WC: 3 Questions We’re Asking Ahead of the Second Round of Games

The world has already witnessed five MatchDays from the ongoing FIFA World Cup.

It has been full of early drama, plenty action and every other thing that a fan could ever dream of. The competition has definitely lived up to the hype.

With the first round of group-stage games coming to an end, some of the action that has already happened has kicked up plenty of dust. The action so far in the tournament has left fans wondering and asking some questions.

In this blog post, we will be looking at some of the questions that have emerged as an end result of the games played.

1. Is this the end of the road for Nigeria?

The first game of a group is a crucial one. It could decide, to an extent, how well the team will go on to perform in the rest of the tournament. Of course, cases like that of Spain in 2010 was an outlier.

And that’s why fans have not been quick to conclude that the Super Eagles of Nigeria have come to the end of the road in Russia. But after that loss to Croatia, how far Nigeria will go in the tournament is a question that is rife among fans.

2. The weirdest start to a World Cup ever?

The Russians know how to do their own things differently. And maybe – just maybe – that vibe has filtered its way through the competition.

On a more serious note, the results that have been registered already in this competition have been surprising; surprising enough to make fans ask whether or not this is the weirdest start ever recorded.

There was the Spain draw. Then came the Germany loss. Before then, Lionel Messi couldn’t convert his spot-kick. And of course, there was the Swiss result that left other mouths ajar.

3. Will any African team qualify for the knockout stages?

As of the time of writing this blog post, four African teams have played their first group games.

Egypt, Morocco, Nigeria and Tunisia are some of the best football-playing representatives that Africa could present for the mundial. But if four out the five contingents from a continent lose their first game on a big stage like the FIFA World Cup, then a lot of questions arise.

And one of them is this: will any African team qualify for the knockout stages? There are still two group games for each of the four African teams that have played so far. But Tunisia still have to play Belgium. Nigeria will still play Argentina. Morocco will still tackle Spain and Portugal.

Got any other world cup questions you’ve been wondering? Leave us a comment and share your thoughts with us.