2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar - UEFA Qualifiers

[nullama]

~snip~
But the fact that they are on the opposite side of the groups, they can face each other in the semi finals. And there are two possibilities for this to happen:

- Argentina pass in first place of the group, and Portugal pass in second place.
- Argentina pass in second place in the group, and Portugal pass in first place.

Note the strings:
~snip~

You're absolutely right.

It was a bit more mixed than what I thought originally.

Yes, they can meet in the semi final as well as in the final.

Either way, it would be an interesting match, as I don't remember seeing them play against each other in a World Cup.

Usually games that feature an Europen vs a South American country in the World Cup are really good.

[Sithara007]

I disagree. Lionel Messi performance in the national team does not come close to his brilliance when he plays for Barcelona. I don't think he has won a trophy with his national team. Argentina is strong without Messi, having Messi in the game may be unfavorable for them. Portugal doesn't have the best squad but they have Christiano Ronaldo. He makes all the difference. I don't think Portugal will win the world cup, but I believe they can beat a Messi Argentina anytime. 

I understand what you are saying and would partially agree. Messi is more comfortable with Barca and his bonding with other Argentine players is not that great. But this is going to be his last world cup in all probability, and I am sure that he will not create any unwanted ego issues. After all, Messi want to be a part of the world cup winning squad. Back in 2014, Argentina reached the final, but that was the closest they had since 1986.

[LUCKMCFLY]

I am South American and I know what the capabilities of Peru are, IF something that Australia has as an advantage over Peru has always been the height of the players, if they are intelligent they manage to develop more air soccer for the World Cup that they really need to do and have more dynamics, free kicks are the best they can take advantage of if they are not given the strategies for Australia in the World Cup, they must play faster, everyone is talking about these classifications, both Australia and Costa Rica, many really believed that Peru was going to go, however I am glad to see these countries in the World Cup are deserving.

Trust me, I know the abilities of South Americans -- which is why I said they're technically better, understand game management more, but physical advantage is always an advantage in football. Even can see it in Premier League.

I'm Southeast Asian so it's no point of discussion I don't get either. Set pieces are at least 20% of the game and I've played a lot of games where you simply can't defend corners if they pack 3 or 4 players over 6 ft when your tallest guy (me) is 5'5 haha.

Well yes you are absolutely right wow you are from Southeast Asia, I have played soccer in real life with people from many countries, but not with the countries there, I would like to play one day with one of them, each country has a different technique in football.
Now, from my own experience and because I have played against the Germans and they are very, very strong, they have a lot of resistance and their height is quite relevant, in the aerial game it is very difficult to beat them, in addition to the fact that they run very fast, it is very similar when you play with the Brazilians, only the Brazilians do a lot of freestyle things playing, they do a lot of feints, it's like a soccer more focused on enjoying, it's like samba, but I know that soccer in any part of the world each country has its technique and that's great.

I disagree. Lionel Messi performance in the national team does not come close to his brilliance when he plays for Barcelona. I don't think he has won a trophy with his national team. Argentina is strong without Messi, having Messi in the game may be unfavorable for them. Portugal doesn't have the best squad but they have Christiano Ronaldo. He makes all the difference. I don't think Portugal will win the world cup, but I believe they can beat a Messi Argentina anytime.  

I understand what you are saying and would partially agree. Messi is more comfortable with Barca and his bonding with other Argentine players is not that great. But this is going to be his last world cup in all probability, and I am sure that he will not create any unwanted ego issues. After all, Messi want to be a part of the world cup winning squad. Back in 2014, Argentina reached the final, but that was the closest they had since 1986.

I still remember when Argentina lost that final, Messi's face was unique, besides all the cameras focused on him, I remember very well that after that failure Messi announced that he was going to retire from football, but so much was that they insisted on him in the Argentine Federation of Soccer convinced him, and so far I think he hasn't done too badly, this is the last chance he has to win a world cup, it's the only thing missing in his career.

