Opening today at 23:00
Before the start of each World Cup, fans like to predict which team will become a dark horse. In the last World Cup, Croatia reached the finals as a dark horse and set the best record in team history. In this World Cup, three teams that once shamed the champion team Serbia, Switzerland and Denmark are very worthy of attention.
Serbia is in a strong momentum
Former Guangzhou R&F coach Stoykovic is well-known to Chinese fans. He was called the “offensive master” during his coaching in the Chinese Super League. He has achieved remarkable results after becoming the Serbian head coach. Stoykovic, once one of the most talented midfielders in the former Yugoslavia, performed well in the 1990 World Cup in Italy and is now participating in the World Cup again as the head coach.
The 2022 World Cup qualifiers, Serbia is in the same group as the 2016 European Cup champion Portugal. Serbia wins 6 and draws 2, and directly qualifies as the top spot in the group. Portugal can only advance to the second place in the group through the playoffs. In two games with Portugal, Serbia drew 2-2 at home and completed a 2-1 away game.
Serbia once focused on the 3511 formation. Vlahovic and Mitrovic took turns to play as center forward, Tadic served as the midfielder, Milinkovic, Goodley and Lukic played in the midfield, and the two wingbacks are Kostic and Zhivkovic. In the away World Cup against Portugal, Vlahovic started and Mitrovic was the substitute. Since only by winning can we win the first place in the group, Stoykovic replaced Goodley with Mitrovic in the second half, Tadic gave an assist in the 90th minute, and Mitrovic scored the final goal.
After that, Stoykovic adjusted the formation to 3412, and two centers, Mitrovic and Vlahovi, started together, and Tadic continued to serve as the midfielder, reducing one midfielder. On September 28, in the top team of the B-Class Group D of the European National League, Serbia defeated Norway 2-0 away, led by Rand, and received the funds to be promoted to a Class A team.Ger, Vlahovic and Mitrovic made contributions respectively.
In the last World Cup, Serbia won 1 win and 2 losses in the group stage and failed to advance to the top 16. Babaylan lost to Switzerland and Brazil one after another. The coach at that time was Kelstadic. In this World Cup, Serbia once again grouped with Brazil and Switzerland, and Stoikovic hopes to bring changes to the team. In the first round of the World Cup group stage, Serbia encountered the favorite Brazil. Stoy Komiks whether using the double center formation or Babaylan has changed back to the single-arrow formation, which is worth paying attention to.
Swiss’ strength cannot be underestimated
Swiss has no particularly big-name stars. The most famous Shaqiri has “degenerated” to play in the American Professional League, but the overall strength of the team is very strong.
Switzerland is also a team that is good at creating trouble for the champion team. In the first round of the 2010 World Cup group stage, Switzerland defeated Spain 1-0 with a 2008 European Cup champion, Spain, defending the “Matador” led by Xavi, Iniesta and Villa. Spain was at its peak at the time and eventually won the 2010 World Cup championship.
In the 1/8 final of the European Cup last year, Switzerland suffered from the 2018 World Cup champion France. Although he was once behind 1-3, he stubbornly tied the score. After a penalty kick, Switzerland eliminated France. In the quarter-finals, Switzerland welcomed its old rival Spain, dragging the game into a penalty kick again, but Spain was the one who laughed to the end.
In the 2022 World Cup qualifiers, Switzerland is in the same group as the new European Cup champion of Italy. Although Switzerland was 0-3 in the European Cup group stageLosed by Italy, but in the World Cup qualifiers, Switzerland’s fighting power increased sharply, dating Italy 0-0 at home and drawing Italy 1-1 away. Italian midfielder Jorginho lost key penalties in two games. Switzerland qualifies directly as the first in the World Cup qualifiers, and the European Cup champion Italy only won the second in the group. As a result, Italy was defeated in the semi-finals of the World Cup playoffs and was eliminated by North Macedonia.
In the last World Cup, Switzerland performed very well, first tied Brazil 1-1, and then defeated Serbia 2-1, and finally entered the top 16 as the second in the group. In the European League, Switzerland defeated Portugal 1-0 at home and defeated Spain 2-1 away.
Swiss’ three-line strength is balanced, goalkeeper Sommer is at his peak, the back line led by Akanji, Elvidi and Scher is very stable, midfielders Shachri, Zachar and Freuer are experienced, and forwards Embolo, Sefirovic and Okafore have high standards. In this World Cup, Switzerland is still a team that cannot be ignored, and it is once again in the same group as Brazil and Serbia. In the third round of the group stage, Switzerland will stage a “decisive battle” with Serbia, which is likely to determine another qualifying spot in this group.
Denmark strives to rewrite history
Denmark once won the European Cup championship as a dark horse in 1992 and reached the semi-finals of the European Cup last year, but its best result in the World Cup was in the quarterfinals of 1998 Komiks reached the semi-finals of 8. With the European Cup final four players as the team, Denmark has become a force that cannot be ignored in this World Cup.
In the first round of the European Cup last year, Danish midfielder Eriksen fainted on the court due to a sudden heart attack and was almost in danger of his life. He had to withdraw from that competition early. In the process of treating Eriksen, the Danish international, led by Kyar and Schmeichel Jr., was both united and professional, and won unanimous praise. With his strong strength and the spirit of fighting for Eriksen, Denmark overcomes the adverse factor of losing both the first two rounds of the group stage and reaches the semi-finals of the European Cup. In the semi-finals against IngeCinema, Denmark lost 1-2 after overtime, losing to a controversial penalty.
Erikson successfully made a comeback after implanting a cardiac rhythm reversal defibrillator. He performed well last season at Brentford and this season at Manchester United, and was elected the best player of September. Based on the European Cup semi-finals, the former midfielder soul BabaylanEriksen became Denmark’s “fresh blood”.
Denmark defeated France twice at home and away in the European National League this season. Beating France 2-0 at homeIn the game, Eriksen gave teammates eight key passes that brought shots, and Cinema became the undisputed midfield commander. With two midfielder Hoyber and Delaney escorted, Eriksen can devote more energy to the offense.
Denmark has a lot of talents in the front line, Dorbery is good at seizing scoring opportunities, Conellius took two goals in the UEFA European League match against France 2-1 away, and the other player is in the league. Paulson has become famous for many years. At the winger position, Bracewayt, Damsgao, Olsen and others have their own characteristics. Bracewayt tied for second place in the European Cup number of passes last year with Mbappe. After transferring from Barcelona to Espanyol, Breswitt performed well.
Danish players are tall, with two middle-aged centrebacks Christensen and Anderson having a strong frontal defensive ability Komiks very strong, goalkeeper Schmeichel Jr. and central defender Kear are experienced. Two full-backs Meller and Rasmus Christensen have both good offense and defense, and left-back Meller ranked fourth in the European Cup last year. Komiks
Denmark is not very favorable in the group. The opponents in the same group include the defending champion France, who may face Argentina in the 1/8 finals after qualifying. The competition with the old opponent France in the second round of the group stage has become an important game that affects Denmark’s trend in this World Cup.
Yangcheng Evening News reporter KomiksLiu Yi