© EuroFootball.com
Angola
FIFA ranking: 57
Qualification: 1st place in the group
Friendly matches: 0-2 against Argentina, 2-3 against Turkey, 0-1 against the USA
"Since we arrived in Germany, a few days have been warm, but most days have been cold. Today is cold and I don't like it." - complained the Angolan footballers. Matters are expected to worsen when the Angolan men start playing football, as the team is not in good form - during the African Nations Cup tournament, Angola managed to win only one game against Togo, and in preparation for the World Cup, they only defeated two teams in friendly matches: Mauritius and Lesotho.
Forecast: Based on the level of skill, Angola, one of the least known teams in the tournament, unfortunately cannot compete with other national teams.
Iran
FIFA ranking: 23
Qualification: 2nd place in the group
Friendly matches: 3-2 against Costa Rica, 2-2 against Iran, 5-1 against Bosnia and Herzegovina
Throughout Iran's "journey" to the final stage of the championship, one factor accompanied the national team - several injuries. Ali Karimi suffered a muscle strain, soon after, Vahid Hashemian also injured his muscle, and Mehdi Mahdavikia joined the company last. However, all players are now healthy and ready to take to the field in the first match. If Iran wants to show success, all three men must demonstrate all their abilities.
Forecast: Success will be the main factor for Iran to demonstrate something.
Mexico
FIFA ranking: 4
Qualification: 2nd place in the group
Friendly matches: 2-1 against Congo, 0-1 against France, 1-2 against the Netherlands
The Mexican national team is considered the tournament's "dark horse", but so far this "horse" has stumbled against strong opponents - the team lost to the Dutch and French in friendly matches. Despite these failures, coach Ricardo La Volpe, whose decision not to invite Cuauhtemoc Blanco to the lineup caused a lot of noise, is convinced that his team has not yet revealed all their abilities.
Forecast: The Mexican group is not very strong, but they will have to play well to progress. One of the "dark horses" of the tournament.
Portugal
FIFA ranking: 7
Qualification: 1st place in the group
Friendly matches: 3-0 against Saudi Arabia, 4-1 against the Faroe Islands, 3-0 against Luxembourg
The victory in the friendly match against Luxembourg was the 14th consecutive unbeaten match for the Portuguese national team - a new record for Portugal. However, as time goes by, the golden generation of footballers lose their abilities, and some of them, such as Maniche and Costinha, often did not find a place in their main club lineup, so the national team coach expects a lot from young players, such as Cristiano Ronaldo, who will have to tame his temperament.
Forecast: Portugal has many good players, but they are unlikely to repeat the success of the 2004 European Championship when they reached the final.
