Every four years we are treated to the best tournament in soccer, and it’s always filled with star names who reach their fullest potential when the lights are the brightest. This year’s tournament will be no different, and it’s as much of a star-studded affair as we could hope for. Below I will break down Group I of the group stage that features France, Senegal, Iraq and Norway.
Group I Predictions
It makes sense that France, the team with the second-lowest odds to win the tournament, are heavy favorites to win Group I. They are also the highest ranked team in the group in terms of the FIFA World Rankings, where they sit at #1 in the world. Senegal are next at #14, followed by Norway at #31 and Iraq at #57.
France should have no problem getting out of this group. They have made it to the final of the World Cup in each of the last two tournaments, winning one. The players they left out of the squad could make up a starting 11 that would be one of the best in the world. This is arguably the deepest team in the tournament, and I’d be shocked if they didn’t win Group I.
Then, we have Senegal and Norway who I would put in the same class. Norway were arguably the surprise of UEFA qualifying, winning all eight of their games to finish with a perfect record and advance to the World Cup. When you take into consideration that Italy was also in their qualifying group, it becomes even more impressive. They are led by Erling Haaland and Martin Odegaard, two of the biggest names in the Premier League. I think this team has what it takes to give France a run for their money, but ultimately I am predicting them to finish second in this group. Senegal had a very controversial AFCON win, that ended up being overturned months later because of some antics that we don’t have time to get into now. Regardless, they are one of the top two best teams in Africa, and are a solid outfit. I think they will finish third in this group with ease.
Finally, we have Iraq. They qualified via a playoff against Bolivia to make it here. This will be the second World Cup appearance in their history, with the first one coming in 1986. Unfortunately for them, this was one of the toughest groups to be drawn into.
Prediction: France – 1st / Norway – 2nd (+125)
Dark Horse
Norway are certainly my dark horse in this group. They are in a tie for ninth in terms of the lowest odds to win it all on DraftKings Sportsbook at +3500. After how impressive they looked in qualifying, I don’t see why they can’t have a good run in this tournament. The thing with Norway is they haven’t been here before, so there is no telling of how this group will react. They last reached the World Cup back in 1998, and they haven’t been to the Euros since 2000. This is an entirely new experience for this group. Let’s see how they embrace it.
Top Goalscorer
My pick for this was obviously between Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland, arguably the two best players in the world right now. I’m going with Mbappe, because he is more likely to be in this tournament longer with France. Mbappe is the favorite to win the Golden Boot on DraftKings Sportsbook at +600. Mbappe won the Golden Boot in 2022, scoring eight goals as France were a penalty shootout away from winning their second World Cup in a row. Mbappe and France are likely to be there until the end, so I will take their talisman as my pick from this group.