[Jody.Drummer]

If Argentina met Portugal in the final it would be incredible. How the two countries that have two star players meet at the biggest football party in the world. Moreover, this is likely to be the last World Cup for them (Messi and Ronaldo). If this really happens this will be the most favorite match during the Qatar World Cup in my opinion.

Without a doubt it would be a historic game, as they never faced each other for the national teams. And it would certainly be the main game at the World Cup. But they can even meet in semi-finals, so if both teams are doing well, the probability of playing against each other is great. We'll see how things go in December, as the club season is halfway through.

But indeed things like this are difficult to happen especially for now Portugal is still a little difficult to be consistent and indeed I still don't want to hope that many Portugal will be able to be in the final.
Seeds are now quite difficult apart from being a big name for the national team there are also a lot of surprises happening and this is what makes today's world cup quite different and quite good to watch.

[BobK71]

I disagree. Lionel Messi performance in the national team does not come close to his brilliance when he plays for Barcelona. I don't think he has won a trophy with his national team. Argentina is strong without Messi, having Messi in the game may be unfavorable for them. Portugal doesn't have the best squad but they have Christiano Ronaldo. He makes all the difference. I don't think Portugal will win the world cup, but I believe they can beat a Messi Argentina anytime. 

I understand what you are saying and would partially agree. Messi is more comfortable with Barca and his bonding with other Argentine players is not that great. But this is going to be his last world cup in all probability, and I am sure that he will not create any unwanted ego issues. After all, Messi want to be a part of the world cup winning squad. Back in 2014, Argentina reached the final, but that was the closest they had since 1986 etc. He

Argentine professional footballer Lionel Messi is one the best players in the world and also recognized as one of the greatest players as well. He belongs to many records in the football history such as getting more Ballon d’Ors, European Golden Shoes etc. He led Argentina to the 2014 World Cup final and belonging the tournament's Most Valuable Player award. 2014 world cup Argentina played well but they lost in extra time.
Indeed, he played a key role in leading Argentina to the 2018 World Cup and qualifying for Qatar through 2022. The Qatar World Cup can be the last world cup for Lionel Messi.

[buwaytress]

Trust me, I know the abilities of South Americans -- which is why I said they're technically better, understand game management more, but physical advantage is always an advantage in football. Even can see it in Premier League.

I'm Southeast Asian so it's no point of discussion I don't get either. Set pieces are at least 20% of the game and I've played a lot of games where you simply can't defend corners if they pack 3 or 4 players over 6 ft when your tallest guy (me) is 5'5 haha.

Well yes you are absolutely right wow you are from Southeast Asia, I have played soccer in real life with people from many countries, but not with the countries there, I would like to play one day with one of them, each country has a different technique in football.
Now, from my own experience and because I have played against the Germans and they are very, very strong, they have a lot of resistance and their height is quite relevant, in the aerial game it is very difficult to beat them, in addition to the fact that they run very fast, it is very similar when you play with the Brazilians, only the Brazilians do a lot of freestyle things playing, they do a lot of feints, it's like a soccer more focused on enjoying, it's like samba, but I know that soccer in any part of the world each country has its technique and that's great.

I was very lucky, most of my life played with only locals but there was about a 4/5 year period when I lived near a university with international students and foreign workers -- but mainly vocational and factory workers, and our pitches were terrible or we played a lot on cement if it was 5v5 -- so very very physical. Africans and South Americans have legs of steel, and a lot of dark arts haha.

Then in my late 20s I played semi-amateur in a city league with expats, then I got a taste of Middle Eastern, European, generally much much taller, better training, but also started playing better pitches, and there the skill levels really widened, but fitness makes up for it a lot (and those guys were white collar mainly so a lot less fit). Our captain and keeper was German actually, I was the only Southeast Asian in the team, also the shortest and smallest haha.

It's definitely a problem when you have to take 3 steps and they only take 2 long strides (so technically, they're slower than you, but move longer distances simply because of height hahaha).

[joker_josue]

Either way, it would be an interesting match, as I don't remember seeing them play against each other in a World Cup.

You've never seen them at the World Cup or on any other occasion, because there really hasn't been a game between them yet.
By the way, I'm lying, there was actually a friendly game in 2014, which Portugal won 1-0, in the last minute of the game.

