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1. France (1) Backups lost the meaningless finale, so no worries here.
2. Brazil (2) It took 270+ minutes to finally concede a goal.
As the Canadian national soccer teams head to their respective FIFA World Cups, Derek Van Diest is on the scene to cover all the action. Expect expert insights and analysis in your inbox daily throughout the tournaments, and weekly on Thursdays for the rest of the season.
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3. England (7) Stacked roster only creates good problems for Southgate.
4. Argentina (8) Looks to be hitting its stride after shocking loss to Saudis.
5. Netherlands (6) Will Cody Gakpo’s legend continue to grow in knockouts?
6. Portugal (3) Cristiano Ronaldo can’t help but put himself in spotlight.
7. Spain (4) Lost to Japan despite having an astounding 82% of possession.
8. Morocco (13) Fully deserved to top a tough group with strong play.
9. Croatia (5) Perhaps a bit fortunate that Lukaku couldn’t finish his chances.
10. Japan (23) Upset wins over Spain and Germany are a thing of legends.
11. Switzerland (9) Beat the teams it needed to, but bigger test awaits.
12. Senegal (19) Squad proving it is more than just Sadio Mane.
13. South Korea (28) Win over Portugal couldn’t have been more dramatic.
14. Poland (12) Held on for dear life to make knockout stage.
15. USA (21) Midfielders rightly have been earning rave reviews.
16. Australia (22) Everybody’s underdog darling will be in tough against Argentina.
17. Ecuador (16) Plucky underdog came up short in final must-win game.
18. Germany (10) A lot of soul-searching to happen before hosting 2024 Euros.
19. Mexico (26) Veteran team desperately needs injection of youth for 2026.
20. Uruguay (14) Will regret taking its foot off the gas and not scoring enough.
21. Saudi Arabia (15) Couldn’t carry the momentum after opening upset.
22. Ghana (17) Losing to hated Uruguay has to especially hurt.
23. Cameroon (25) Always fun to see a red card for celebrating a goal.
24. Serbia (24) Great in attack, but allowed second-most goals in tourney.
25. Belgium (18) Only thing it led the tournament in was dysfunction.
26. Iran (20) Have to applaud effort under difficult off-field circumstances.
27. Tunisia (31) Win over France’s second string is a nice consolation prize.
28. Costa Rica (27) It was a fun few minutes when it looked like it would advance.
29. Denmark (11) Went from darkhorse pick to just plain in the dark.
30. Wales (29) That’s likely it for Bale and Ramsey in big tournaments.
31. Canada (30) Should learn lessons after failing to get a point.
32. Qatar (32) The worst performance by a host team at a World Cup.
Postmedia’s soccer expert Derek Van Diest is on the ground in Qatar to cover every kickoff of the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Subscribe today and get access to all his coverage.
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