A Player to Watch on Each of the 32 Teams at the 2022 World Cup (Part II)

takwrites

Published in

Top Level Sports

7 min readNov 10, 2022

Photo by Кирилл Венедиктов /Wikimedia Commons

GROUP C

Argentina

Lionel Messi (GOAT) #10, PSG

Alright, I couldn’t resist the GOAT (Greatest of All Time) joke. But seriously, it’s hard not to pick Messi here. Not only is he arguably the greatest player ever, but he has already confirmed that this will be his last World Cup. It will be a sad day for football when he retires.

Messi has won seven Ballon d’Ors, eleven league titles with Barcelona and PSG, and has almost scored EIGHT HUNDRED goals for club and country.

Yet the World Cup is the one trophy that eludes him.

His legacy is already well cemented, but winning the World Cup in his final attempt would be his crowning achievement. The 35-year-old Messi may not be in his prime anymore, but he is still productive. For PSG this season, Messi has seven goals and ten assists in 12 league games. He’s also in blistering form for Argentina. In his last four international games, he’s scored nine goals including a ridiculous five goals versus Estonia.

Key stat- One of the greatest dribblers we’ve ever seen in football history, Messi is still dribbling circles around defenders. This season he’s averaging 3.7 dribbles per game in Ligue 1, which ranks first not only in France but among all top European leagues. Messi could nutmeg a mermaid.

Saudi Arabia

Mohammed Al-Owais (GK) #21, Al-Hilal

In Group C, Saudi Arabia will have its hands full with the likes of Argentina, Mexico, and Poland’s talented attackers. It’s up to Saudi Arabia’s first-choice goalkeeper Al-Owais to keep them from scoring. Easier said than done with Messi and Lewandowski in your group.

Saudi Arabia has shown a penchant for resolute defending, much like their Middle Eastern neighbors in Iran. They held the USA and Ecuador to 0:0 draws in September. And in World Cup qualifiers, they finished first in a group containing Japan and Australia, only conceding six goals in ten games.

Key stat- The last time Al-Owais conceded more than 2 goals in a game for Saudi Arabia, you have to go all the way to a 4–0 loss in an international friendly versus Belgium in March 2018. That’s a span of 29 games.

Mexico

Hirving Lozano (LW/RW) #11, Napoli

In CONCACAF, Mexico only conceded eight goals in 14 World Cup qualifiers. But they also only scored 17. Someone needs to step up for Mexico to score the goals. Mexico might look towards Wolves’ striker Raul Jimenez, but there are fears he may not be fit for the star of the World Cup. Pacy 27-year-old Napoli winger Hirving Lozano will need to be more aggressive if Jimenez isn’t healthy.

Lozano has been struggling with fitness himself this season, and not getting consistent minutes as a result. He’s also been at the center of controversy lately, with Roma’s manager Jose Mourinho accusing him of constantly diving.

In October, Lozano scored three goals for Napoli in the space of a week. He went cold again after that, going scoreless in five straight appearances. Then just a few days ago, Lozano had a goal and an assist in 27 minutes against Empoli.

It has been a roller coaster of a season for Lozano, to say the least. He has to be more consistent for Mexico if they want to move to the next round.

Key stat- Lozano had a goal and an assist at the last World Cup, including the winning goal versus Germany. Apparently, the Mexican fans celebrated Lozano’s goal so loudly that it actually caused an artificial earthquake. Mexico knows how to party.

Poland

Karol Swiderski (ST) #16, Charlotte FC

Every football fan knows Robert Lewandowski. The ageless Lewandowski is a goal-scoring machine for Barcelona (13 in 14 La Liga games). But how many people know of another -ski who scores goals for Poland?

Not many, I’d wager. (And no, I’m not talking about Zielinski.) But MLS striker Karol Swiderski was second only to Lewandowski with five goals in World Cup qualifiers for Poland.

Swiderski is a 184 cm tall (6'0") center forward who can finish with both feet and has good movement in the box. With his wicked left foot and proficient technique, he is even a threat on free kicks.

