Group A is the most diverse in the tournament – there’s a bit of everything here. Hosts Qatar will play South American dark horses Ecuador on Sunday to get the ball rolling – literally and proverbially. The AFCON winners Senegal arrive even stronger than in 2002 – providing Mane gets to play, of course – and the Netherlands always seem to be on the verge of greatness and shouldn’t be underestimated.Four national teams from four continents and four completely different backgrounds – this could be an interesting one.Let’s check the teams out – starting with the hosts.##EDITORS_CHOICE##In the history of the World Cup, the host nation would always be given credit and a chance of overperforming – and usually, there would be a fair bit of support from neutrals. But this year, it’s different. With the well-documented story of the way the Middle East country got to host the World Cup, foreign labourers being mistreated, stories of corruption and every negative story regarding the tiny Arab county, the vast majority of football fans have little sympathy for the uninspiring team. They will be lucky to score a goal in their three matches, while winning a point would be a minor miracle. This is the first time Qatar are playing in the World Cup finals – and it’s probably it’s going to be the last. So, have fun, Qatari footballers. You hit the jackpot.World Cup Group A Predictions? #FIFAWorldCupQatar2022 #fifaworldcup pic.twitter.com/70CAkkRsxR— The Final Whistle (@_TFWhistle_) November 16, 2022 Ecuador may not be entirely up to the level of their South American neighbours Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay, but it’s not to say they haven’t got anything to offer. After all, they made the tournaments ahead of Colombia, Peru, Paraguay and Chile in the Eliminatoria – so they deserve a lot of credit. Gustavo Alfaro’s men will try to get one of the two top spots and match their country’s best-ever result, the round of 16 spot they managed in the 2006 tournament. Captain Enner Valencia is 33 but is still the biggest star in his homeland. He will get a lot of support from young guns Pervis Estupinan, Moises Caicedo and Gonzalo Plata.##NAJAVA_MECA_6816143##And Senegal? They are bursting with confidence, quality and experience. It wouldn’t be fair to say their chances depend on Sadio Mane recovering from his injury in time, but we’re going to say that anyway. Bayern’s striker is the natural-born leader, the X-factor, the man the entire nation will get behind. Aliou Cisse has many established players to choose from and will need everyone to be on top of their game – whether Mane is on the pitch or the bench. Boulaye Dia and Ismaila Sarr should provide the goals, and Edouard Mendy, Kalidou Koulibaly, Gana Gueye and Cheikhou Kouyate must show maturity and responsibility.##NAJAVA_MECA_6816069##Oranje. The orange guys from the Netherlands. A small county with big talents and football tradition. They are the best footballing nation never to win the World Cup. Two losing finals in the 1970s and the narrow loss to Spain in the 2010 final are open wounds that still bring pain and pride in equal measure. In 2014, the Dutch won the bronze medal and then failed to qualify four years later. So what to expect from them? Nobody expects them to win the trophy, not even to be in the last four. And that can be their big advantage this time. They have got quality all over the pitch. Virgil Van Dijk and Matthijs De Ligt in defence, Frenkie De Jong and Cody Gakpo in the middle and Memphis Depay and Steven Bergwijn upfront – all those players would walk into just about any team on the planet. Oranje are all quality and zero hype. They have nothing to lose and so much to win – finally!WORLD CUP – GROUP ASunday19.00: (3.40) Qatar (3.00) Ecuador (2.50)Monday19.00: (6.75) Senegal (3.80) Netherlands (1.63)25.11. Friday16.00: (3.90) Qatar (3.15) Senegal (2.20)19.00: (1.65) Netherlands (3.80) Ecuador (6.25)29.11. Tuesday18.00: (1.33) Netherlands (5.40) Qatar (11.0)18.00: (2.75) Ecuador (3.05) Senegal (2.95)***odds are subject to change
