Arsenal legend Emmanuel Petit has backed Brazil to go all the way and win the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
In an interview with Daily Mirror, Arsenal legend Emmanuel Petit has claimed that Brazil will be the favourites to lift the coveted World Cup trophy this year, and the South American giants are likely to end their 20-year wait.
The former France international won the World Cup himself during the course of his career. And he scored in the World Cup final for France in 1998 against South American giants Brazil.
However, Petit believes that France will struggle to go the distance this time around because of the number of injury problems they have. The 2018 World Cup winners will be without their first-choice midfielders N’Golo Kante and Paul Pogba due to injuries.
Meanwhile, Petit also added that teams like England are likely to suffer from injuries as well. The Three Lions will be without key defenders like Reece James and Ben Chilwell.
The Arsenal legend said, “I think Brazil are going to win. The last time a South American team won the World Cup was more than 20 years ago in 2002 when Brazil won in Asia. The balance is in the European countries now.”
“And if you look at the squad Brazil have, they have a bunch of experienced players who’ve played so many big games. On top of that, you have the leader Neymar who is completely different this season with Paris Saint-Germain [scored 15 goals and provided 12 assists].”
“This is probably his last chance to win the Golden Ball [Ballon d’Or] and the World Cup. And because of everything that happened with Paris Saint-Germain last summer – the speculation, a lot of people wanted him to leave the club, he was not part of the future of Paris Saint-Germain anymore – he came back during the summer with anger.”
“He was starved of success; his ego was touched. He wanted to show to the rest of the world that he’s still Neymar – one of the best, probably the best in terms of quality and technical skills.”
It will be interesting to see if Brazil can go all the way and lift the World Cup this year. There is no doubt that the South American giants have a world-class squad at their disposal. Brazil have one of the best attackers in world football in Neymar, and they have several world-class players in multiple positions across the pitch.
They were beaten by Argentina in the final of Copa America last time out, and Brazil will be determined to bounce back strongly in Qatar. Given the form of key players like Neymar, Alisson Becker and Vinicius Junior heading into the mega event, Brazilian fans will certainly be excited about the World Cup.
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A number of Brazilian internationals are at the peak of their careers right now, and they have the quality to beat any side on their day. Furthermore, most of the European giants are currently struggling with injury problems or going through a transition. It will certainly act as an added advantage for Brazil and the other South American teams in the World Cup.
