2018.....World Cup.

[Greenbacks]

Brazil

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Pedro Henrique Heinzen</figcaption></figure>The streets of Brazil are... full of green, blue and yellow. Schools are letting students go to classes in their football kits, and classes are cancelled when Brazil are playing.

​

This World Cup... means a lot to us. After all the recent political unrest, corruption and economic uncertainty, the Seleção is not just a team but a symbol of hope.

The greatest thing about this team is... we do not depend on just one player. We have Neymar, Coutinho, Firminho, Marcelo, Fernandinho and Thiago Silva. We have a better team than the 1982 one, which was considered the best in our history.

Brazilians are... expecting a reaction from the disastrous defeat to Germany four years ago. Every minute of this tournament will be watched. If there’s a ball rolling, we’ll be watching.

 

[Greenbacks]

Costa Rica

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Daniel Villalta and his friends watching Costa Rica beat Italy 1-0 in 2014.</figcaption></figure>The mood is... cautious. The national team is not in its best form and the toughness of the group also increases the uneasiness among the more skeptical fans. We want to be competitive. I hope we make it to the second round. Getting though such a difficult group will lift our players and we could go even further if confidence grows. Commitment and dedication is a must.

The players carrying the hopes of a nations are... Bryan Ruiz, Joel Campbell and Oscar Duarte. If they play well, Costa Rica will have a chance against Switzerland and Serbia.

We’ve come a long way since... missing out on the knockout stages of the 2002 World Cup on goal difference. I never though I’d see Costa Rica in a World Cup quarter-final, so the efforts of four years ago will be hard to match.

 

[Greenbacks]

Serbia

The Serbia squad is... the most talented in years. Coach Mladen Krstajic has made a positive impression. We haven’t reached a World Cup since South Africa in 2010 and this team is seen as far more promising than the one eight years ago.

We should... reach the knockout stages. We can get past Switzerland and Costa Rica, and go through with Brazil. That would likely see us face Germany in the second round. The journey will end there.

What excites me most about the team is... the midfield. Luka Milivojevic and Nemanja Matic are already proven high-quality holding midfielders. Sergej Milinkovic-Savic has been one of the most dynamic young goalscoring midfielders in Europe, and Dusan Tadic was unplayable at times during World Cup qualification.

 

[Greenbacks]

Switzerland

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Nischal Schwager-Patel</figcaption></figure>The mood is... one of excitement. There is a real buzz among Switzerland fans. The dream is to reach the quarter-finals for only the fourth time. In the last two international tournaments we were agonisingly knocked out at the second round stage after an 118th-minute goal and a penalty shootout. This time we may have to overcome Germany in the first knockout stage, but we could do that on our day.

​

My favourite player is... Xherdan Shaqiri. He grabbed a hat-trick at the last World Cup against Honduras and scored the goal of Euro 2016. Youngsters such as Manuel Akanji, Steven Zuber and Breel Embolo are continuing to show their promise as well.

 

[Greenbacks]

Germany

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Gina Maya</figcaption></figure>Germany’s problem in Euro 2016 was... the lack of cutting edge up front. Julian Draxler and Thomas Müller are too slow against faster full-backs. I’m hoping Timo Werner can step into Miroslav Klose’s shoes up front. Germany’s midfield and defence will continue to dominate possession and wear down opponents.

If Germany play to their potential, they will... win the World Cup. France and Spain have a crazy amount of talent but Die Mannschaft will be tough to beat.

The impact players to watch will be... Leon Goretzka, Timo Werner, Joshua Kimmich and Niklas Sule. I’m excited to see how the Bayern Munich players will gel with the other players. I would also love to be proved wrong about Marco Reus and see him emerge as the world class forward so many people claim he is.

