The favourites to win the World Cup are as predictable as ever, with the usual teams being put forward as potential winners – Brazil, Germany, Spain, France and Argentina. They just have a knack of being able to do well in World Cups and other big tournaments.
However, it is about time that the football world had a bit of a shakeup with some different nations being successful in these competitions. It would be so interesting to see a team that has been written off before a ball has even been kicked, to go on and win it this summer. Remember Greece winning the European Championship in 2004? Nobody expected that to happen!
Never write off the underdogs
Sometimes the underdogs do better when they have been ruled out as potential winners. A team like Colombia perhaps, who are down at around 40/1 to win the World Cup 2018 with the bookies. Their qualification for the tournament went incredibly well and they are currently ranked 16th in the FIFA rankings, placing them ahead of their Group H opponents Japan and Senegal. So they look like they have a good chance of progressing from that group, should all go well.
Star players to watch out for
James Rodriguez – Rodriguez (James) has had a good season at Bayern Munich, where he is on loan from parent club Real Madrid. He played exceptionally well at the last World Cup, scoring six goals and winning the Golden Boot. One of his goals was a spectacular volley that certainly caught the eye of a few club managers of the big teams. Off the back of his performances, La Liga giants Real Madrid came calling and he was signed up with hopes of becoming the next Galactico. Things didn’t work out for him as he would have hoped but his loan move to the Bundesliga has ensured that he goes into this World Cup in great form.
Falcao – Premier League fans will probably remember Falcao best for his failed loans at both Manchester United and Chelsea. It would seem the style of football played in England did not really suit him but he is prolific at Monaco, with a scoring record of 50 goals in 75 appearances. His record for Colombia is pretty good too – 29 goals from 71 appearances and he is Colombia’s all-time top goalscorer. At 34, this is likely to be his last World Cup, so he will want to go out with a bang.
