2022 World Cup Portugal pre-tournament total analysis, if you win the title, coach quit smoking!
With 118 days to go until the Qatar World Cup kicks off on November 21, the 2022 World Cup Portugal coach Fernando Santos accepted an interview with the country's TVI television station. In the interview, the coach of the Five Shields said with confidence: "Portugal has the conditions to win, I have no doubt about it, and I have said that before. Portugal goes to the 2022 World Cup to win."
Santos also made a wish: If Portugal wins the World Cup in Qatar, he will quit smoking after smoking for decades. He said: "At one point in my life, when I was coaching in Greece, I thought I would quit smoking in my 60s, but now I'm 67. I need this (smoking) and it's like Food, it's because of the tension and excitement [of coaching the profession]."
In October 1954, Fernando Santos was born into a poor family in Lisbon, the capital of Portugal. As a player, he played as a defender on the field. He went to college and majored in engineering while playing football. He was the head of the engineering department at the Estoril Palace Hotel on the outskirts of Lisbon, and during his coaching career he earned the nickname "The Engineer".
Not only was he successful as a coach, but Santos was also a good entrepreneur. In central Portugal, he runs a small gift factory employing about 600 people.
In Group H, the strength of Portugal and Uruguay is in the first gear, and the strength of South Korea is only better than that of Ghana, which is currently ranked 60th in the world. These four teams have a deep relationship in the World Cup. Portugal and Ghana were the group stage opponents of the 2014 World Cup when Portugal beat the opponent 2-1, but neither team qualified for the knockout; while Uruguay was beaten in the 1/8 finals of the previous World Cup Portugal advanced; in the 2010 World Cup, Uruguay defeated South Korea and Ghana in the knockout rounds and advanced to the semi-finals. In the game between Uruguay and Ghana, Suarez patted Ghana with his hand on the goal line. The scoring scene has also become a classic moment of the World Cup.
The "Hand of God" in front of Suarez's goal line
The most interesting thing should be the grievance between Portugal and South Korea. In the 2002 Korea-Japan World Cup, Portugal and South Korea were in Group D. The two sides met in the final round of the group stage. The referees on duty were at 27 Minutes and 66 minutes sent off Portugal's two main players. South Korea finally reached the knockout stage with a 1-0 victory over Portugal with Park Ji-sung's goal in 70 minutes, while Portugal was unfortunately out of the group.
In the game between South Korea and Italy, Italian players scolded the referee on duty
In all fairness, South Korea was indeed the better side against Portugal, but then the South Koreans used their dirty tricks to knock out Italy and Spain to reach the semi-finals, and before South Korea's semi-final against Germany, UEFA told the International Football Federation put pressure on the change of the referee, and the South Korean team failed to go further, otherwise, even the Brazilian team would have to go back.
It was also the biggest scandal in World Cup history, and then FIFA president Sepp Blatter was suspended for investigation and given a grounding order in 2015.
Next, let's take a look at the core players of each team in Group H and their way to promotion.
1. The Ghana team, with a total worth of 114 million euros, is ranked 60th in the world
Top card: Thomas Party
The 29-year-old Thomas is a defensive midfielder. He usually plays as a midfielder and can also play as a central midfielder. He played 26 times for Arsenal last season, including 24 starts, with 2 goals and The data of 1 assist indicates that Arsenal won fifth place in the Premier League and qualified for the Europa League next season.
Thomas started his career with Atlético de Madrid. At the age of 20, he was loaned to Mallorca and made his professional debut. After that, he was loaned to Almeria for a year and officially entered in 2015. Atletico Madrid first team played 188 games for the team in Atletico Madrid's first team in 5 years, contributed 16 goals and 13 assists, and helped the team win a La Liga championship and a Europa League championship. and a European Super Cup. In 2018-2019, he won the Ghana Player of the Year award in a row.
