The Fußball Chatter

The Group Stages of the World Cup are almost over, and as of now, three teams have booked their place in the knockout stages, while two teams have been eliminated already. So, there is so much to play for in the final group games from Tuesday to Friday, with some teams having their own destiny in their hands while others will have to rely on the other fixture to get through the group. Here are the permutations of all the eight groups in the World Cup. GROUP A In Group A, the Netherlands and Ecuador are tied on four points each with the same goal difference, goals scored and goals conceded. The Netherlands top the group based on the fair play points. Senegal is third in the group with three points while Qatar is bottom of the group with zero points. Qatar is already eliminated, becoming the first host nation to be eliminated before the third game. Their final game is against the Netherlands at the Al Bayt Stadium. It would be a huge shock if Qatar gets anything against the Netherlands,

URUGUAY           Nickname:  La Celeste           Captain: Diego Godin          Key Player: Federico Valverde          Coach: Diego Alonso          Last World Cup Appearance: 2018 (Quarters) Despite being a small country in land mass and population, Uruguay is one of the best football nations in the world and has a remarkable legacy in the game. They were the first country to win the World Cup in 1930, winning a second World Cup against Brazil in 1950 at the Maracana, known as the  Maracanazo . Since 1950, Uruguay's best finish in the World Cup was a fourth-place finish in 1970 and 2010. They have not won silverware since 2011, winning Copa America and being knocked out in the quarterfinals of the 2021 Copa America, but have a new crop of Uruguayan players to Qatar. They finished third in CONMEBOL qualifying, winning their final four games to see off Colombia, Peru and Chile. Diego Alonso came in during the qualifiers after Oscar Tabarez was dismissed, creating a turnaround after a

BRAZIL           Nickname: Selecao           Captain: Thiago Silva           Key Player: Neymar           Coach: Tite           Last World Cup Appearance: 2018 (Quarters) Brazil is the nation many associates with the game of football. Historically, they are the gold standard. They have won the World Cup five times, more than any nation on earth and have been to every World Cup since it began in 1930. Pele, Garrincha, Carlos Alberto, Zico, Socrates, Romario, Rivaldo, Ronaldo, and Ronaldinho have all worn the famous yellow jersey, becoming household names in the game. Since winning the World Cup in 2002, Brazil has been unable to reach the World Cup Final. They only made the semifinals once in 2014, which ended in complete humiliation, losing 7-1 to Germany on home soil. In the last World Cup, Brazil was eliminated in the quarterfinals by Belgium. In South America, Brazil won the Copa America in 2019 and made it to the final in 2021 but lost to rivals Argentina. Qualification was a breez

CANADA            Nickname:  Maple Leafs            Captain: Atiba Hutchinson           Key Player: Jonathan David           Coach: John Herdman           Last World Cup Appearance: 1986 (Group Stage) Many Canadians would say that football is not one of the major sports in the country. A backwater country in football as baseball, ice hockey and American football gain attention in Canada. Canada has only been in one World Cup, which was back in 1986 and has barely made it to the final round of qualifiers in CONCACAF ever since. In the CONCACAF region, they have won the Gold Cup twice, remaining the only nation to win the Gold Cup outside of the United States and Mexico. They reached the semifinals of the last Gold Cup, which was last year, losing 2-1 to Mexico. Canada's recent history and their rivals in the region make their World Cup qualification quite remarkable. Their journey started in the first round, winning all four games before qualifying for the final round, beating Hait

GERMANY           Nickname: Die Mannschaft           Captain: Manuel Neuer          Key Player: Josuah Kimmich          Coach: Hansi Flick          Last World Cup Appearance: 2018 (Group Stage) Germany is the most successful football nation in Europe in terms of international titles, with four World Cup titles, three European Championships, the Confederations Cup and Olympic Gold. They are usually in the conversation as potential winners, whether they are favourites or not, thanks to their consistency in going deep in the finals. They have been to 19 World Cups, played in 109 matches, the joint-most and have the second most wins with sixty-seven. Since 2000, Germany has been in the semifinals four times in the past five finals, winning the trophy in 2014. It's first as a united nation. With the European Championships and Confederations Cup, they have reached the semifinals in nine tournaments from a possible thirteen. Making them the quintessential tournament team. Their eliminatio