In the first of eight group previews, I am joined by Laurence McKenna and Kartik Krishnaiyer to – with a little help of Andy Brassel, Simon Hill, and Simon Kuper – look at Group E. The Netherlands are the seeded nation in a group with no easy points. Denmark won its UEFA qualifying group. Cameroon is one of the nations expected to reap an advantage from the World Cup going to Africa for the first time. Japan’s talented midfield is poised to take advantage of any team that may slip. Your three analysts discuss each team and, going match-by-match, give their picks for the two teams that will come out of the group.
On tomorrow’s podcast, the team will break down Group H – otherwise known as Spain’s group – with the help of Andy Brassell, Grant Wahl, and Tim Vickery.
