Messi said Brazil, Germany, France, England and Spain are always labelled favourites to win but the 35-year-old forward feels France and Brazil are the best two teams going into the Nov. 20-Dec. 18 tournament.
“We always say the same great teams … but, if I have to choose, Brazil and France are the two great candidates to win the World Cup,” Messi told DIRECTV Sports.
“They’ve had the same group (of players) for a long time, working well. France, aside from the last Euros when they were eliminated (in the last 16) and did badly, they have some impressive players.
“They have a clear idea and the same coach (Didier Deschamps). Brazil is a bit the same (under Tite).”
Messi did not mention Argentina, who are unbeaten in 35 matches, among the favourites even though Lionel Scaloni’s side won the Copa America last year by beating Brazil in the final.
But Argentina have been recently hampered by injuries to key players Paulo Dybala and Angel Di Maria.
Scaloni described club football’s fixture congestion in October as “terrible” but urged his players not to hold back to avoid the risk of injury ahead of the World Cup.
“We are in quite a difficult stage. The players are playing a lot of games,” Scaloni told AFAestudio. “There can be problems as there are injuries (and) suspensions. It’s part of being an elite player and a national team player.
“I worry, but there is little you can do. I believe that the player has to go out on the pitch to play and not think about what’s coming – it can be detrimental. Let them play naturally.”
Argentina face the United Arab Emirates in November in their final warm-up match before heading to the World Cup where they play their opening Group C game against Saudi Arabia on Nov. 22. Mexico and Poland are the other teams in the group.
Ke Ga Lighthouse
Ke Ga Lighthouse is located on Ke Ga Island, 300m offshore of the mainland, which belongs to Tan Thanh Commune, Ham Thuan Nam District, Binh Thuan Province. It is the tallest and oldest lighthouse in Southeast Asia.
Da Lat Teachers’ Training College
Da Lat Teachers’ Training College was built in 1927 near Xuan Huong Lake in the tourist city of Da Lat, Lam Dong Province. For centuries, the college has been an iconic architectural work of the city and attracted a huge number of tourists
DOC CAFE’- In Memory of Hanoi during the Subsidy Period
Doc (Poison) Café located in an ancient house on Trieu Viet Vuong Street in Hanoi attracts people with an atmosphere of repose from the past with old furniture and objects of the subsidy period, which are quite strange in the modern city.
Vietnamese community in Japan, France welcomes Lunar New Year
NDO – Overseas Vietnamese community in Japan and France have held a number of activities and ceremonies to welcome the Tet (Lunar New Year) festival.
World Cup fever at Windsor Plaza Hotel
Every four years, the world’s sports fans share an experience unlike any others in its intensity, drama, exultation and heartbreak: the World Cup, a tournament involving 32 countries.