In October 2020, Arsenal spent a huge transfer fee of 50 million euros to bring Thomas to the Emirates Stadium. Since joining, Thomas has played a total of 59 times for Arsenal, with 2 goals and 4 assists. At the national team level, Thomas has played a total of 40 times for Ghana since he made his national team debut in May 2016, with 13 goals. In this World Cup qualifier, he played 4 times for the Ghana team, all starting, and scored 3 goals. He is the player with the most goals on the Ghana team. World Cup finals.
Thomas in the defensive midfield position has very good physical fitness, as well as good foot skills and passing ability, as well as a certain breakthrough ability. He has grown into a defensive game for the club and the national team. The current Qatar World Cup is Thomas's first World Cup. At present, Thomas's worth is as high as 38 million euros, which is the most valuable player on the Ghana team.
Road to promotion
The Ghana team's trip to the World Cup qualifiers this time is very thrilling and lucky. First of all, in the second stage of the G group, they ranked first in the group with 4 wins, 1 draw, and 1 loss with 13 points, scoring 3 goals and conceding 3 Goals, the African qualifier ranking rule is to compare the goal difference when the points are the same, and then compare the number of goals. The Ghana team's group points and goal difference are the same as the South African team in the same group. The advantage of 1 goal number successfully advanced to the knockout stage of the third stage.
Ghana met the Nigerian team led by Osteen in the knockout round. In the first round, the two sides drew 0-0 at the home Ghana. In the second round, they came to the home of Nigeria, and the two sides fought 1-1. The advantage of the number of goals advances to the World Cup.
Ghana is the team that scored the fewest goals and conceded the second most goals among the qualifying teams in the African region. Except for the 3-1 victory over Zimbabwe, the number of goals in other games did not exceed 1, was beaten 4-1 by the Japanese team in the Kirin Cup semi-finals in June this year.
Ghana, currently ranked 60th in the world, is the team with the lowest ranking in the world among the participating teams in this World Cup. At present, more than half of the players in the squad play in mainstream European leagues, but their overall strength is average. Ghana only participated in 2006 in history. In the three World Cups from 2014 to 2014, the first two were qualified in the group, and the best result was the quarter-finals in 2010. The Ghana team faces opponents whose strength is significantly higher than their own in the group.
Other key players:
Amitai (defender, Leicester City), Andre Ayew (forward, Kadassad), Jordan Ayew (forward, Crystal Palace), Soleimana (forward, Rennes), Kudu Ajax (midfielder, Ajax), Idris Mohamed (midfielder, Mallorca), Gideon Mensah (defender, Red Bull Salzburg, Austria), Baba (defender, Chelsea), Walter Lacotte (goalkeeper, Charlton)
2. The Korean team, the latest world ranking 28th, is worth unknown (due to the history of the Korean team in the World Cup, this article does not describe the Korean team, please understand)
Top card: Son Heung-min
The Korean team needs to perform exceptionally to score points against Portugal and Uruguay, and it is more difficult to qualify for the group.
3. Uruguay, with a total worth of 395 million euros, the latest world ranking 13th
Top card: Federico Valverde
The 24-year-old Valverde's position on the field is either the attacking midfielder or the lower midfielder. Last season, under the training of Ancelotti, he often played the position of the right midfielder and played quite well. He played 46 times on behalf of Real Madrid last season, of which 29 starts, with 1 goal and 2 assists, helping Real Madrid win the Champions League, La Liga, and Spanish Super Cup.
Valverde started his career in the youth training of the Penarol Club in Uruguay. He entered the club's first team at the age of 17. After playing in the Penarol first team for one season, he was replaced by Real Madrid's second team - Casti Ya bought it with a transfer fee of 5 million euros, and then loaned it to Deportivo for a season. He officially entered the Real Madrid first team in 2018, and played 148 times for the team in Real Madrid first team in 4 years, scoring 6 goals. And the performance of 8 assists, followed the team to win 6 championship trophies including 1 Champions League title and 2 La Liga titles.
At the national team level, Valverde has played 42 times for the Uruguay adult national team since he made his national team debut in September 2017, with 4 goals and 1 assist. Although Valverde played in the 2018 World Cup qualifiers He played 3 times and scored 1 goal, he was not selected for Uruguay's World Cup squad. This Qatar World Cup will be Valverde's World Cup debut.
