Wales or Scotland or Ukraine, November 21st
It’s unclear exactly when the US will learn the identities of their opponents in their first game given the ongoing invasion of Ukraine, but sometime in June seems the most likely. Wales, who defeated Austria 2-1 in a play-off semi-final on March 24 thanks to two superb goals from Gareth Bale, meet the winner of a match between Scotland and Ukraine.
Wales were semi-finalists at Euro 2016 and reached the round of 16 at Euro 2020. They would perhaps pose the most challenging opponents for Gregg Berhalter’s men. Bale will be 33 at kick-off in Qatar but Real Madrid reserves remain an impressive talent while Leeds United striker Dan James’ pace plagued Austria.
Scotland were bottom of their group at Euro 2020. They were ultimately beaten by the Czech Republic and Croatia but clinched a point with a spirited performance against England at Wembley. Ukraine finished third in their group behind the Netherlands and Austria, but still reached the quarterfinals. They upped their game to defeat Sweden 2-1 after extra time in the first knockout round, but lost 4-0 to England.
FIFA World Ranking Wales 18th; Ukraine 27th; Scotland 39
Best World Cup performance Wales, quarter-finals, 1958; Ukraine, Quarterfinals, 2006; Scotland, group stage, eight times
England, November 25th
A game that is always brimming with historical and cultural resonance, and it will be very special not only for Chelsea’s Christian Pulisic, but also for two other players who started this week against Costa Rica: Yunus Musah, a former England youth international who was courted by Gareth Southgate before opting for the United States last year, and Milton Keynes-born Fulham defender Antonee Robinson. The England connections don’t end there: Gio Reyna was born in Sunderland; Goalkeeper Zack Steffen plays for Manchester City while Matt Turner, a possible first choice between the posts in Qatar, joins Arsenal in the summer; Another goalkeeper, Ethan Horvath, is in the Nottingham Forest books.
England emerged 3-0 winners in the last meeting between the two sides, a friendly in 2018 that marked the international farewell to DC United legend Wayne Rooney – not that a game from four years ago means much, considering how dramatically the US will be rebuilt under Berhalter.
Both nations are packed with exciting young talent, with Jude Bellingham at the top of England’s promotion list – but England are several years ahead of the USA on the learning curve, with more recent experience in major tournaments and more players at top clubs. Their depth and prowess in midfield should pose problems for the USA – as would most teams. Miles Robinson and Walker Zimmerman, the current American first-choice centre-back pairing, have been loyal in Concacaf qualifiers lately, but will the MLS pair be able to handle Harry Kane and Raheem Stirling?
Famously – or infamously, depending on whether you spell ‘color’ with a ‘u’ or not – the nations clashed in 1950 and 2010 when Steven Gerrard’s early goal calmed all England nerves. Oh wait, it didn’t. A few minutes before half-time there was an exchange of blows that was heard around the world when goalkeeper Robert Green had helped Clint Dempsey equalize with his howler. The game ended 1-1 and thanks to Landon Donovan’s later heroism against Algeria, the USA led the group ahead of Fabio Capello’s side.
Southgate’s team is livelier, more talented, more cohesive and far better trained than the older, stilted and stressed-out English crop. They reached the semifinals four years ago, losing 2-1 to a more experienced Croatia after extra time. Were it not for the manager’s tactical caution in last year’s Euro 2020 final against Italy, when the Three Lions failed to contribute to an early lead and then were pushed back in the second half (much like the Croatian semi-final), and the mismanagement of the penalty shootout , they would probably go into this tournament as European champions.
From the looks of it, they’ll likely be hungry, confident, and still getting better as November rolls around. England dominated qualifying, albeit in a relatively easy group, scoring 39 goals and conceding just three. They are the obvious favorites for Group B in Qatar.
key players Harry Kane
FIFA World Ranking 5.
How they qualified First in the group, with eight wins and two draws from 10 games
Best World Cup performance Winner, 1966
Iran, November 29
Not a team to take lightly. It is the third consecutive World Cup appearance for Iran, who scored the most points of any team in the last round of Asian qualifying. They reached Qatar in January with three group games remaining. And they conceded just four goals as they top their group ahead of South Korea, whom they nonetheless defeated 2-0 in Seoul on March 24.
Although Iran are participating in their sixth World Cup, they never progressed beyond the group stage. However, in 2018 they were quite impressive when they finished third in their group, beating Morocco 1-0 in their opening game, losing 1-0 to Spain and then securing a 1-1 draw with an injury-time penalty Portugal.
With 29-year-old Porto striker Mehdi Taremi, who has scored 21 goals for club and country this season, Iran have a real goalscoring threat – even if he’s upside down. So does Sardar Azmoun, who joined Bayer Leverkusen in January after a successful spell at Zenit St. Petersburg.
However, there was some tension between Taremi and head coach Dragan Skočić last year. That seems to be in the past; After all, they reportedly followed each other on Twitter, so everything must be fine. Skočić, a 53-year-old Croatian-born nomad manager, took charge in 2020 after spending seven years coaching club football in Iran.
Iran and the US met at France 1998, with Iran winning 2-1 in a politically tense encounter. A friendly match two years later in California resulted in a 1-1 draw.
key players Mehdi Taremi
FIFA World Ranking 21
How they qualified First in the group, with eight wins, one draw and one loss from 10 games
Best World Cup performance Group stage, six times