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World Cup 2022: Will Africa's representatives announce themselves to the world or be a blur?

The 2022 FIFA World Cup will take place in the next 3 weeks. Each continent played the qualifying round to choose the best team for the World Cup. Africa has five representatives with the hope of gaining outstanding achievements at the biggest football tournament. Can African teams, with their current squad and development, compete with teams from other countries?
Leey
By: Leey

Right from the first time FIFA expanded the World Cup from 16 to 24 teams and granted Africa more than one place to attend the finals (World Cup 1982), African football has resonated. Cameroon did not lose a match; they just ranked below and gave way to Italy because they lost in the second sub-index (the same point, the same goal difference, but scored less than 1 goal). That means there is almost no difference between Cameroon and the champion of that tournament. The other African representative, Algeria, won even though Germany (the final runner-up) was also eliminated because of the sub-status, which is actually a blatant arrangement between Germany and Austria. From the 1986 World Cup until the 2014 World Cup, African football always had a representative in the knockout stage at the World Cup finals.

But recently, Africa's mark in the World Cup arena has been increasingly fading. The 2018 World Cup became the first World Cup where all five African representatives did not overcome the group stage. On the one hand, the element of surprise has almost completely been eliminated in a time when most African players play in Europe and strong teams are cautious about African opponents. On the other hand, it is the "Europeanization" characteristics of African stars that have created differences in the level of players. When returning to their national team, footballers cannot show their optimal ability. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Arsenal , Barcelona, Chelsea) or Naby Keita (Liverpool ) often cease to be themselves in a Gabon or Guinea shirt.

Can African representatives demonstrate their power to the world in World Cup 2022, or will they continue to be a blur as World Cup 2018?

Cameroon

The Indomitable Lions will compete in their eighth World Cup in 2022. In their second appearance in this competition (the 1990 World Cup), Cameroon's outstanding achievement was to announce themselves to the world. However, the result of Cameroon in the last tournament was quite negative. Cameroon has not had a win since 2002.

Cameroon has the strongest squad in its history, according to experts. In the attack of the "Indomitable"  there will be a trio of strikers: Vincent Aboubakar, E. Choupo-Moting, and L. Tawamba. They are all key players capable of organizing effective attacks. In particular, the right winger, E. Choupo-Moting of Bayern Munich, has enough experience as well as physical and technical skills to complete the task well.

The midfield of the Cameroon team is also considered to be even. In a squad full of high-class midfielders, typically the central midfield pair of Soum Gwet and G. Ondoua, K. Toki Ekambi, and M. Hongla, who have the same quality and fitness, it is extremely difficult for opponents to score. Cameroon does not have famous defenders, but a wall of four players, including A. Oyongo and Collins Fai, M. Ngadeu, and J. Castelletto, is enough to make power.

Cameroon's goalkeeper at the 2022 World Cup is relatively appreciated, which is the excellence of a goalkeeper born in 1996. André Onana of Ajax processing in the Netherlands is regarded as Cameroon's number one goalkeeper, with the ability toThe ability to catch the ball is good. Playing with the foot is also quite good.

The ballot-paper put Cameroon in Group G of the 2022 World Cup with Brazil, Serbia, and Switzerland. In this group, Brazil is the highest-rated team, but the remaining teams are also highly rated.

With a rejuvenated force, a stable performance, and a high spirit of competition, the Cameroon team still has a chance to win Switzerland and Serbia to gain tickets for the next round. In other words, a possible goal for Cameroon in the 2022 World Cup is to finish second in Group G after the Brazilian samba dancers.

Ghana

Following their absence from the 2018 World Cup, the Black Stars will return. Coming back to the World Cup in 2022, Ghana will hope that they can achieve outstanding results as they did in the 2010 World Cup, where a semifinal ticket was very close for them but Luis Suarez stole victory from them.

Arsenal midfielder Thomas Partey will probably be a key player for Ghana at the World Cup. He has impressed with his performances for the Gunners this season, and at 28, he is theoretically at the peak of his power. Teenage forward Abdul Fatawu Issahaku, who is trading at club level for Benfica, is one to watch.

Although they have a competitive spirit and determination that will help Ghana make a splash in Qatar, they are in a group that includes very excellent teams. It is impossible for Ghana to win against Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo, South Korea's Son Heung Min, and Uruguay's Luis Suarez.

Morocco

The World Cup 2022 is the sixth time they have the ticket to go to the biggest football tournament on the planet. Their highest achievement was reaching the round of 16 in the 1986 World Cup.

Morocco will bring many talented players to the squad. The attack of Morocco is appreciated with the appearance of star Hakim Ziyech on the staff of Chelsea. He once won the title of best player in the UEFA Champions League 2019–2020.