Valverde is a technical midfielder with excellent speed, as well as good long-range shooting and assisting ability. The most impressive thing is his ability to go back and forth on the court. He was defeated by Angelo in the Champions League knockout last season. Tee has been arranged to the right avant-garde many times and has made great contributions. He has gradually grown into one of the successors of the Real Madrid ceremony midfield. He is currently one of the core midfielders of Uruguay. He played 14 times for Uruguay in the World Cup South American qualifiers. All started, contributed 2 goals. Valverde is currently worth as much as 70 million euros in the German transfer.
Road to promotion
Uruguay scored 8 wins, 4 draws and 6 losses in the South American qualifiers of this World Cup with 28 points, ranking third after Brazil and Argentina, and directly advanced to the World Cup. The number of goals also reached 22, of which 10 goals were conceded against Brazil and Argentina. The number of goals scored is the least among all South American teams that have qualified for the World Cup, and the number of goals conceded is the most. The overall defensive ability of the team is slightly weak.
As one of the oldest World Cup teams, Uruguay has participated in the World Cup 13 times, including winning the first World Cup held in 1930 and again in 1950. In addition, it has won fourth place three times. . The Uruguay team has successfully qualified for the group in the last three World Cups, among which it won fourth place in 2010 and entered the top 8 in the last World Cup.
After the 2018 World Cup, the Uruguay team emerged with young talents like Nunes, Valverde, Araujo, Bentancur, etc. who participated in the World Cup for the first time, but there were also Cavani, Suarez, and Godin on the team. 35-year-old veterans such as Caceres, and Murales, from the perspective of the qualifiers, the back line will be Uruguay's biggest weakness, while the big-name midfield is the most terrifying place for Uruguay.
The Uruguay team's main frame for the current Qatar World Cup is an old and new lineup, and their physical fitness will be greatly tested. When facing the weaker Ghana and South Korea teams in the group, how to play an excellent attack and Taking all three points is the key for them to make it out of the group.
Other key players:
Suarez (forward, a free agent after his contract with Atletico Madrid expires this season), Cavani (forward, a free agent after his contract with Manchester United this season expires), Nunes (forward, 75 million this summer) The value of the euro transfer fee from Monaco to Liverpool), Bentancur (midfielder, Tottenham), Torreira (midfielder, Arsenal), Vecino (midfielder, the contract with Inter Milan this season ends After the period becomes a free agent), Ronaldo Araujo (back, Barcelona), Godin (back, Atletico Mineiro, Brazil), Simone (back, Atletico Madrid), Mathias - Oliveira (defender, Napoli), Murales (goalkeeper, Galatasaray, Turkey)
4. Portugal, with a total worth of 772 million euros, is ranked 9th in the world
Top card: Ronaldo
At present, Cristiano Ronaldo, who is 37 years old, is still in good condition. I won't go into details here. Interested friends can read my previous article "Legends of Veterans of the Five Major Leagues".
At present, Cristiano Ronaldo has not yet determined whether he will continue to play for Manchester United in the new season. One of the important reasons is the World Cup at the end of the year. Cristiano Ronaldo, who wants to maintain a high-level competitive state, is still eager to participate in the Champions League. Cristiano Ronaldo, who is already close to the Grand Slam of honor, is only one Hercules Cup away, and he hopes that Cristiano Ronaldo's World Cup journey will come to a successful conclusion at the end of the year.
Road to promotion:
Portugal faced the excellent Serbian team in Group A of the European qualifiers of this World Cup. In the end, they accumulated 17 points with 8 wins, 5 draws and 1 loss, ranking second in the group 3 points behind the Serbian team, and missed the direct promotion. Obtaining the qualification for the play-offs, which faced Serbia in two rounds with 1 draw and 1 loss is the direct reason why Portugal failed to get the direct promotion place. Portugal scored 17 goals in the group stage, ranking second in the group in terms of goals, and conceded 6 goals, the team with the fewest goals in the group.
