FIFA World Cup Group A Preview: Hosts Qatar face stiff challenge

Qatar was named host of the 2022 World Cup a decade ago. The Qatari national team has made great strides in international soccer, including winning its first ever Asian Cup in 2019. Qatar has climbed to No. 51 from 112th in the FIFA world rankings.

Qatar automatically qualified as host of the World Cup. They are the 50th best team in FIFA world rankings. Their manager is Félix Sánchez.

Qatar is hosting the World Cup. South Africa did not advance out of the group stage to the knockout round in 2010.

Qatar is the host of the FIFA World Cup. Spanish manager Félix Sánchez has been in charge of Qatar's national team since 2017. Qatar plays attack-minded football and has a number of talented players. However, the team is not as deep as other teams in Group A.

Qatar is the first Middle Eastern country to host the World Cup. Home advantage is an important factor for host nations. Questions will be raised over Qatar's moral fitness to be hosting the event. The country's laws making homosexuality illegal are also a point of controversy. The World cup is taking place in Qatar. Russia won the tournament in 2010.

Almoez Ali scored nine goals in Qatar's 2019 Asian Cup win. Gustavo Alfaro is the manager of Ecuador. He is likely to start with Alexander Domínguez, Pervis Estupiñán, Robert Arboleda, Ángelo Preciado, Moisés Caicedo, Carlos Gruezo FC Augsburg, Alan Franco, Enner Valencia and Gonzalo Plata.

Ecuador is in Group A. It narrowly lost to England in the round of 16 in 2006.

Ecuador finished fourth in the South American qualifiers to claim the last automatic berth for the World Cup. La Tricolor was a model of consistency, boasting the third-best defence in South America and the second-ranked attack. They also registered a big victory over fellow World cup participant Uruguay and earned valuable draws vs. Brazil and Argentina.

Gustavo Alfaro has been in charge of Ecuador since he was appointed in October 2020. Ecuador won the South American qualifiers and qualified for the World Cup. Qatar are the other team in Group A. Qatar will play Ecuador, Colombia and Nigeria in the tournament.

Moises Caicedo is a key figure in central midfield for Ecuador. Famara Diédhiou is the top scorer in qualifying with 4 goals. Senegal is ranked 18th in FIFA world ranking. Aliou Cissé is expected to start with Édouard Mendy, Sadio Mané, Fodé Ballo-Touré and Kalidou Koulibaly.

Sadio Mané was included in Senegal's roster despite suffering a serious leg injury.

Senegal won the African Cup of Nations earlier this year. Senegal is considered one of the best African teams to qualify for the World Cup. The team has hopes of making the quarterfinals and becoming the first African nation to reach the final four of World Cups.

Bayern Munich forward Mané is the key player for Senegal. He is a world class player who can hurt teams in a variety of ways. Senegal doesn't have another attacking player of Mane's quality. It will be interesting to see how they manage if Manè is sidelined for the tournament.

Boulaye Dia is a player who offers Senegal a physical presence up front. Memphis Depay scored 12 goals in qualifying for the 2018 World Cup. Netherlands did not qualify for 2018 tournament. Louis van Gaal is the manager.

Jasper Cillessen is the Dutch goalkeeper. He missed Euro 2020 due to COVID-19.

The Netherlands are the eighth-ranked nation in the world and have won seven of their 10 qualifying games. Louis van Gaal's team has reached the finals of next year's UEFA Nations League. The team's back line can be suspect at times and it doesn't have a clear-cut No. 1 goalkeeper.

Depay scored 12 goals and made six assists in 10 appearances for the Netherlands during the qualifiers. Depay has been injured for most of this season with FC Barcelona. The 28-year-old is eager to prove his quality at the World Cup.

Donyell Malen played for Arsenal, PSV Eindhoven and Borussia Dortmund. He has scored a number of goals for his national team, including a trio of World Cup qualifiers. Malens has been compared to Alexis Sanchez.

Memphis Depay will go without scoring in the opening round of the World Cup, but the Netherlands will still finish first in Group A.