A COUPLE of days ago, I was wondering what kind of team the Netherlands would bring to the World Cup in Russia when I realized the country that invented totaalvoetbal had failed to qualify.
As consolation, the Dutch will be joined by fellow European powerhouse Italy on the sidelines, and, well, football outsiders United States.
Still, as the World Cup nears — kick off will be on Thursday next week at 11 p.m. Philippine time — football fans across the world are positive that Russia 2018 will be memorable not for the big teams that didn’t make it but for the drama and excitement that every World Cup always delivers.
And fans of the Netherlands, Italy and the US for sure will have no recourse but to enjoy the month-long tournament, which also happens to be the biggest sporting spectacle in the world.
With the Netherlands and Italy out of the way, talk about who would lift the trophy on July 15 has zeroed in once more on perennial favorites Germany, Brazil, Spain, France and Argentina.
With the loudest of supporters from the stands and the press, England always makes it to the headlines when it comes to fearless World Cup forecasts. But favorable analysis seldom equates to real chances of winning. England is a cursed international squad, and there’s a bigger probability it would stay that way in Russia.
Not surprisingly, though, many of the dark horses come from Europe with a couple from South America. European Champions Portugal and superstar Cristiano Ronaldo lead the stable, alongside Switzerland and Croatia. From the other side of the world, Uruguay and Colombia pose a considerable challenge to Europe’s dominance.
Host Russia is seldom in the discussion, considering that most of its players come from the domestic league, while only two play in Europe. And that could go in their favor since, apart from not having to compete to qualify being the hosts, there’s little to scout on how they play, as well as the true caliber of their players.
Russia might very well be the true dark horse in the tournament. Expect more about Russia in the coming weeks.