World Cup Preview Group H: Spain Headlines Easy Group
The World Cup is set to begin tomorrow. Group H might contain a potential winner in Spain. In this group, there are a couple of weak teams in Cape Verde and Saudi Arabia, and one pretty good team in Uruguay. So, expect Spain to go 3-0 in this group and expect Spain and Uruguay to advance from the group.
There are some fun nicknames in this group. The Saudi Arabians are called the Falcons, and Cape Verde, which had an interesting path to this World Cup. Some strange things can happen to the favorites in the knock-out round. Given this fact, do you think Spain will play in the finals?
World Cup Group H Preview
Group H of this World Cup contains a potential winner in Spain and a very good team in Uruguay. There are also two poor teams in Saudi Arabia and Cape Verde. We will start with them; they had an interesting path to this tournament.
Cape Verde, not properly known as Cabo Verde, or the Blue Wave, qualified for this tournament, their first ever World Cup, and beat African power Cameroon. This is one of the bigger stories of this tournament. They are an upstart, a loveable one, and their qualifying was a miraculous achievement. They have an effective counter-attack, so that is worth watching.
Cabo Verde, the Blue Wave, is led by their best player, Ryan Medes. He is the team captain and is one of the few on the roster who has experience in the premier European Leagues. He played for both Lille and Nottingham Forest, and is currently playing in Turkey. He has scored 22 goals in 98 games for the team. A potential breakout player for them in this World Cup is Sidny Lopes Cabral. The 23-year-old midfielder was born in the Netherlands. He is a dual-footed defender who already has some great experience.
Saudi Arabia is ranked 61st in the world. This is slightly better than the 69 overall ranking of the Cabo Verde team. The Green Falcons needed four rounds of qualifying to make the tournament. They fired their manager, Hervé Renard. That said, changing the manager 59 days before the tournament will not change the focus. The Green Falcons will have to play strong defense against the likes of Uruguay and Spain.
Uruguay is a strong side, ranked number seventeen in the world by FIFA. La Celeste must now figure out how to succeed without star striker Luis Suarez. Edison Cavani is also gone. Those are the top two goal-scorers for the team. They had impressive wins over Brazil and Argentina in qualifying, but managed just two goals in four friendlies from November through March.
The squad will have to rely on unproven players. Thankfully, there is skill present. Uruguay will likely be led by midfielder Federico Valverde. He plays for Real Madrid. He had a hat trick in a Champions League game against Manchester City. He is skilled and dangerous. A potential breakout star for La Celecte is Brian Rodriguez. The midfielder is nicknamed Rayito, or Little Lightning. The % foot 10 player is dangerous.
The final team in World Cup Group H is probably one of the strongest teams in the tournament. Spain is ranked number two by FIFA, and they could win this tournament. The expectations surrounding this team are that high. La Roja is considered by some to be the most talented team in Europe. This is a direct and speedy side that operates in unison.
They might have the best player in the world in striker Lamine Yamal. The eighteen-year-old is capable of being the highest scorer in tournament history. He ranks right up there with Lionel Messi and Diego Maradona. A potential breakout star for Spain is Fermin Lopez. The 23-year-old midfielder is still finding his way with the team, but is a deft dribbler.
Group H Forecast
Spain could get upset on it path to a championship, but should make it to at least the semifinals. Uruguay will probably make it to the group of 32, or maybe a little further. Both Cabo Verde and Saudi Arabia will likely be eliminated from the group. There might not be another group in this tournament with such a stark dichotomy.
