World Cup 2022 Group G guide: Tadic’s corners, Swiss pressing and a more complete Neymar

What tactics do Brazil use? How can teams get at Cameroon? What is so special about Serbia’s corners?

The 2022 World Cup is nearly upon us and The Athletic is running in-depth tactical group guides so you will know what to expect from every nation competing in Qatar.

Liam Tharme will look at each team’s playing style, their strengths, weaknesses and key players, and highlight aspects of their game to keep an eye on during the tournament.

Expect to see screengrabs analysing tactical moments in matches, embedded videos of key clips, and the occasional podcast clip and data visualisation to highlight patterns and trends — think of yourself as a national-team head coach and this is a mini opposition dossier for you to read pre-match.

We are at Group G, which is a near-replica of Group E at the previous World Cup in Russia (just replace Costa Rica with Cameroon) and includes five-time winners and everyone’s second team — unless you’re Argentinian — Brazil.

You can read Group A, Group B. Group C, Group D, Group E, Group F and Group H here…

Brazil

• Manager: Tite
• Captain: Thiago Silva
• Qualifying record: P17 W14 D3 L0 GF40 GA5
• 2018 World Cup: Quarter-finals
• Average age of squad: 27.8
• Most caps in squad: Neymar (121)
• Top scorer in squad: Neymar (75)

How they play (tactics and formations)

Brazil head to Qatar as the No 1 team in the world and for good reason — they are pretty much unstoppable.

Though there is an embarrassment of attacking riches at Tite’s disposal, merging all that individual brilliance into a consistent high-performing attack is probably harder than it seems.

Brazil have looked at their best playing a 4-2-3-1, with Neymar given a free role as a No 10 and flanked by the inverted wingers Lucas Pacqueta (on the left) and Raphinha (right), with Richarlison playing as the No 9. Tite also has Gabriel Jesus, Vinicius Junior, Rodrygo and Gabriel Martinelli to call upon in those positions…

Often in attack, that 4-2-3-1 becomes a 4-2-4, with Neymar positioned alongside Richarlison. Brazil build up by playing through a double pivot normally comprising of Manchester United pair Fred and Casemiro.

The full-backs play narrow but also deep, which allows the wingers (the ones with blue dots on the upcoming grabs) to position themselves high and wide. This helps pin the opposition defence and creates space between the lines, in particular for Neymar.

Neymar will regularly drop deep to collect the ball from his centre-backs, or make runs into wide spaces to receive from the full-back, as shown below…

Brazil built up the most from the goalkeeper at the 2021 Copa America — where they were losing finalists to Argentina — and thrive when controlling games with possession, camping in the opposition half before suddenly splitting the defence with a vertical pass.

They averaged the highest possession of any South American (CONMEBOL) team in World Cup qualifying and that Copa America, finishing as top scorers each time. Their 40 goals in 17 qualification games was a whopping 13 more than the second-highest scorers, Argentina and Ecuador.

Normally, high-possession teams struggle to penetrate low blocks but Brazil get around this by… not attacking much against a low block.

They played the fewest crosses of any CONMEBOL team in qualifying for Qatar 2022. Tite’s side keep possession in the midfield third, drawing the opposition higher up the pitch to then play through, around or over them.

Brazil’s first two goals against Tunisia in September’s friendly in Paris were evidence of this (Tunisia had kept seven clean sheets in a row before facing Brazil. They were trounced, 5-1).

Here, Neymar drops in to offer a pass to feet between the lines but Casemiro opts for Raphinha’s run, chipping a wedge pass over the defence.

Later on, Raphinha turns provider. Right-back Danilo (yellow dot) inverts to create space for Raphinha, who holds his position high and wide…

…and as a left-footed player on the right, his passing angles naturally shape inside and allow him to split the defence to find Richarlison.

At times, those passes will go into the half-spaces and Brazil will create goals from cutbacks.

Key player(s)

Brazil’s decreasing reliance on Neymar is a good thing but even by Tite’s admissions he “remains our biggest star”.

Neymar’s chances of success at what may be his final World Cup (he’ll be 34 by the time the next one kicks off) are sky-high. He started the season in scintillating form for Paris Saint-Germain and was directly involved in 16 of Brazil’s goals in qualifying — neatly split into eight goals and eight assists, a reminder of his versatility in attack.

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He will be helped by a more talented and in-form front line than Brazil could field at the last two World Cups and tactically, this shape gets the best out of Neymar. It allows him to roam into deeper and wider parts of the pitch to receive passes and progress attacks, as well as provide a goalscoring threat.

Neymar vs Ghana: 2 assists (the most), 6 chances created (the most), 107 touches (the most). pic.twitter.com/BpHYaPUXVX

— Opta Analyst (@OptaAnalyst) September 23, 2022

What’s their weakness?