In the play-offs, Portugal easily eliminated Turkey 3-1 and then did not encounter many tests in the game with North Macedonia (North Macedonia eliminated Italy to enter the play-off final), with a score of 2-0. qualify for the World Cup.
Portugal's qualifying trip also exposed the team's instability in playing tough games, especially on the offensive end. The 37-year-old Cristiano Ronaldo scored the most goals in qualifying. He scored 7 goals, followed by Cristiano Ronaldo. It was Diogo Jota's 5 goals, the two managed 12 of the total 17 goals, not many players showed their ability in the qualifiers when the two were targeted and defended, and the other Famous center Andre - Silva only scored 2 goals.
With Ronaldo getting older, there are currently no outstanding center players in Portugal. The Portuguese who rank the highest in the top five league goalscorers are Ronaldo, and he was on the top scorer list in the Portuguese Super League last season. There is only one Portuguese player in the ten players (27-year-old Ricardo Horta, who scored 19 goals in the Portuguese Super League last season and ranked third on the scorer list but did not play in the qualifiers).
Portugal has no shortage of young attackers. Leo, who contributed 14 goals and 11 assists in AC Milan last season, did not get many chances to play in the qualifiers. The third scorer of the Portuguese Super League, Horta, and Atletico Madrid striker Joao - Felix and Valencia's top scorer Gonzalo Guedes and other young players have yet to have more opportunities to play. How to make good use of these young players before the World Cup at the end of the year is a problem that coach Santos urgently needs to solve.
Portugal has participated in the World Cup seven times in its history, and its best result was third place in the 1966 World Cup. The Portuguese team in this World Cup has optimized the age structure of the team to a certain extent. The main framework includes Cristiano Ronaldo, Fonte, Moutinho, and Patricio who belong to older players, while Bernardo Silva, B Fe, I, and other players are basically in their prime, and there are also many young demons. How can the star-studded Portugal team enter the game state as soon as possible in the group stage, and successfully win against the Korean team and Ghana team? Taking all three points is Portugal's top priority.
Other key players:
Bernardo Silva (Midfielder, Manchester City), Bruno Fernandes (Midfielder, Manchester United), Diogo Jota (Forward, Liverpool), Cancelo (Defender, Manchester City), Rafael Leo (Forward, AC Milan), Jose Fonte (Defender, Lille), Danilo Pereira (Defender, Paris Saint-Germain), Andre Silva (Forward, RB Leipzig), Ruben Neves (Midfielder, Wolves), Nuno Mendes (Defender, Paris Saint-Germain), Guerrero (Defender, Borussia Dortmund), Patricio (Goalkeeper, Roma)
Group H situation
The competition for first place in Group H will be full of suspense. Portugal and Uruguay will likely compete for the top spot in the group. The two sides have only met once in the World Cup in history. In the last World Cup 1/8 finals, Uruguay With Cavani's brace to beat Portugal 2-1, the match between the two sides will be arranged in the second round of the group stage, and the result of this game will become a watershed for this group.
It is extremely difficult for the South Korean team, which is medium in the group, to compete for a qualifying spot. The last matchup between the South Korean team and Portugal was the last round of the group stage of the Korea-Japan World Cup mentioned at the beginning of the article. At that time, Ronaldo had just entered Portuguese sports. The first team of Cristiano Ronaldo (since then, Cristiano Ronaldo's indifference in the Korean commercial game tour also made Korean fans very dissatisfied), this matchup is also very interesting.
South Korea and Uruguay have met twice in the World Cup. South Korea lost both games. In the face of Uruguay, whose historical record and comprehensive strength are significantly better than their own, South Korea is also more fortunate than Ghana. The game is the only game South Korea can strive to win.
Ghana is undoubtedly the weakest team in this group, and the probability of wanting to become a dark horse is very low. The dialogue between the Ghana team and the Uruguay team is also very interesting because of Suarez's "Hand of God".
