Canada found out their fate for the 2022 World Cup Friday afternoon, when they were drawn into Group F. The other Countries drawn into this group are Belgium, Croatia and Morocco. Itβll be no easy task for Canada to finish in the top 2, but letβs take a closer look at Canadaβs competition.
Belgium
Belgium are currently ranked as the second best country in the world, per FIFA rankings, and thatβs a fair placement. Belgium have produced some of the best soccer players in the world. Thibaut Courtois is one of the best goal keepers in the world and is a regular for Spanish giants Real Madrid, and Kevin De Bruyne has been dominating the most prestigious league in all of soccer for years with Manchester City. If there is a positive for Canada, itβs the fact that Belgium have fallen short in major competition before when they have been heavy favourites, but if Canada can manage a draw, that would be a huge win.
Croatia
It doesnβt get much easier when we get to Croatia. Currently ranked at #16 by FIFA, Croatia also have a ton of great players to choose from for the 2022 World Cup. Croatia have a really good blend of players in their prime like Mateo Kovicic and Andrej Kramaric and then also have experienced vets like Ivan Perisic and club captain, Luka Modric. Croatia were the runners up for the last World Cup in 2018, and are the favourites with Belgium to move on to the round of 16.
Morocco
Morocco are no push overs either, they are currently ranked 24th in the world and they are the other team in this group. Morocco might not have the big names that Belgium and and Croatia, but they do have some players to watch out for. Morocco have players like Achraf Hakimi, Youssef En-Nesyri, and captain Romain Saiss. Another interesting tidbit here, is that Morocco keeper Yassine Bounou was actually born in Montreal, so it would be pretty nice to score on him in the group stage. Looking at this team, itβs almost a must win if Canada want to move out of the group.
If Canada want to advance, theyβre going to need to show the cohesiveness and the organization they showed in qualifying. Canada were able to get wins over both Mexico and USA in qualifying, and those countries are ranked 9th and 15th. John Herdman and the Canadian Menβs squad have it all to play for, and weβll see how far this team can go.
Good luck Canada!
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