 

[Greenbacks]

[h=2]Mexico[/h][FONT=&quot]The main concern for Mexico is... the coach. People are optimistic about us making it further than our usual second-round exit but Juan Carlos Osorio may cause us to fail miserably.
[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Brazil 2014 was... a very good tournament for us. We were minutes away from beating the Netherlands in the knockout stages. Our main hope this time is PSV winger Hirving Lozano. I’m excited to see how this young talent will make a mark on the tournament. [/FONT]

 

[Greenbacks]

Sweden
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Morris Andersson</figcaption></figure>

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People were far from optimistic...when we ended up in the same qualifying group as France and the Netherlands. It was nearly impossible to think we’d be going to Russia. Most of our experienced players retiring after Euro 2016 also darkened the mood. But a younger generation of players have performed above expectations and here we are.

Our coach Jan Andersson has proved... a team without stars can still make a great impact. Former coach Erik Hamren centred Sweden’s whole gameplan around Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Andersson has been a lot braver and has been justly rewarded.

We should... progress from the group with Germany. South Korea and Mexico should not be underestimated, but if we perform like we did in qualifying this could be a very memorable tournament.

Look out for... Emil Forsberg and Victor Lindelof. An injury-free Forsberg is as close as we have to a superstar. He is expected to pull the strings in the final third. Lindelof may have had some difficulties adapting to the Premier League with Manchester United, but he is still young. In the national team he has captain Andreas Granqvist at the back to guide him.

 

[Greenbacks]

South Korea

​

South Korea fans are... not very optimistic. We are in a tough group and are fearing the worst after the national team made hard work of qualifying. The country will be behind them, but they do not expect much.

There is a lot of pressure on... Son Heung-min. Off the scale performances will be required from him. No one else can be relied upon to score the goals needed.

My favourite World Cup memories revolve around... Park Ji Sung. I still remember the mood of the nation when his goal eliminated Portugal and sent South Korea through to the knockout stages in 2002.

 

[Greenbacks]

Belgium

We have yet to see the best of our... golden generation. We have a number of great players who are hitting their peak at club level, but they have not yet convinced for the national team.

I still have doubts over... Roberto Martínez. The coach hasn’t proved anything yet and has caused quite a stir by leaving one of our best players, Radja Nainggolan, at home.

I hope we can make it past the... quarter-finals. It will be hard if we come up against Germany or Brazil. I also expect most of our injury-prone defenders such as Vincent Kompany, Thomas Vermaelen and Toby Alderweireld to have limped off by then.

Our most enjoyable player is... Eden Hazard. I hope he has an inspired tournament and gets the best out of Michy Batshuayi up front.

 

[Greenbacks]

England

​

The mood is... one of tired resignation. The realignment of English footballing ambition since the golden generation has been slow and pretty painful. The way we massively underestimated a passionate and well drilled Iceland team at Euro 2016 showed we hadn’t quite lost our flair for hubris just yet.

My main hopes rest on... Gareth Southgate. He hasn’t seemed overawed yet and we have a bunch of exciting young players. With expectations curbed slightly, this might be the time for us to take our cue from other minnows in the competition and enjoy the ride whatever happens.

The player I expect to shine is... Marcus Rashford. He’s going to be fresher than some of the others in the squad after José Mourinho’s man management last season. Raheem Sterling, Kyle Walker and John Stones should benefit from having been part of a Manchester City team that has enough confidence to take on the entire world – which is exactly what they will be doing in Russia.

 

[Greenbacks]

Panama

Our first World Cup qualification was... not for the faint-hearted. The last-minute goal that sent us to Russia at the expense of USA was just the last of many nervy moments in a hard-fought group. But it’s been like a carnival celebration ever since.

Our expectations are... grounded. We’re conscious about the level of the other teams, but hope to show the world the qualities that got us here: intensity, rhythm and unity.

We’ll be the team most likely to... finish games with 10 or nine men. Discipline is our biggest challenge and has been a contributing factor in our previous failures.

The soul of our team is... Our captain Roman Torres. He is our leader. I also expect good performances from veterans Blas Perez and Gabriel Torres.

