Qatar and Senegal vengeful, the Netherlands which must confirm or the Anglo-Saxon derby between England and the United States: find the program of the day.
Matches of the day
The second day of the group stage of this 2022 World Cup in Qatar begins this Friday with several important matches. At 11 a.m., in Group B, Wales will try to get closer to their goal – a qualification in the round of 16 – by winning against Iran. But the selection led by Carlos Queiroz should be revengeful after their humiliating loss against England (6-2). In the early afternoon, at 2 p.m., Qatar and Senegal, both defeated on the first day of the group stage, will be keen to bounce back to try to get out of group A. In the process, at 5 p.m., the Netherlands will want to confirm their success against the Lions of Teranga (0-2) to take the lead in group A and thus almost ensure qualification for the knockout phase. The Oranjes will however have a lot to do against a great team from Ecuador who also made a successful start to the World Cup against Qatar (0-2). Finally, at 8 p.m., in the Anglo-Saxon derby of group B, England will want to prove that their great success against Iran was not due to luck while the United States will try to create a surprise. Another great day of football in perspective.
Broadcast times and channels
Wales – Iran (Group B): 11 a.m. (beIN SPORTS 1)
Qatar – Senegal (Group A): 2 p.m. (beIN SPORTS 1)
Netherlands – Ecuador (Group A): 5 p.m. (beIN SPORTS 1)
England – United States (Group B): 8 p.m. (TF1, beIN SPORTS 1)
Gael Danic’s predictions
Former attacking midfielder (Troyes, Valenciennes, Bastia, Lyon, Rennes…) and ex-French U20 international, Gaël Danic has 340 matches in Ligue 1.
Wales – Iran: Wales victory
«If they want to hope to qualify, the Welsh must win against a weaker opponent.»
Qatar – Senegal: Senegal victory
«I think Senegal will win because they have better players than Qatar.»
Netherlands – Ecuador: Dutch win
«Despite a complicated match, the Dutch won their first game and gained confidence. They can ensure their qualification.»
England – United States: England victory
«The English are superior to the United States and have an impressive offensive strike force.»
Read alsoWorld Cup: Olivier Giroud is unanimous among the Blues
The news of the Blues
On the eve of the French team’s second match against Denmark (Saturday, 5 p.m.), Didier Deschamps will be at a press conference at the media center at 9:30 a.m.; he will be accompanied by his captain, Hugo Lloris. In the middle of the afternoon, at 4 p.m., the Blues will train at the Al-Jassim stadium: the first quarter of an hour will be open to the press but the rest of the session will be behind closed doors, no doubt to work on a tactical setup. We could still get some small indiscretions concerning the choice of device and players of “DD” for the match against the Red and Whites.
Read alsoFrench team: shortened session for Coman, “spared” according to the staff
statement of the day
Before Senegal’s match against Qatar, decisive for qualification for the round of 16, Aliou Cissé said he was confident about his team’s ability to react after their defeat against the Netherlands (0-2): “I have no doubt that we have the offensive quality to score. The important thing is efficiency, it’s a state of mind, a behavior, to be a little more killer in front of goal, to achieve, and I know that tomorrow we will have the possibility of scoring. The most important thing is to win to prepare well against Ecuador. I can understand that some doubt us, but the whole group wants to continue to write its history, for the supporters, and I appeal to you, to continue to believe in this team, to continue to pray, because we have especially the intention to make them proud“said the coach of the Teranga Lions.
Read alsoWorld Cup: even without Sadio Mané, Senegal must score
Player to watch: Cody Gakpo (Netherlands)
Author of the opener against Senegal (0-2) – from the head, on a returning cross from Frenkie de Jong -, Cody Gakpo will be one of the players to watch closely this Friday at the end of the day – noon against Ecuador. Due to his qualities of percussion, transmission and finishing, the versatile PSV Eindhoven striker (9 goals and 12 assists in the Eredivisie) appears to be one of Louis van Gaal’s main offensive weapons, and all the more so that Memphis Depay – the Oranjes’ attacking technical leader – has yet to return to his best form. Will he be able to make the difference and thus confirm his good start to the 2022 World Cup? Response this Friday early evening.
The expression of the day: “Break the kidneys”
No, this expression does not strictly speaking refer to physical violence. In soccer, “break the backof his opponent means eliminating him in a humiliating manner whether by a feint or a technical gesture so that he is no longer able to come back on his support to recover the ball. It is most often used when the defender is completely disoriented or even when he falls to the ground. One of the examples that best illustrates this image is none other than Lionel Messi’s hook in the 2015 Champions League semi-final which left Jérôme Boateng… on his back.
SEE ALSO – World Cup: all the info from our special correspondents two days before the match against Denmark
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