Madrid, June 6 (IANS) On paper, Group H should be relatively straightforward for reigning European Champions Spain, with an intense Uruguay providing the main opposition; however, Spain will travel with injury doubts, and Saudi Arabia showed in Qatar that they are capable of springing a big surprise, and Cabo Verde have had promising results in their build-up to the FIFA World Cup.

Spain

The team:

Spain are one of the clear favourites to lift the World Cup trophy in the MetLife Stadium on July 19. Luis de la Fuente’s side travel as European champion with a consolidated squad that plays attractive attacking football and loves to dominate possession, as reported by Xinhua.

Spain mix balance and control through players such as Rodri and Martin Zubimendi, and moments of magic thanks to the inspiration of Pedri, Nico Williams, and Lamine Yamal.

De la Fuente has an experienced and calm goalkeeper in Unai Simon, while Pau Cubarsi has been outstanding at the back for FC Barcelona.

The only question mark could be over the fitness of Williams and Yamal, who ended the season with hamstring injuries and might not be fit for Spain’s opening game against Cabo Verde.

Star player:

It’s hard to believe that Yamal won’t celebrate his 19th birthday until July 13, so important has he been for club and country over the past two years.

The winger has lightning pace, control, and vision, and the ability to find the back of the net with ease, and, hamstring permitting, he is set to be one of the big stars of the summer.

Player to watch:

Atletico Madrid’s Marcos Llorente has had an excellent season in Spain, in which he has shown both his physical power and his versatility on the pitch.

Llorente can play in midfield or at right back, but will probably start in defence for Spain. Fast, strong, and aggressive, expect Llorente to be a powerhouse up and down the flank, with his overlaps creating space for Yamal and also shooting chances for himself.

Uruguay

The team:

Any team coached by Marcelo Bielsa is going to be interesting to watch, and Uruguay is no different, but it’s also true that his man-management can sometimes cause problems in the squad, with former striker Luis Suarez most certainly not a fan.

One key factor could be how the squad is able to live in proximity to the coach for an extended period of time.

Bielsa likes his teams to play an energetic high-press that many rivals struggle to deal with, but after a long season and in the heat and humidity expected in the U.S. this summer, that might not be so easy to maintain.

Uruguay have a reputation for always being one of the most competitive teams in the World Cup, and a central defence of Ronald Araujo and Jose Gimenez isn’t likely to give much away, while in attack, much could rely on Darwin Nunez, whose game time has been limited since moving to Al-Hilal in Saudi Arabia.

Star player:

Real Madrid midfielder Fede Valverde had a difficult end to the season with stories of his fight with team-mate Aurelien Tchouameni hitting the headlines and pointing to Valverde’s fiery personality.

At his best, Valverde is a box-to-box midfielder who likes to drive his team forward and whose energy can be contagious. He also has a powerful shot from distance and will take most of his side’s free kicks.

Player to watch:

A team that relies on effort and organisation can at times lack subtlety to break down rival defences, and here winger Brian Rodriguez could be Uruguay’s wildcard.

Rodriguez has developed into a player who can torment defences at Club America in Mexico and could be the man to provide a dose of magic for Bielsa’s side.

Saudi Arabia

The team:

It’s impossible to look at Saudi Arabia’s chances at the 2026 World Cup without forgetting their historic win over Argentina at the start of the 2022 tournament. That should be enough to show that the Saudis have the talent they need to progress into the knockout stage of the competition, while its ever-improving domestic league should have raised standards generally in the country.

However, Saudi Arabia struggled in qualification, finishing second behind Jordan in the second group stage and then behind Japan and Australia, meaning it needed to go into the fourth round to finally book its ticket.

Those struggles saw Herve Renard sacked in March and Georgios Donis brought in as a replacement.

Donis has a lot of experience at the club level – especially in the Middle East- but has never coached at the international level, and that will be a drawback as he looks for the consistency Saudi Arabia needs to complement its talent.

Star player:

Salem Al-Dawsari was the star for Saudi Arabia in 2022 and remains the key player for his side.

The Al-Hilal winger likes to start on the right wing and is the most dangerous player in the squad, as any member of the Argentina 2022 Cup-winning squad will no doubt remember.

Player to watch:

Al-Ittihad player Saleh Al Shehri was one of the goalscorers in that famous win in 2022, but he is much more than a goalscorer for his country.

The centre-forward also provides a physical presence in attack, winning the ball in the air, bringing his team-mates into the action, and providing the first line of pressure when his side loses the ball.

Cabo Verde

Although Cabo Verde travel to the World Cup as underdogs, the fact that the team from the African archipelago of around half a million inhabitants finished ahead of Cameroon in its qualifying group should make people sit up and take notice.

Cabo Verde built their success on a solid defense, and although they suffered a 4-1 defeat in Cameroon, they only conceded four more goals in qualification, keeping seven clean sheets in total and not receiving a single goal in front of the home fans.

Much of the credit for that has to go to coach Pedro Leitao Brito, known as Bubista, whose main task in the World Cup will be to prepare his side for a baptism of fire when it kicks off against Spain.

Star player:

At 36 years old, the well-travelled striker Ryan Mendes has plied his trade in England, France, the UAE, and Türkiye. He has played 95 times for his country and will go to the World Cup as captain of Cabo Verde and also the country’s record goalscorer with 22 goals.

Player to watch:

The 23-year-old Benfica full-back Sidny Lopes Cabral is one to watch for Cabo Verde, with the Dutch-born defender bringing big-league experience and an ability to advance down his wing and cross with both feet. A return of three goals in eight appearances also shows he has an important ability to find the opposition’s goal.

–IANS

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