#Match Preview: It’s Belgium vs Panama Today; Prediction, Team Comparison & Much More

Another exciting match awaits the football fanatics as Belgium and Panama meet this Monday at the Fisht Olympic Stadium, Sochi. The Belgians are the best team in the group G and are expected to top it. The match kicks-off at 4pm on Monday 18 June.

Belgium defenders Thomas Vermaelen and Vincent Kompany miss out with hamstring and groin injuries respectively. Celtic’s Dedyrck Boyata is expected to slot into their back three alongside Toby Alderweireld and Jan Vertonghen.

Panama suffered a blow last week when key winger Alberto Quintero was ruled out of the World Cup with a fractured foot. Centre-back Roman Torres has recovered from the hamstring injury that blighted his build-up to the tournament.

OVERVIEW

Group G gets underway with a fascinating clash between Panama, who have already made history, and Belgium, who hope to create history of their own. Fellow debutants Iceland showed against Argentina that smaller countries need not be overawed against more exalted opponents. Panama will certainly not take a backward step and their ultra-competitive and physical approach will give Belgium’s gifted artists a rough ride.

While Panama won just three times in 10 games in final qualifying, Belgium set a new joint European record of 43 goals scored, with 11 from Romelu Lukaku – two more than the Panamanians managed in total. Their ageing team could be brutally exposed by a Belgium side intent on making sure their ‘Golden Generation’ doesn’t fade away. Come mid-July, the Belgians are hoping they get a national holiday of their own.

Head-to-head

• This game will be the first meeting between these sides.

Belgium

• Belgium are unbeaten in their last nine World Cup group games (W4, D5), winning each of their last four. They have made it to the second round in six of their last seven World Cup appearances, the only exception coming in 1998.
• The Red Devils have also only lost one of their last nine opening games at the World Cup (W5, D3), which was against Mexico in 1986.
• They haven’t scored more than two goals in an opening World Cup game since 1970, when they beat El Salvador 3-0.
• Their last eight goals at the World Cup have all been scored from the 70th minute onwards.
• They were one of four unbeaten teams in European qualifying, alongside England, Germany and Spain.

Panama

• Gabriel Torres and Roman Torres were their joint top scorers in final qualifying with just two goals.
• Panama made it to Russia with a negative goal difference (-1), winning only three of their 10 games in the last round of Concacaf qualifying.
• Following the late call up of 21-year-old Ricardo Avila, Panama have the fifth oldest squad at the 2018 World Cup, with an average age of 28.9 years.
• Hernan Dario Gomez will become just the fourth man to lead at least three different teams at a World Cup, having coached his native Colombia in 1998 and Ecuador in 2002.
• Gomez will follow in the footsteps of Henri Michel (four different teams), Carlos Alberto Parreira and Bora Milutinovic (both five different teams).

Team Comparison & History
 

Prediction

I am in Sochi for this game and Belgium look pretty tasty at the moment. They are scoring plenty of goals and their only worry is about Vincent Kompany’s fitness, because he is such a big influence on the team.

Panama’s aim will be to keep Belgium at bay, but I do not see them succeeding for long. Prediction: 2-0.

Probable Line-Ups

Belgium predicted line-up vs Panama

Panama predicted line-up vs Belgium

Squads

Belgium:

Goalkeepers: Thibaut Courtois (Chelsea), Simon Mignolet (Liverpool), Koen Casteels (VfL Wolfsburg).