Football in Panama is... not the main sport in the country, especially when I grew up. Baseball was and still is the crowd favourite.

Getting through the group stages would... extend the carnival celebrations by another couple of months.

 

[Greenbacks]

Tunisia

The country is buzzing to have... reached our first finals since 2006. We were so disappointing 12 years ago, despite nearly getting something against Spain. One point against Saudi Arabia and Ukraine sealed our fate before the party had really started.

We are... among the weaker nations in Russia. But, while we’re in a tough group, I know we can turn a few heads. I hope we can hold our heads high after the three group games and somehow manage to upset Belgium’s golden generation.

​

Look out for... Naim Sliti, an attacking midfielder who should keep us ticking.

 

[Greenbacks]

Colombia

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Pedro Gallo with his girlfriend Bec.</figcaption></figure>My favourite thing about Colombia is... the warmth of the people. People genuinely seem to care for you, despite the great difficulties the country is facing. We’re passionate and sometimes a bit overdramatic, but still fun!

My first World Cup memory is all about... Carlos Valderrama. His goal against the UAE in Italia 90 meant we could celebrate our first ever World Cup victory. Freddy Rincón’s late equaliser against Germany in the same tournament, which helped us progress through the group, comes a close second.

This summer we should... build on the successful 2014 tournament. The majority of the squad from that World Cup is still here and new talents such as Yerry Mina, Davinson Sánchez, José Izquierdo and Mateus Uribe should make us even stronger.

I look forward to seeing... James Rodríguez scoring another of the most sublime goals in our short World Cup history.

 

[Greenbacks]

Japan

​

The mood is... nothing like the football fever that swept Japan in 1998, when we qualified for the first time. There have been too many setbacks since and people just aren’t that excited this time. The main reasons are Japan coach Vahid Halilhodzic being dismissed right before the tournament and the worrying dwindling popularity of our domestic league.

Everything rests on... our match against Colombia on 19 June. The Japanese media expect a positive result will get more people excited about the World Cup.

I hope we can... get out of the group. We have an experienced coach in Akira Nishino. He coached Gamba Osaka successfully for many years. We need the communication between the players and the coaching team to be spot on. A strong sense of solidarity is a must if we are to progress.

I’m very excited to watch... Takashi Usami. He is becoming a leading midfielder of the national team and learned the ropes under Nishino at Gamba Osaka before moving to Fortuna Düsseldorf.

 

[Greenbacks]

Poland

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Kuba Witkowski</figcaption></figure>The mood in Poland is... quietly expectant. A fine qualifying campaign, backed up by some cleverly scheduled friendlies, ensured we were given a reasonably kind draw. But there’s no point getting carried away. We failed miserably at Euro 2012 when co-hosting, in a group which could not have been weaker.

Reaching the knockout stages of Euro 2016... was a massive success. While we lacked a Plan B at times in that tournament, our first XI was a sound mixture of solidity and flair. Question marks hang over the form of key players from that tournament, as well as the suitability of the recently tested formation with three centre-backs.

It’s hard not to get excited when... Robert Lewandowski is near a football. With Arek Milik’s injury problems, we’ll need him on top form in Russia.

 

[Greenbacks]

Senegal

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Charles Adome</figcaption></figure>In 2002... Senegal carried Africa’s hopes in Japan and South Korea, with all other African nations crashing out at the earliest opportunity. But for poor refereeing decisions, Bruno Metsu’s side would have progressed even further.

Sixteen years later... our aim is to progress from the group and pursue the semi-final dream. Why not? Senegal will be one of the hardest working teams in Russia, and the refereeing will hopefully be a lot better than it was in 2002.

The player I’m most excited about is... Sadio Mané. After a terrific season with Liverpool it’s time for Mané to shine on the biggest stage of all for his country.

 

[Greenbacks]

 

[Greenbacks]

 

[Greenbacks]

 

[Greenbacks]