It is hard to see any glaring deficiencies in this team, with the exception of them probably having to eventually face bogey side Argentina, who also head to Qatar in great form.

Three of their five losses under Tite have been to them, including their most recent defeat — last summer’s Copa America final. Brazil are unbeaten in 15 games since then, winning 12 and outscoring opponents 38 goals to four.

Argentina are in Group C of this World Cup and the draw means the earliest they can meet Brazil is the semi-finals.

Tite stresses that “the pressure we face is a problem: the responsibility, the pressure of the position, the demands”.

Their No 1 world ranking, their inability to reach a World Cup final since 2002 and 61-year-old Tite’s last tournament… Brazil’s capacity to live up to expectation will be tested.

One thing to watch out for

Neymar (75) needs just three goals to pass Pele (77) as Brazil’s all-time top scorer.

Cameroon

• Manager: Rigobert Song
• Captain: Vincent Aboubakar
• Qualifying record: P8 W6 D0 L2 GF14 GA5
• 2018 World Cup: Did not qualify
• Average age of squad: 26.3
• Most caps in squad: Vincent Aboubakar (88)
• Top scorer in squad: Vincent Aboubakar (33)

How they play (tactics and formations)

The Cameroon side on show at last winter’s Africa Cup of Nations, which they hosted, were a perfect example of what to expect in Qatar.

They ranked third for possession (59.7 per cent average), topped the tournament’s scoring charts (14, including penalties) and created the second-most shots (10) and goals (three) from crosses but went out in the semi-finals, losing to Egypt on penalties after a 0-0 draw.

During that tournament, Maher Mezahi, for The Athletic, described Cameroon as “the most complete team”, with “a complete striker…experienced defenders and a midfield that can overpower any (African) team”.

Rigobert Song’s side are at their best when they get the ball forward quickly into advanced wide areas, either via the goalkeeper playing long and them winning second balls or through long switches from the defenders to wide players who can cross for their forwards — Vincent Aboubakar, Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting and Karl Toko Ekambi are all strong one-touch finishers in the penalty area.

Rarely, however, do those three play together. If they do, then Song will likely set his side up in a 4-4-2 but more typical is their 4-3-3, where Toko Ekambi plays inverted on the left and Nicolas Moumi Ngamaleu is on the opposite side.

Ngamaleu is a right-footed right-winger and Collins Fai overlaps him from right-back. Both are good crossers of the ball, which accounts for Cameroon’s imbalanced chance creation down that side.

Fai assisted Toko Ekambi goals twice at that AFCON, with the left-winger locking off the back post, though Cameroon rarely flood the box with players — the speed of their build-up just does not give midfielders enough time to make such runs.

Key player(s)

Aboubakar took home the AFCON Golden Boot last February thanks to his eight goals — the most anyone has scored in an edition of that tournament this century.

The versatility of his finishing is the strongest part of his game — at that AFCON, he took 16 shots with his right foot and seven with his left foot, and had eight goal attempts with his head. He scored multiple times off either foot and with his head, plus twice from the penalty spot, and routinely found high-quality shooting positions close to goal — as shown in the graphic below.

He is complemented by Toko Ekambi too, particularly for their contrasting play styles — the Lyon winger is more of a dribbler and between them they offer lots of attacking solutions.

Cameroon's top two

Metric	Aboubakar	Toko Ekambi
Minutes	591	503
Shots	31	18
Shots on target	13	10
xG	5.55	3.31
Non-penalty goals	6	5
Chances created	9	7

What’s their weakness?

The defence. In terms of personnel — aside from goalkeeper Andre Onana, as he is a shot stopper rather than a shot preventer — this area is weaker than up front. Cameroon rarely keep clean sheets and give up plenty of chances.

They conceded in each of their first four AFCON games at the start of this year, despite not facing high-quality opponents and even needed a second-half comeback to recover from 3-0 down in win the third-place play-off against Burkina Faso on penalties.

Cameroon’s typical midfield three, with high wingers, offers opponents space around the sides and often forces them to defend crosses. Algeria exploited this in their World Cup play-off in March, creating four big chances and having 23 shots worth 2.3xG across the two legs.

Although Cameroon squeezed through to the World Cup on away goals from a stoppage-time equaliser in the second leg, they had difficulty pressing high in that tie and struggled to keep possession against quality opponents.

One thing to watch out for

Brentford’s Bryan Mbeumo represented France at youth level but has switched allegiance and now represents Cameroon — he made his debut in the September friendlies. Cameroon are not lacking in quality forward options but the benefit is his directness, ball-carrying ability and final pass that suits their attacking approach.

