Game faces on, we're in the big time now. Here is how the 32 teams are shaping up after the final international break. The hulking presence of the Nations League on the international calendar serves to confuse matters somewhat. In years gone by friendly meetings between the best of Europe and South America were a rite of passage pre-tournament. Brazil have not played a European team since beating the Czech Republic in a friendly in March 2019. Argentina have played one European side in recent years but they comprehensively swept aside Italy in the summer's Finalissima at Wembley.įor now, we do not have as much as we would like to go on with regards to these two's recent games but the friendlies in which they have played suggest these are the two nations to beat in Qatar. Brazil have competition for places across their frontline with Richarlison and Gabriel Jesus putting up quite the fight for the No. 9 jersey with club and, in the former's case, country. Tite's full-backs look a little weaker than the rest of the squad but you'll have to get the ball off them if you really want to test that Achilles' heel.Īrgentina, meanwhile, look like a team who can swat aside weaker nations. Lionel Scaloni may not be committed to unleashing his attacking talent en masse but instead, he has a side that are hard to break down, keep the ball well and get the best out of Lionel Messi. Argentina (-) Tier 2: Possible contenders Four years ago it seemed the great man had missed his last chance at glory. The Nations League makes for just as confusing a picture among its competitors as it does for South American teams. How much does this arriviste competition mean to international managers? After all, it has given them what they wanted, games with stake against opposition on a similar footing. Is it only a lower-stakes tournament when you are not winning?Īt least for Germany and England, it has given them a magnifying glass with which to observe the weaknesses of their squad. They were apparent when the two teams met on Monday Gareth Southgate can ill afford to play in such a conservative fashion if his defense cannot be relied upon to avoid basic errors. Meanwhile, Hansi Flick's side have the players for a fast-moving, ball-dominant style but rarely seem to get out of second gear. You could say the same of Didier Deschamps' France. Others, meanwhile, look to be grasping what needs to be done ahead of the tournament. Spain controlled their game in Portugal though it was a familiar experience that took a lifetime to be expressed on the scoreboard on this occasion, Alvaro Morata struck late but there are so many occasions when Luis Enrique's side let their best chances slip away. The Netherlands are similarly easy on the eye with Cody Gakpo blossoming alongside Memphis Depay. Their clean sheets against Poland and Belgium would also suggest that Virgil van Dijk's travails are isolated to Liverpool.Īs for Denmark, perhaps it is time to upgrade them from dark horse status. If they won the entire tournament in December only those who haven't been paying attention to European football for the last two years, or even just their win over France earlier this week, would be stunned. This is a team with a robust defense and a match-winning creator in Christian Eriksen that is a formula for serious success.ġ0. So we’ve been on the only medicine the Bank seems to have for longer, with worse results.Maybe the Bank, and the Government, could begin to suggest that fiscal intervention - government action - is needed here, rather than just another dose of monetary leeches.Here are three teams who, at the moment, do not look like they are making their talent shine on the field. One reason all this is so awkward is that historically, US and UK inflation rates have tended to, if not track each other, at least be roughly in line.Īnd the Bank started raising rates here in the autumn of 2021, well before the US Fed or indeed the European Central Bank. Now, in Venezuela it’s 1200% and in Sudan it’s 340%, but I’m guessing Jeremy Hunt isn’t going to offer those as examples of how we’re really not doing so badly. Perpetually screwed-up Brazil? Also 3.2%. In the US, inflation is at a two-year low of 3%. The embarrassing bit is that despite 13 successive Bank of England interest rate rises, our inflation remains an outlier among many major countries and some that we might normally scoff at. (That doesn’t mean things are getting cheaper of course, just more expensive a bit less quickly.) Poverty-inducing crisis, maybe.įor the folk who work at the Treasury and the Bank of England it is turning into an agitation bordering on a humiliation.Tomorrow we get the inflation figure for June, with the City assumption that it will be down from 8.7% in May to 8.3%-ish now. Workplace embarrassment isn’t a phrase you normally associate with inflation.
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