Seven and a half months out from the start of the tournament, the World Cup exists in a realm of pure potential. Nobody is injured; nobody is out of form. As the draw was made in Doha, it was possible to imagine the 32 teams at their best, as they would be if nothing went wrong between now and then.
And that’s the problem with previews this far out. There can be no signings to complicate the picture, of course, but a huge amount can change between now and November when the World Cup will get under way with the host, Qatar, against Ecuador.
What we do know is that this will be a very familiar bunch of teams. Qatar is the only debutant. And unless Scotland, Wales or (less likely) New Zealand makes it through the playoffs, Canada is the only other side that won’t have been there in either 2014 or ’18. Four-time champion Italy is the biggest absentee, followed by Sweden, Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Chile and Colombia.
