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Belgium and Brazil will dethrone Germany off the top of the FIFA rankings. This will be due to the poor performance of Die Mannschaft and the strong performance of the two contenders. The match today is not just a battle for the semi-finals of the World Cup in Russia. The game is a battle for the top of the world. It is almost certain that, whoever of the two teams manage to prevail today, will be the world number one in the next FIFA ranking. In short, these are the two most powerful teams in the world at the moment.
Belgium's record against top teams
It is no secret that this is the strongest generation that Belgium has ever had. It is difficult to list the talents of the team. Eden Hazard, Kevin De Bruyne, Romelu Lukaku are just some of the most successful players. The defense also impresses, and two very strong goalkeepers fight for the net. Each line seems to be well built, no single player is weak.
However, something interesting is noticeable. In recent years, Belgium has no serious success over a top team. But 2 years ago, on the European Championship, Belgium lost to Italy and Wales. The victories over Ireland, Sweden and Hungary cannot be attributed to spectacular successes.
Then the World Qualification Group was definitely weak and did not fit the team class. 9 wins and 1 draw, with a goal difference of 43:6 can say everything about it. In this period, I will also add friendly matches. Belgium lost to Spain and made a draw with Mexico, Portugal, and the Netherlands. But yet again - not a single win against a top 20 team.
Brazil has started the World Cup as riding a bicycle.
Brazil slowly moved the pedals until they began to show everything they could. While Neymar was not in full condition at the beginning of the World Cup, now, a month later, things look different. Coutinho is the magician in the middle of the field. Firmino can score even if he touched the ball only 5 times. The defense of the team seems stable - something we are not used to seeing.
The 5-time world champions have apparently gone to Russia to take what he owns. A title that has been eluding them for 16 years. For the last time, Brazil conquered the world's peak in 2002, when the trio of Ronaldo, Rivaldo, and Ronaldinho was magical.
Seleção have not allowed more than 1 goal in their net since March 2016. In the last 12 games, only 2 teams scored against them. I'm expecting a victory for Brazil today. Despite the sympathies for Belgium, the team will have extremely difficult time against a strong Seleção XI.