Key stat- Swiderski has scored eight goals in 17 international caps, but he’s only started eight games. This means he averages nearly a goal every 90 minutes for Poland, with a goal-scoring ratio of 0.96 goals/90.

GROUP D

France

Aurelien Tchouameni (DM) #8, Real Madrid

As defending World Cup champions, France will be the favorite to win the World Cup in Qatar. They have a ridiculous amount of talent on their squad. But despite the overabundance of individual talent, as a team, France has looked mortal as of late. They were very nearly relegated from the Nations League in late September by winning only one out of six matches.

With N’golo Kante and Paul Pogba both out, there are some questions that Deschamps has to answer. The young but prodigious pairing of Tchouameni and Eduardo Camavinga could be the answer in midfield.

Operating as a DM for Real Madrid, Tchouameni (pronounced “Chwa-may-knee”) is a well-balanced player able to contribute to multiple phases of the game. Can he and Camavinga help make up for the loss of Kante and Pogba in midfield?

Key stat- According to FBRef, Tchouameni is in the 99th percentile in interceptions (2.73 per 90) and 96th in progressive passes (5.76/90).

Australia

Awer Mabil (LW) #11, Cadiz

There aren’t many players on the Australian team with Champions League experience, but Awer Mabil is one of them. Footballing abilities aside, I personally will be rooting for him after hearing about his backstory and how he became an Australian international.

He was born and raised in a Kenyan refugee camp after his parents fled war-torn Sudan. When he was 11, Mabil and his family immigrated to Australia.

Earlier this year, Mabil scored the winning penalty against Peru in a must-win World Cup playoff game. After the game, he dedicated the goal to Australia, saying that it was the only way to thank them for helping his family. It’s an amazing rags-to-riches story.

Key stat- In addition to the penalty scored versus Peru, Mabil has scored two goals in his last four international caps.

Denmark

Christian Eriksen (AM/CM) #14, Manchester United

Denmark are no pushovers. They beat France twice in the Nations League by a combined score of 4–1. The talent and form are there for Denmark to advance to the knockout stages in Qatar. Denmark has a good blend of veterans and rising young stars. Andreas Skov Olsen is a young star winger who scouts will be watching this World Cup. They have defensive pedigree in Andreas Christensen and Simon Kjaer.

But no one on the Danish team will garner more attention than Manchester United midfielder Christian Eriksen. With his technique and creativity, he will be a focal point of the Danish build-up play and attack. Eriksen has played in both the advanced midfield spot in a 3–4–1–2 or at CM in a 4–3–3 for Denmark.

Wherever he plays, his creativity and vision will be the spark for the Danes, just as he’s been for Manchester United. Frankly, It’s just good to see him playing regular football again. Most football fans will remember how Eriksen contemplated early retirement after his cardiac arrest at Euro 2020.

Key stat- Among all midfielders, Eriksen averages 0.36 assists per 90 (98th percentile) and 4.74 shot-creating actions per 90 (96th percentile) according to FBref.

Tunisia

Mohamed Dräger (RB/RW) #20, FC Luzern

So, uh, this is awkward.

Just like Iran’s participation in the World Cup is being called into question, Tunisia is also embroiled in similar talks. FIFA has recently threatened to ban Tunisia from the World Cup following comments from the country’s Youth and Sports Minister about “dissolving federal offices of different disciplines”. FIFA interpreted this as Tunisia’s government meddling in football affairs.

Leaving politics behind (always a welcome sight), let’s move on to football. While Tunisian captain Khazri will be the main man, German-born right back Mohamed Dräger will provide much-needed attacking width down the right flank for Tunisia. Ligue 1's Yan Valery could provide competition at right back as well.

Dräger has had experience playing further forward earlier in his career, playing at left wing, right wing, and even striker. Watch out for defensive midfielder Ellyes Skhiri too. He’s an excellent tackler for FC Koln in the Bundesliga.