Fantasy World Cup Preview Group F

Fantasy World Cup Preview Group F

GROUP F: ARGENTINA, NIGERIA, IRAN, BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA
Our World Cup previews continue at a pace and we would like to extend a very warm welcome and thank you to last seasons FF247 league champion B-Bash as he gives us his take on Group F, the teams involved, which players you should pick and who is likely to progress.

Some of you will have registered already but if not the site that we are using for this years game is Mcdonalds Fantasy World Cup, you can register here. You can register now and you can begin to pick your squad from June 8th ahead of the big kick-off on June 12th. We will publish the FF247 league codes as soon as the league option is open on there. In the meantime we encourage you to plan ahead and as such here’s Group F for you all…

Argentina
Overview
Argentina is quite clearly the obvious pick of Group F and I think people will find it difficult to bet against then topping the group. Anything less than 9 points from 3 games would be seen as a shock. Their current ranking of 7th doesn’t reflect the fact they are second favourites to win the competition outright. With such names as Lionel Messi, Angel Di Maria, Sergio Aguero and Gonzalo Higuain, you can expect great things from the twice crowned world champions.

Fantasy Player Perspective
Need I really mention the name? Ok, I will….Messi. He will be the name on nearly every Fantasy World Cup team out there, and it’s a bandwagon worth getting on. Get ready to watch him light up this World Cup with his creativity and intelligence.
The way that di Maria can control the flanks warrants him a mention. His great performances for Real Madrid can be expected to be reproduced in Brazil next month. He has great speed which he uses to find gaps, and at worst you can expect this to draw many free kicks in dangerous places.

Fixtures
Argentina’s opening fixture should be a great encounter against World Cup new boys, Bosnia & Herzegovina, before they take on Iran, and only a true World Cup upset could stop 3 points there. Argentina’s final group is arguably their toughest against Nigeria. As I said previously though, it is expected that Argentina will finish the group stages with 9 points

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Nigeria
Overview
The African giants finished top of their qualifying group, however it should be noted they did it in less than convincing style. With draws against Malawi, Namibia and Kenya, this did little to boost team confidence. Nigeria were grouped with Argentina in World Cup 2010 and they lost that match 1-0. On the bright side it should be noted that most of the first team play in the best leagues in the world and are capable of turning on a class performance

Fantasy Player Perspective
One to consider is Emmanuel Eminike. The Fenerbahce striker has been key in assisting his side secure the Turkish league this season. He is particularly dangerous in around the 18 yard box and has netted 12 goals in 26 appearances since 2013. Next consideration should be the Nigerian goalkeeper, Vincent Enyeama. Enyeama has been solid for French side Lille all season, managing to go 11 straight games without conceding a goal in the first half of the season.

Fixtures
Nigeria will be hoping to kick off their world cup campaign with 3 points as they take on Iran. Their second fixture will be against Bosnia & Herzegovina, and this could prove to be the crunch tie to decide who will qualify for the next phase. They will probably hoping their final fixture that is against Argentina isn’t a must win as that is highly unlikely.

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Iran
Overview
Well, let’s be honest, is anyone really expecting anything from Iran in this World Cup? The answer would have to be no. They do have an experienced and respected leader though in Carlos Queiroz and are known to play a patient defensive game, looking for opportunities to hit on the counter attack. They conceded only twice in the final qualifying round, however, they will face much sterner opposition in Brazil.

Fantasy Player Perspective
Most of Iran’s players play in their nations domestic league, so will be an unknown quantity to most of us, however a couple of notable exceptions are Charlton Athletics’ Reza Ghoochannejhad and Fulham’s Ashkan Dejagah. Reza has made an immediate impact in the national side scoring 9 goals in 11 appearances, scoring in Iran’s last 3 qualifiers. Dejagah has great speed and strength, scoring 2 goals against Qatar and these qualities could be greatly used in a counter attacking team.

Fixtures
With only 1 win in a World Cup tournament (USA in 1998) they will be hoping to turn this group on its head as they kick off their tournament against Nigeria. The teams have met only once with Nigeria taking the honours. Next up is Argentina, who they have never faced at all, however with 4 wins, 3 draws and four losses against South American opponents in the past, all hope should not be lost. Their final game is against Bosnia and Herzegovina who they have met 5 times and have chalked up 4 wins and a draw.

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Bosnia and Herzegovina
Overview
It’s the first appearance of the Bosnians at a World Cup tournament and much can be expected from the team that scored 30 goals whilst qualifying which was the 4th highest in European qualifying. Questions have been raised over their manager Safet Susic, who has a cavalier “we’ll score more goals than you” approach. They will have to be tactically sound if they wish to qualify from the group stages; however it could lead to some exciting encounters.

Fantasy Player Perspective
Easily the stand out player and one to watch is Edin Dzeko. Dzeko has, of course, just had a great season helping City become Champions whilst also hitting a great form at the right time for the finals. He has scored over 30 goals for Bosnia and will be the main driving force if the Bosnians are to qualify to the knockout stages. Next tip is Roma’s creative playmaker Miralem Pjanic. The youngster is likely to be the main assistant to Dzeko and is well worthy of a second look

Fixtures
Baptism of fire springs to mind when you look at Bosnia’s first fixture against Argentina, however, they will be eyeing up their next fixture as they take on Nigeria. With Argentina expected to win the group outright and Iran become the whipping boys, this fixture could decide who goes through with Argentina. Bosnia’s last fixture is against Iran and with the contrasting style of play, you can expect Bosnia to have the main share of possession, but they will have to beware of the Iranian counter attack.

Thanks for reading Fantasy World Cup Preview Group F this article was written by B-Bash

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