"There’s no standout team" - Ex-England boss Glenn Hoddle predicts winner of 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar
Former England boss Glenn Hoddle believes Brazil will win the FIFA World Cup, but claims 'about six countries' could challenge for the title.
The Tottenham Hostpur legend, who guided the Three Lions to the 1998 tournament in France, also believes England could be in the running to win in Qatar. But when pressed on who he thinks will achieve ultimate glory at the FIFA World Cup, he was unable to look any further than Brazil, citing their excellent goalkeepers.
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The boys from Brazil are in town 🇧🇷 🛬 https://t.co/GqdWgio8o4
However, Hoddle also claimed that there isn't a clear favorite in this year's competition, as he told Metro:
"I think England are in that little crop of about six countries that could win. If I was to put a bet on it, I’d probably say Brazil. I think it’s quite open, there are going to be a couple of favourites, Brazil being one, but I’m not sure they’re hot favourites. There’s no standout team that you think are definitely going to win.
"I think Brazil tick a lot of the boxes, they look quite solid at the back, and they have the flair at the other end of the pitch. I think they’ve got the right balance."
He added:
"To win a World Cup you need a goalkeeper who’s going to play really well and then you can build on that base from there and I think they’ve got two goalkeepers [Alisson and Ederson] who are very solid."
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Glenn Hoddle names Denmark as his dark horses for 2022 FIFA World Cup
Hoddle named the Danes as his dark horses for the tournament after a superb couple of years, including a dramatic run to the European Championship semi-finals last summer. He also name-dropped Portugal and Belgium as other potential dark horses.
The former midfielder explained:
"I think Denmark, they had a great Euros, and they’ll want to build on that. They’re coming in again under the radar as they always do. They’ve beaten France recently. Perhaps they haven’t got a finisher, an out-and-out striker that you feel will get five or six goals for them. But they have a lot of goal scorers in their squad. They score all over the pitch actually.
"I also wouldn’t count out teams like Portugal and Belgium. Everyone keeps thinking they’ve gone past their sell by date, but it wouldn’t surprise me if one of those teams went deep as well."
He continued:
"Once you get to a semi-final anything can happen. You get the right decisions like penalties, a sending off for the opposition – all those things come into it. So, Denmark, Portugal, Belgium. Let’s face it, if one of them wins the World Cup it would be a surprise."
Christian Eriksen says Denmark will continue to wear and support the One Love armband no matter the consequences.