48 teams, 12 groups, and the biggest World Cup is about to begin across Canada, the United States, and Mexico.
With the opening game only a little over a week away, it’s time to begin breaking down the groups and analyzing who will make it through the group stage.
In Group C, there are two teams that both believe that they can win it all, a dark horse, and one nation that is just happy to be there.
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If you told me this was the World Cup semifinal, I’d believe you.
Brazil wants to win its first title in a quarter-century, while Morocco, the surprise of last World Cup, wants to prove to the world that it was no fluke that it made it to the final four.
The wildest thing about Brazil’s explosive attack against Morocco’s stalwart defense is that it’s the first game in the group, which means that if one of these teams can pull out a win, they are in the driver’s seat to leave Group C as the top squad.
Player of the Group: Vinícius Júnior (Brazil, Real Madrid)
There are only a few players under as much pressure as Brazil’s Vinícius heading into this World Cup.
A superstar at Real Madrid, his performances with the national team have often been inconsistent, as he’s been left alone to try and create magic on the wing to varying levels of success.
But for a nation that needs a hero to lead them to the promised land, Vinícius can’t be an accessory at this World Cup: he needs to be the engine that powers this squad through multiple rounds of knockout games to make it back to at least the semifinals.
The next two months might forever change Vinícius’ legacy in the sport, for better or for worse.
Group Prediction
Overall, this group seems extremely straightforward, depending on how you feel about Brazil and Morocco.
For myself, I think Brazil, even if they tie with Morocco, has the attack needed to win the group with goal differential, sliding down the African side to second. Behind them, Scotland, which is solid, will be trying to steal a point against the top two sides and demolish Haiti to get a third-place knockout-round spot.
- Brazil
- Morocco
- Scotland
- Haiti
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