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Serbia

• Manager: Dragan Stojkovic
• Captain: Dusan Tadic
• Qualifying record: P8 W6 D2 L0 GF17 GA9
• 2018 World Cup: Group stage
• Average age of squad in qualifying: 27 years 2 months
• Most caps in squad: Dusan Tadic (90)
• Top scorer in squad: Aleksandar Mitrovic (50)

How they play (tactics and formations)

“We were keen to win by playing good football — modern, fast, attacking football… that’s what helped us to qualify,” was Dragan Stojkovic’s assessment of his Serbia side, who went unbeaten in qualifying to win a group that included Portugal.

A feature of this team is their use of a back three as the primary shape: typically Red Bull Salzburg’s Strahinja Pavlovic on the left, Nikola Milenkovic of Fiorentina in the middle and Milos Veljkovic, who plays for Werder Bremen, as the right centre-back.

There is a significant benefit to simply having an established trio but these three also provide aerial prowess and can progress the ball well.

We can see this shape in their September win away to Norway in the Nations League, which meant Serbia topped that group too, earning promotion to the top tier for the competition’s next playing in 2024-25.

Without the ball, Serbia have dropped into a flat back five. Pressure from Ivan Ilic then forces a misplaced pass that Dusan Tadic collects…

…and then slides in Ilic…

… who squares it for Aleksandar Mitrovic to double the lead.

They do not rely on it but Serbia are adept at carving teams apart with sweeping attacks like these. They had the most direct attacks (19) of any European side to qualify for Qatar — these are defined as possessions that start in a team’s defensive half and result in a shot or touch inside the opposition penalty area within 15 seconds.

In organised possession, Stojkovic regularly has his wing-backs (those on blue dots in the grabs below) play in advanced areas, effectively forming a 3-4-1-2, and they are two of the primary crossing threats on the team. Andrija Zivkovic is the first choice at right wing-back and expect to see Filip Kostic on the left.

Their positioning maximises the opportunities for either diagonal through balls from wide areas to Dusan Vlahovic…

…or to get the wing-backs into spots where they can cross.

Most importantly, it pins the opposition defence and stretches them wider, which creates space for Tadic to have a free role as the No 10.

Key player(s)

Stojkovic has described Mitrovic as a “vital” player and will be concerned about the foot injury that is threatening to rule him out of the first game against Brazil on Thursday.

Mitrovic reached 50 international goals in September and got there in fewer games than Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. He is Serbia’s all-time top scorer and only 28 years old.

He does not only score headed goals but Serbia’s cross-heavy attack suits him perfectly, regularly creating opportunities for one-touch finishes close to goal.

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Mitrovic has been in the form of his Premier League life for his club, Fulham, while continuing to bang in the goals for his country — he was top scorer for Serbia in the Nations League (six goals) and World Cup qualifying (eight). He scored the late winner in Lisbon to beat Portugal in the group finale last November and secure an automatic spot in Qatar.

Tadic’s creativity is well-known, and this team shape really gets the best out of him. He was Serbia’s top assister in the Nations League group stage (four). In World Cup qualifying, only Germany’s Leon Goretzka (seven) had more assists than his six.

At 33, this is likely to be his final World Cup but if he is given the space to roam he finds pockets of space in advanced areas and can dissect defences with through balls or create chances via crosses — his four assists for Mitrovic in qualifying for Qatar were the most for any pair of players.

What’s their weakness?

Their starting XI is strong but there is limited strength in depth, particularly in attacking areas — this may be more of a concern given the injury worries Mitrovic and Vlahovic have had this season. Of the 13 European teams at this World Cup, only Wales (25) used fewer players in qualifying than Serbia’s 26.

The biggest problem position is goalkeeper, which is reflected by Stojkovic having used six of them during his 20 games in charge.

Predrag Rajkovic is the expected No 1 and has played half (10) of the manager’s games.

Serbia only kept three clean sheets in their 14 games across World Cup qualifying and the Nations League. Even though they were in groups where they faced Cristiano Ronaldo and Erling Haaland, that low tally indicates a porousness that could make them vulnerable against strong Brazilian, Swiss and Cameroonian attacks over the coming weeks.

One thing to watch for

Corners, particularly from the left.

The left-footed Tadic generally provides outswinging deliveries that were a frequent source of goals in the six Nations League games.

Typically, Serbia target near-post zones and attack set pieces with six runners, giving sufficient coverage to not only win first contacts but also be well positioned for any rebounds.

Switzerland

• Manager: Murat Yakin
• Captain: Granit Xhaka
• Qualifying record: P8 W5 D3 L0 GF15 GA2
• 2018 World Cup: Round of 16
• Average age of squad: 28.9
• Most caps in squad: Xherdan Shaqiri (108)
• Top scorer in squad: Xherdan Shaqiri (26)

How they play (tactics and formations)

They went with a back three at last year’s European Championship but Switzerland have changed head coach since and now use either a 4-2-3-1 or 4-3-3.

