at the World Cup this year. pic.twitter.com/epg7yoZW9w— EuroFoot (@eurofootcom) December 4, 2022 “The teams who were not disappointing in their first game performance – because when you got to the World Cup, you know, you have not to lose the first game – are the teams with experience, they have results … they played well in the first game,” Wenger said. “The teams as well who were mentally ready and had the mindset to focus on the competition and not on political demonstrations.”##EDITORS_CHOICE##Germany’s football federation was the most vocal in pressing for anti-discrimination “OneLove” armbands to be worn by players and said, “extreme blackmail” led to Germany, Denmark, Belgium, the Netherlands, Wales, England and Switzerland abandoning plans to wear them.##NAJAVA_MECA_6862161##efore their surprise opening defeat by Japan, the German team posed for a pre-match photo with their hands on their mouths, alluding to them being silenced by FIFA.
