The soccer pundits are certainly out in force in the media, and one thing I am beginning to hear a lot is that Russia should sail through the Group Stages, which is a bold statement to make but one that does have some merit.
Considering they are the hosts for those Group Stages, they do have something of an advantage over their rivals, and with the first team they are playing, on the first match from Russia, that being Saudi Arabia, there cannot be many soccer fans out there think that match will end in anything other than a win for Russia.
That match is being played on the 14th of June, and it will then be on the 19th of June, five days later that Russia will be turning their attention to playing against Egypt, who let’s be honest do not have an enviable record in this major soccer tournament.
On the 25th of June that is when Russia will be taking on Uruguay, and many pundits are claiming that the two teams that will be at the top of Group A once each of the games have been played off will be Russia and Uruguay.
However, many people are being side-tracked about talk of racism in Russia and also how Russian cities are being made to look nicer than they are on TV shows. But the discussions we have should be all about the soccer and not politics and sideshows!
Will Uruguay Finish in Position 2 of Group A?
If it is the case that Russia do turn their home advantage into the key for them leading Group A, I have been pondering whether Uruguay really have what it takes to finish one place behind them, or whether Uruguay will end up leading Group A.
There is not getting away from the fact they do have a good and experience team, and with their opponents being whom they are I am confident they are going to finish in first or second place in Group A.
However, I am also aware of many people who are expressing an option that Egypt could find their very best form and could be a thorn in the side of both Russia and Uruguay.
That is the beauty of the World Cup, you should always be prepared to expect the unexpected and never take the fact that any one nation may be favourite to lead a Group at the Group Stages, as everything does need to fall into place for any team to do so.
Uruguay Squad Now Named
The squads for all nations are slowly but surely being announced, and Uruguay have just named their 26-man preliminary squad, and each of those players are listed below
Fernando Muslera, Martin Silva, Martin Campana, Diego Godin, Sebastian Coates, Jose Maria Gimenez, Maximiliano Pereira, Gaston Silva, Martin Caceres, Guillermo Varela, Nahitan Nandez, Lucas Torreira, Matias Vecino, Federico Valverde, Rodrigo Bentancur.
Carlos Sanchez, Giorgian De Arrascaeta, Diego Laxalt, Cristian Rodriguez, Jonathan Urretaviscaya, Nicolas Lodeiro, Gaston Ramirez, Cristhian Stuani, Maximiliano Gomez, Edinson Cavani, Luis Suarez.
