We’ve passed the halfway point of the World Cup now in terms of games played, meaning all your betting guides from before kick off are now out of date.
We’ve seen plenty of interesting action so far, and the stunning Saudi Arabian victory over Argentina on the third day of the competition reminded everyone that their preconceptions don’t last long when these highly skilled, highly motivated groups of players meet out on the pitch.
Argentina and Brazil were favourites before a ball was kicked, but both have had their dodgy moments. France on the other hand were relatively unfancied given their incredible talent pool, but despite picking up more injuries they have only enhanced their potential champions credentials with some ruthless displays – plus the opportunity to rest their whole first team in their dead rubber last night.
Unfortunately for Chelsea fans N’Golo Kante’s injury issues mean he’s missing out for Les Bleus as well as The Blues, so they have nobody to root for in that side.
We will likely see a lot of Chelsea fans backing Brazil thanks to Thiago Silva, whose incredible career would be so fittingly capped off by lifting the greatest trophy in the game as captain of his country.
We’re not even Brazilian – but that might give us goosebumps.
There will be a lot of love for England too of course – but not all Chelsea fans are English, and Mason Mount and Raheem Sterling are pretty divisive players in any case.
A large number of Blues fans in West Africa will be hoping to see Kalidou Koulibaly and Edouard Mendy’s Senegal side go deep in the competition – although there are plenty of Chelsea supporters who support the rivals of the Lions of Teranga and will actually want to see them crash out.
Perhaps the most interesting case of all is Christian Pulisic, who is the player most closely associated with their national team in the whole Chelsea squad.
His move to Stamford Bridge brought a lot of new fans to the club – but his fall from grace has made a lot of them turn on us now.
Will we see a reverse effect with some Blues fans backing him in Qatar, or will his push to leave the club leave Chelsea supporters embittered like their American counterparts?
Whatever happens, we’re got a thrilling fortnight in prospect, and a great chance of a Chelsea player lifting the trophy.