But in official games, they never faced each other.

[mv1986]

While I am one of Messi's biggest fans in South American team, I believe the current team will need luck to win the world cup. The last time a South American team won the FIFA World Cup was Brazil. As a result, Argentina's chances are stacked against them. It doesn't matter what, European countries always dominate. Yes, it would be incredible to see Messi or Ronaldo lift the FIFA World Cup trophy in 2022.

I doubt Portugal will reach the final, although I would like to see it. Portugal has the players to get there, it remains to be seen if they will be focused enough for that.
But it would be very nice to see an Argentina vs Portugal final, because they are two teams that have never played against each other.

I wouldn't underestimate them. They are much more flexible and versatile than they used to be in the past. The offense is pretty strong in my opinion. If they are all available and fit I don't see a reason why they shouldn't be able to compete for the top 5 as well. I think when it comes to the semifinals and final, it is rarely the case that one team totally dominates the game. It is the little things that then decide it. On a good day we all know that Ronaldo can still score some crazy goals. Could become his tournament so to say.                                                                             

[KTChampions]

~
Note the strings:

I see interesting couples already in the first round of the playoffs. E1 - F2 and E2 - F1 (Spain/Germany vs. Belgium/Croatia), D1 - C2 (France vs. Mexico/Poland). Provided that the favorites do not fail, which cannot be completely ruled out - at least one team can surprise. But in general, as in any world championship, really deadly games will begin only from the 1/8 finals.

[Minor Miner]

While I am one of Messi's biggest fans in South American team, I believe the current team will need luck to win the world cup. The last time a South American team won the FIFA World Cup was Brazil. As a result, Argentina's chances are stacked against them. It doesn't matter what, European countries always dominate. Yes, it would be incredible to see Messi or Ronaldo lift the FIFA World Cup trophy in 2022.

I doubt Portugal will reach the final, although I would like to see it. Portugal has the players to get there, it remains to be seen if they will be focused enough for that.
But it would be very nice to see an Argentina vs Portugal final, because they are two teams that have never played against each other.

I wouldn't underestimate them. They are much more flexible and versatile than they used to be in the past. The offense is pretty strong in my opinion. If they are all available and fit I don't see a reason why they shouldn't be able to compete for the top 5 as well. I think when it comes to the semifinals and final, it is rarely the case that one team totally dominates the game. It is the little things that then decide it. On a good day we all know that Ronaldo can still score some crazy goals. Could become his tournament so to say.                                                                     

It is very difficult to make predictions about the World Cup final. Ronaldo is Portugal's main striker, so we think the team is very strong. But Portugal as a team is not stable. Their defense is weak. Moreover France, Germany, Brazil and Argentina are very strong teams. And so before the start of the World Cup, it is not possible to predict which team will be the champions this time

[mv1986]

While I am one of Messi's biggest fans in South American team, I believe the current team will need luck to win the world cup. The last time a South American team won the FIFA World Cup was Brazil. As a result, Argentina's chances are stacked against them. It doesn't matter what, European countries always dominate. Yes, it would be incredible to see Messi or Ronaldo lift the FIFA World Cup trophy in 2022.

I doubt Portugal will reach the final, although I would like to see it. Portugal has the players to get there, it remains to be seen if they will be focused enough for that.
But it would be very nice to see an Argentina vs Portugal final, because they are two teams that have never played against each other.

I wouldn't underestimate them. They are much more flexible and versatile than they used to be in the past. The offense is pretty strong in my opinion. If they are all available and fit I don't see a reason why they shouldn't be able to compete for the top 5 as well. I think when it comes to the semifinals and final, it is rarely the case that one team totally dominates the game. It is the little things that then decide it. On a good day we all know that Ronaldo can still score some crazy goals. Could become his tournament so to say.                                                                     

It is very difficult to make predictions about the World Cup final. Ronaldo is Portugal's main striker, so we think the team is very strong. But Portugal as a team is not stable. Their defense is weak. Moreover France, Germany, Brazil and Argentina are very strong teams. And so before the start of the World Cup, it is not possible to predict which team will be the champions this time

Let me take a second and name a few: we have Ronaldo, Fernandes, Felix, Silva, Jota, Leao, and several other well established players in the top European leagues. I don't really see why Portugal shouldn't have a chance at all. It is not even all about Ronaldo anymore. That team can beat any team on a good day, but as you said they aren't the most stable team right now so they can also concede a couple of goals within a single game.

