The Guardian’s football writers have made their predictions for the World Cup. Here are mine:
Who will reach the final?
Brazil will play Argentina.
Who will win? Who knows, but it will be a cracking match.
Who will be the leading scorer?
Karim Benzema – France
The French have a straightforward group in which they will score a lot of goals. They stuffed Jamaica 8-0 in their final warm-up game and look to have a settled, happy group of players, all pulling together. The decision to leave the disruptive Samir Nasri behind will pay big dividends.
Who is the player to watch?
Angel Di Maria – Argentina
His performances for Real Madrid at the end of the domestic season put higher profile team-mates like Gareth Bale and Cristiano Ronaldo in the shade. Reproducing that form will be key to Argentina’s chances of winning the tournament.
How far will England go?
Out in the group stages. Obviously I hope I’m wrong, but I can’t see them winning a single game.
Most looking forward to
Seeing how far Belgium can go.
They have a really good squad, with quality all over the pitch: Courtois, Alderweireld, Kompany, Van Buyten, Vertonghen, Chadli, Dembélé, Fellaini, De Bruyne, Hazard, Januzaj, Lukaku, Mirallas. They could be the surprise package of the tournament.
Least looking forward to
The inevitable tabloid monstering of Roy Hodgson after England limp out. And getting up in the mornings.
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