The opening game of the 2022 World Cup group B between England and Iran takes place at the Khalifa International Stadium on Monday. Led by Gareth Southgate, England enjoyed a nearly flawless World Cup qualifying campaign, winning eight and drawing two of their ten matches while scoring a staggering 39 goals and surrendering only three.
Iran qualified for the World Cup after finishing first in their qualification group with 25 points, winning 8, drawing 1, and only losing 1 game throughout their whole qualifying campaign. As evidence of their staunch defense, Iran conceded just four goals during the qualifying rounds. They also defeated Uruguay 1-0 in a pre-World Cup friendly and will be expected to put on another resolute defensive display.
On paper, this should be England’s easiest game of the group, and they should cruise to a victory. The Three Lions will need to perform at their peak if they want to begin their World Cup campaign with three points because Iran’s strong defense could make this a challenging match for England.
Iran should make for the ideal opening in Group B for Southgate’s team despite their setbacks prior to the World Cup. The Euro 2020 runners up suffered in a difficult Nations League group that included included Italy, Germany, and Hungary. England, ranked fifth in the world, will be confident that they can defeat Iran in the tournament’s group B opening match.
Since 2018, Iran has not played any of the Fifa’s top 10 ranked teams, and while their recent form has been encouraging, they have not competed at a level comparable to England. Given the disparity in quality between the two squads and the fact that this is the first international meeting between the two nations, England should come out on top and 888Sport is offering a sweet 5/2 for Tottenham forward Harry Kane to score the first goal in a relatively comfortable victory for England.