As I said before it really boils down to the form the teams will have at the World Cup, whether anyone gets a covid infection and can't play and so on and so forth. On paper right now I would say that Portugal might not be a favorite, but would you say that they are easy to beat?

[sana54210]

It is very difficult to make predictions about the World Cup final. Ronaldo is Portugal's main striker, so we think the team is very strong. But Portugal as a team is not stable. Their defense is weak. Moreover France, Germany, Brazil and Argentina are very strong teams. And so before the start of the World Cup, it is not possible to predict which team will be the champions this time

It is such a hard and difficult thing to win World Cup that even with one amazing player, you will not be able to get it. Not at their age, not when they were younger neither, it is near impossible task. You need to have a lot of great players, look at France for example, they do have Mbappe but they have other great players as well.

So in order to win this cup, you need to have players on all positions and you need to win a lot. Without that, you are not going to be good and you are going to end up getting bad results while one player would be scoring. Becoming a team and having a great generation of players all at the same time matters the most.

[nullama]

~snip~
It is such a hard and difficult thing to win World Cup that even with one amazing player, you will not be able to get it. Not at their age, not when they were younger neither, it is near impossible task. You need to have a lot of great players, look at France for example, they do have Mbappe but they have other great players as well.

So in order to win this cup, you need to have players on all positions and you need to win a lot. Without that, you are not going to be good and you are going to end up getting bad results while one player would be scoring. Becoming a team and having a great generation of players all at the same time matters the most.

Yeah, that's why I think Brazil is in a really good position now to win the cup.

Every single Brazilian player is just solid at least, and some are extremely talented. It doesn't matter in which position they play, they are just good. There's no bad player there.

It's no surprise that Brazil has won the world cup five times already and they qualified for this World Cup without losing a single match.

That's just impressive, specially in such a competitive confederation.

[bekti3]

It is very difficult to make predictions about the World Cup final. Ronaldo is Portugal's main striker, so we think the team is very strong. But Portugal as a team is not stable. Their defense is weak. Moreover France, Germany, Brazil and Argentina are very strong teams. And so before the start of the World Cup, it is not possible to predict which team will be the champions this time

It is such a hard and difficult thing to win World Cup that even with one amazing player, you will not be able to get it. Not at their age, not when they were younger neither, it is near impossible task. You need to have a lot of great players, look at France for example, they do have Mbappe but they have other great players as well.

So in order to win this cup, you need to have players on all positions and you need to win a lot. Without that, you are not going to be good and you are going to end up getting bad results while one player would be scoring. Becoming a team and having a great generation of players all at the same time matters the most.

This is true but as long as it can be maximized well why not because even though there are some capable players when they are not very consistent this does not go well. Now actually the star player is just an icon in my opinion and his advantages are supported by several other players who will indeed become a good unit.
For example, let's take an example like Senegal, which is indeed iconic, for sure Mane is now but he is not alone because there are several other players even though they are not as big as Mane but their support is great which makes this good.

[Sithara007]

Let me take a second and name a few: we have Ronaldo, Fernandes, Felix, Silva, Jota, Leao, and several other well established players in the top European leagues. I don't really see why Portugal shouldn't have a chance at all. It is not even all about Ronaldo anymore. That team can beat any team on a good day, but as you said they aren't the most stable team right now so they can also concede a couple of goals within a single game.

As I said before it really boils down to the form the teams will have at the World Cup, whether anyone gets a covid infection and can't play and so on and so forth. On paper right now I would say that Portugal might not be a favorite, but would you say that they are easy to beat?