The left wing attack corridor will have the presence of Ayoub El Kaabi, who has the ability to keep the ball well and good wings.

The midfield of the Moroccan team did not have many outstanding elements, but the good coordination of Selim Amallah, Sofiane Amrabat, and Azzedine Ounahi will create attacking phases quickly along the edge to connect with the two central positions in the upline.

Maroc’s defense is also a solid wall with the presence of five defenders: J. Yamiq, R. Saiss, N. Aguerd, A. Hakimi, and A. Masina. Yassine Bounou, the main goalkeeper of Morocco, has the ability to catch the ball well, which has been tested through many matches. He has become the number one goalkeeper, which is difficult to replace.

The Moroccan team in Group F of the 2022 World Cup has the presence of Belgium, Croatia, and Canada. Although Morocco showed a good performance at continental level, with a not really strong, quite thin squad, no high-class strikers, and a solid playing style, it is difficult for Morocco to have the opportunity to beat Belgium (ranked 2nd in the world) and Croatia (World Cup runner-up 2018) to overcome the group stage.

Senegal

Senegal will play in the World Cup 2022 after winning the CAN.They are considered the brightest candidates in Africa for creating outstanding results.

Frank Leboeuf, who won the World Cup with France in 1998, said

"Senegal is, for me, one of my favorites in the World Cup. They could go very, very far. I really think that they can win the World Cup."

Senegal has a golden generation in football history. Senegal has a goalkeeper, Édouard Mendy, who is considered physically superior and can achieve a successful save rate of up to 75%.

Senegal’s attack had the appearance of Sadio Mane, Ismala Sarr, Famara Diedhiou, Keita Baldé, and Boulaye Dia, in which Sadio Mane is the brightest star in the squad. Liverpol’s players possess a high level of playing intensity, outstanding wing speed, the traits of finishing, speed, technique, and dexterity in possession, as well as decision-making and tactical awareness, creativity, agility, balance, control, touch, and dribbling skills.

The defense, with the presence of Kalidou Koulibaly, Saliou Ciss, Abdou Diallo, Youssouf Sabaly, Pape Abou Cissé, Bouna SarrDiallo, Koulibaly v. Sarr, etc., is increasingly reinforced and becoming stronger. The midfield also has the service of players who have good fitness, an aggressive and competitive style of play, and the ability and spirit to play hard and never get tired on the field and play as a sweeping machine.

Senegal is in Group A of the World Cup 2022, alongside Qatar, Ecuador, and the Netherlands. With the current strong squad, they will absolutely demonstrate their power to the world. They will have the ability to win against Qatar and Ecuador, as well as make a splash in the match with the Netherlands. So, it can be said that Senegal is the only African representative that has hope of reaching the quarterfinals.

Tunisia

The Carthage Eagles qualified for the 2022 World Cup thanks to a bizarre own goal in a 1-0 aggregate victory over Mali.

For the biggest football festival in 2022, Tunisia has gone through squad preparation. In the attack of the Tunisian team, although there is no world-famous striker, there is equality, with familiar faces such as captain Youssef Msakni and Nam Sliti. Tunisia's hope in the World Cup 2022 is Youssef Msakni's excellence and ability to score goals. The presence of three familiar players, A. Laidouni, G. Chaalali, and M. Ben Romdhane, will strengthen Tunisia's midfield. The Tunisian defense, with names such as M. Drager, N. Ghandri, M. Talbi, and A. Maaloul, will create an eagle with formidable defensive abilities. The Tunisia World Cup 2022 squad has goalkeeper Bechir Ben Sad, who can catch the ball quite well.

According to the draw result, Tunisia will be in Group D with the French, Denmark, and Australia. Tunisia’s target is only to overcome the group stage, but everything seems to work against them. Having to confront the French and Denmark is the end of Tunisia’s goal.

To sum up, although we have made careful preparation for the World Cup of 2022 and the competition spirit, the draw results are not support the Arfican representative. They are in the group with a strong opponent, so it is difficult for them to overcome the group stage. Senegal and Cameroon will be Africa's brightest hopes in the campaign, bringing outstanding achievements for African football history, but they are unattainable as champions or runners-up.As a result, the World Cup of 2022 may be a fading tournament featuring Africa's representative.

Regardless, their performance in the World Cup 2022 will be promising because winning football is about more than just the title; it is about the spirit, the playing style, and the memorable moments.

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Leey
Written by: Leey
Leey is the reporter for Betimate. She currently has a series of articles about football. She specializes in researching football data to come up with evaluations about the tournament and predictions about the matches.

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