PITA’s 2022 World Cup predictions

TOPSHOT - Men walk past a FIFA World Cup trophy replica outside the Ahmed bin Ali Stadium in Al-Rayyan on November 12, 2022, ahead of the Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup football tournament. (Photo by Kirill KUDRYAVTSEV / AFP) (Photo by KIRILL KUDRYAVTSEV/AFP via Getty Images) /

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Toby doesn’t hold out much hope for England. (Photo by DARREN STAPLES/AFP via Getty Images) /

Toby Hill

Winner: Brazil – Brazil are heading into the tournament with an extremely exciting squad. Their attacking output mixed with an experienced defence puts them as the winners for me.

Golden Boot: Neymar – As just mentioned, I think Brazil are going to go far in this tournament and Neymar is going to play a huge goalscoring role in that.

Dark Horse: Senegal – Senegal have a stronger squad than most are led to believe. The AFCON winners are in Group A, which is made up of Ecuador, Holland, and hosts Qatar. This should see Senegal progress through and become a real force in the knockout stages.

Shock Early Exit: England – Now, England are likely to make it through the group, but the knockout games don’t feel me with confidence. I can see a round of 16 exit for Southgate’s men.

Best Performing Arsenal Player: Granit Xhaka – Arsenal’s Swiss midfielder has been an integral part of Arsenal this season, and I expect this to carry over to the World Cup. An honourable mention has to be made for Gabriel Jesus.

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