Ronaldo is a class apart. He can't be compared with anyone else. Players such as Diogo Jota, Rafael Leão and André Silva are very talented, but none of them can replace Ronaldo if he is not there in the squad. Take out Ronaldo from the Portugal team, and I am sure that they will struggle to remain in the top-15 ranking. Players like Ronaldo makes life easier for the other players in his team. Because the opponents will be completely focused on him, and using this opportunity the other players can make attacking moves.

[maju69]

Let me take a second and name a few: we have Ronaldo, Fernandes, Felix, Silva, Jota, Leao, and several other well established players in the top European leagues. I don't really see why Portugal shouldn't have a chance at all. It is not even all about Ronaldo anymore. That team can beat any team on a good day, but as you said they aren't the most stable team right now so they can also concede a couple of goals within a single game.

As I said before it really boils down to the form the teams will have at the World Cup, whether anyone gets a covid infection and can't play and so on and so forth. On paper right now I would say that Portugal might not be a favorite, but would you say that they are easy to beat?

Ronaldo is a class apart. He can't be compared with anyone else. Players such as Diogo Jota, Rafael Leão and André Silva are very talented, but none of them can replace Ronaldo if he is not there in the squad. Take out Ronaldo from the Portugal team, and I am sure that they will struggle to remain in the top-15 ranking. Players like Ronaldo makes life easier for the other players in his team. Because the opponents will be completely focused on him, and using this opportunity the other players can make attacking moves.

When it comes to existing players, Portugal has a better line-up than the previous year. Where they are strengthened by players who have stable appearances this season.
But if I let Cristiano Ronaldo not join the national team I think it will be a problem, especially in terms of mentality. His leadership is still very much needed to motivate other players. Yes, it can't be denied.

[Juggy777]

Let me take a second and name a few: we have Ronaldo, Fernandes, Felix, Silva, Jota, Leao, and several other well established players in the top European leagues. I don't really see why Portugal shouldn't have a chance at all. It is not even all about Ronaldo anymore. That team can beat any team on a good day, but as you said they aren't the most stable team right now so they can also concede a couple of goals within a single game.

As I said before it really boils down to the form the teams will have at the World Cup, whether anyone gets a covid infection and can't play and so on and so forth. On paper right now I would say that Portugal might not be a favorite, but would you say that they are easy to beat?

Ronaldo is a class apart. He can't be compared with anyone else. Players such as Diogo Jota, Rafael Leão and André Silva are very talented, but none of them can replace Ronaldo if he is not there in the squad. Take out Ronaldo from the Portugal team, and I am sure that they will struggle to remain in the top-15 ranking. Players like Ronaldo makes life easier for the other players in his team. Because the opponents will be completely focused on him, and using this opportunity the other players can make attacking moves.

When it comes to existing players, Portugal has a better line-up than the previous year. Where they are strengthened by players who have stable appearances this season.
But if I let Cristiano Ronaldo not join the national team I think it will be a problem, especially in terms of mentality. His leadership is still very much needed to motivate other players. Yes, it can't be denied.

I do believe that Ronaldo inspires them, but he is also the reason not to wager on them because if he gets injured then the entire team may just crumble, hence unless Portugal shows that they can perform without him I won’t suggest to wager on them irrespective of the good odds you’ll see. Also their key player Bruno may not get much game time this season because he was terrible last season, and the new manager may use him as a super sub which will further effect Portugal going in this tournament.

[LUCKMCFLY]

The 2022 World Cup will be the destination of foreign tourists to Qatar because it will be held in winter, and the schedule for that month has also changed the tradition of the World Cup which is usually held when the league schedule in each country has ended, although at first the decision was granted. protests from many countries because it is considered to disrupt the league schedule in each country which in that month usually only lasts half a season but FIFA President has announced that the Qatar 2022 World Cup will be held from 21 November to 18 December 2022.

World Cup happens once in every 4 years, and it is the highest priority tournament in international football. Do these guys really want the FIFA to postpone this premier event, just because it overlaps with some local league? UEFA needs to realize that the world no longer revolves around it. World Cup will see teams from all over the world taking part. And for people like me, it hardly makes a difference whether the world cup schedule overlaps with the national level competitions in some of the nations. It is just one month. The participating nations need to adjust their leagues accordingly. Or if they want, they can pull out of the world cup and concentrate on the league competitions.

