What does this Summer’s Euros tell us about Qatar 2022?
The European Championships have yet to even finish, but with the 2022 World Cup just a year and a half away we’re already discovering a few things about the European sides looking to qualify for the tournament.
The summer so far has told us an awful lot about the European nations and it’s safe to say we can already make a few predictions for next year. In fact, we could fill out an entire bingo card for you to fill out for Qatar which would likely get marked off before the final.
But while bingo on mobile continues to thrive, there are some first lines of defence that need fixing before next year’s tournament, and there’s a lot of hard work that needs to go in before anyone can hit the jackpot and take home that glorious World Cup trophy. So, what exactly have we learned from this summer’s Euros that will hold us in good stead for the World Cup?
Germany need a rethink
Germany crashed out of the European Championships against England in the last 16 and with that saw the exit of Joachim Low from the post. Hansi Flick now has a big job on his hands to get his nation ready for Qatar.
There are some excellent young players in the squad and more emphasis on those seems like the way he’ll go with the likes of Thomas Muller, Mats Hummels and Toni Kroos now likely to start to be filtered out of the side.
A new dawn for English football?
While England have been far from exciting during the tournament so far, they’ve yet to concede a goal and have one of the youngest sides in the competition. Their young stars are demanding big-money moves or already have a high value on their head, while the emergence of the likes of Kalvin Phillips and Declan Rice is also encouraging for the Three Lions in the heart of the midfield.
They’re becoming regulars in the latter stages of tournaments, and 2022 could be the year where they are genuine favourites for the competition.
Portugal still with Ronaldo
This summer could well have been Ronaldo’s last in a major competition for his country, but such was his presence and talent during it, then it seems inevitable he’ll be making his bow out in a year and a half’s time instead.
The Portuguese talisman scored five goals in the competition and is still among the favourites to finish top scorer, despite his nation being knocked out by the ever-impressive Belgium.