Denmark have booked their place at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, becoming just the third team to qualify thus far. Qatar qualified as host nation, whereas Germany became the first team to advance through qualifiers, confirming with a 4-0 victory over North Macedonia.
Denmark had a hectic Euro, to say the least. After the tragedy of witnessing star player Christian Eriksen pass out on the pitch, Denmark barely squeaked out of Group B. From there, Denmark won convincingly against Wales and Czech Republic before a narrow (and controversial) loss in the semis against England.
The Danes picked up right where they left off in World Cup qualifiers: they currently have a 100 percent record, winning all eight games with a stunning 27 goals scored and an even more stunning zero conceded. With only two matches remaining, Denmark could put out some experimental lineups against Scotland and the Faroe Islands.
Meanwhile in Africa, Senegal and Morocco have won their respective groups to advance to the third and final round of African World Cup qualifiers. This round sees ten winners of groups in the second stage of qualifying to each other in a two-legged tie to determine who qualifies for Qatar. (There are five matchups, with each group winner playing another). This format wasn’t used in qualifying for 2018, but had been used in prior tournaments.
If that sounds difficult, that’s because it is. Top teams will be facing top teams, with just two matches to try and qualify. However, Morocco and Senegal are no slackers: both teams qualified for the 2018 World Cup and have a 100 percent qualifying record thus far. However, Morocco have one more potential issue: star man Hakim Ziyech has reportedly fallen out with manager Vahid Halilhodzic, meaning he likely won’t play for the Atlas Lions in the near future. They’ll need some other players to step up their game.
Who do you think will be the next team to qualify for the World Cup? Let me know in the comments!
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Image courtesy of Fars Media Corporation, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
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