Yes, I agree with you, in fact it surprises me because in all world championships they always start in June, to be more specific since June 14 always, this year it will start in November, which doesn't seem bad either, but I think that already we would be enjoying the World Cup at the moment, in addition there would be the best players in the world 100%, the problem of the leagues I think has been given more priority because they have not been able to monetize as it is, of course this is an issue that they do not say They will not say it, but it is not a lie that the soccer leagues have seen a lot of affectation by covid-19 and other causes such as war, among others, for me this has to do with it.

Let me take a second and name a few: we have Ronaldo, Fernandes, Felix, Silva, Jota, Leao, and several other well established players in the top European leagues. I don't really see why Portugal shouldn't have a chance at all. It is not even all about Ronaldo anymore. That team can beat any team on a good day, but as you said they aren't the most stable team right now so they can also concede a couple of goals within a single game.

As I said before it really boils down to the form the teams will have at the World Cup, whether anyone gets a covid infection and can't play and so on and so forth. On paper right now I would say that Portugal might not be a favorite, but would you say that they are easy to beat?

Ronaldo is a class apart. He can't be compared with anyone else. Players such as Diogo Jota, Rafael Leão and André Silva are very talented, but none of them can replace Ronaldo if he is not there in the squad. Take out Ronaldo from the Portugal team, and I am sure that they will struggle to remain in the top-15 ranking. Players like Ronaldo makes life easier for the other players in his team. Because the opponents will be completely focused on him, and using this opportunity the other players can make attacking moves.

When it comes to existing players, Portugal has a better line-up than the previous year. Where they are strengthened by players who have stable appearances this season.
But if I let Cristiano Ronaldo not join the national team I think it will be a problem, especially in terms of mentality. His leadership is still very much needed to motivate other players. Yes, it can't be denied.

I do believe that Ronaldo inspires them, but he is also the reason not to wager on them because if he gets injured then the entire team may just crumble, hence unless Portugal shows that they can perform without him I won’t suggest to wager on them irrespective of the good odds you’ll see. Also their key player Bruno may not get much game time this season because he was terrible last season, and the new manager may use him as a super sub which will further effect Portugal going in this tournament.

Well, thinking about it, he is a great inspiration for the entire Portuguese team, CR7 is usually a very charismatic person and that can help, besides this will be his last World Cup and despite everything Portugal had serious problems to qualify, so I don't think waste this golden opportunity for him.Literally Portugal is a team that can make history and CR7 pass as one of the best in history, it is up to him and his team to do it, they say that if you put your mind to something in life you can achieve it, and I think CR7 has a very high morale and can achieve it.

[leea-1334]

Hey guys,,, do you know any nice place to either buy/get the World Cup calendar poster with all possible ties, like the one @joker_josue shared? One of my friends saw it already in a local magazine but waste of money and poor quality.

Would be great to get a proper one from official source or even digital if can easily be shared.

Also I am surprised no NFT projects doing it yet that is famous.

[Bobrox]

Ronaldo is a class apart. He can't be compared with anyone else. Players such as Diogo Jota, Rafael Leão and André Silva are very talented, but none of them can replace Ronaldo if he is not there in the squad. Take out Ronaldo from the Portugal team, and I am sure that they will struggle to remain in the top-15 ranking. Players like Ronaldo makes life easier for the other players in his team. Because the opponents will be completely focused on him, and using this opportunity the other players can make attacking moves.

No doubt about how talented with Cristiano Ronaldo but I am not believing Portugal will reach potential result on 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, usually not only on club but also on national country should focus and try give chance for Cristiano Ronaldo scoring goals. I think that the problem faced if Portugal keep try to make Ronaldo as regular and important player, less contribution from other player like Diogo Jota, Rafael Leão and André Silva until Bernando Silva can show their best performance and skill with Portugal national country. I think football is unity team and not as individual skill and who ever got bigger chance for scoring goal should give them chance.