These shapes allow Xherdan Shaqiri to play as either the No 10 or a right winger and both are useful setups to press from, given player spacing across different vertical and horizontal lines and the ability to overload opponents in specific areas.

Switzerland are not a high-possession side, particularly when they face tough opposition. Any success at this tournament will be underpinned by a strong defensive foundation. They conceded just two goals in qualifying — the strongest defence of the European sides to reach Qatar — though the underlying numbers indicate that their opponents were creating chances likely to produce more goals.

The stats below rank them against the 12 other European sides to qualify.

Out of possession, they are very capable at switching between a mid-block shape — defending with their players in the middle (horizontal) third of the pitch — and a high press. They ranked fifth at last year’s Euros for counter-pressures per game, which is reflective of a team well set to defend in various ways.

They showed this versatility in their quarter-final against Spain, allowing the centre-backs possession and opting for horizontal and vertical compactness in the midfield third.

In the next screengrab, they are within an area about 18 yards in length (identifiable by the three horizontal strips of grass between the ball and the Swiss back line, with each strip taking up six yards)…

…but when the Spanish goalkeeper had possession, they pressed.

Note their use of a player-for-player pressing scheme, particularly in central midfield, where left-sided central midfielder Granit Xhaka has pushed high to track Sergio Busquets, before pressing the keeper to force a long pass that Switzerland recover…

There is a similar approach inside the first minute at home to Portugal in a Nations League game in June, where Switzerland force a high turnover that ends in a goal.

The front three slide to the left, setting a trap by positioning a player (Breel Embolo) close to right-back Joao Cancelo but leaving Portuguese left-back Nuno Mendes — almost out of picture on the far right of the above grab — free.

Switzerland are mirroring the visitors’ centre-backs and their central midfielders are touch-tight to their counterparts…

…so when Portugal play into the trap, right-back Sylvan Widmer jumps onto Mendes to prevent him passing down the line.

Because his central midfield options are marked out of the game, Mendes must play a risky, long aerial pass on his non-dominant right foot — Switzerland regain the ball and end up scoring.

Key player(s)

Shaqiri is better known for scoring some stunning World Cup goals but it is his creativity that is now essential to Switzerland.

His playing relationship with Widmer is fantastic, with the right-back’s overlapping runs helping to pin the opposition left-back and give Shaqiri more room to cross and create in wide spaces…

…though at times Shaqiri will use Widmer’s runs, with the former playing to the latter to assist the aforementioned goal against Portugal.

Yann Sommer’s shot-stopping ability is also essential — he is expected to be No 1 but tore ankle ligaments on October 18 and has not played for Borussia Monchengladbach since. Sommer made a record-breaking 19 saves against Bayern Munich back in August and has to perform similar heroics at times for Switzerland.

His 21 saves at last year’s Euros were the most in the tournament overall, and the 10 he made against Spain the most in a single game during it. When called upon at penalties he stepped up too — he saved Kylian Mbappe’s penalty to secure shootout victory over world champions France in the round of 16.

🚨 SOMMER SAVES MBAPPE'S PENALTY AND SWITZERLAND HAVE KNOCKED FRANCE OUT!!! 🚨

WE REPEAT: SWITZERLAND HAVE KNOCKED FRANCE OUT OF EURO 2020! 😱#FRASUI | #ITVFootball | #Euro2020 pic.twitter.com/iD7BiAeL8l

— ITV Football (@itvfootball) June 28, 2021

Sommer has not conceded any of his last five non-shootout penalties for Switzerland, notably saving twice from Sergio Ramos in the one Nations League game against Spain in November 2020.

The last time he conceded from a non-shootout international penalty was against Bryan Ruiz of Costa Rica at the 2018 World Cup… with the ball hitting the bar and bouncing in off him.

What’s their weakness?

For all their defensive quality, Switzerland are lacking at the other end of the pitch, without a reliable alternative No 9 to Embolo. He ranked among the 20 fastest players at Euro 2020 last summer for top speed — 32.76km/h (20.34mph), versus Italy — and, as a winger-turned-striker, is best suited to a counter-attacking approach.

The Swiss often threaten teams this way, with only Serbia (19) and Germany (18) bettering their 16 direct attacks in qualifying. But Switzerland were the joint-lowest scorers of any European team to qualify for these finals (15, with Spain). Embolo was their most prolific player with three goals, and only one other got more than one.

Having a No 9 that can play in a possession system and operate with back to goal would offer more tactical solutions for Yakin.

Haris Seferovic feels like the natural answer to this question in terms of player profile, but his lack of clinical finishing — just one Switzerland goal in nine appearances since those Euros nearly 18 months ago — does not warrant a place in the team ahead of Embolo.

That considered, Switzerland are often written off before tournaments, notably last summer, but have progressed beyond the groups at the last two European Championships and World Cups.

(Photos: Getty Images/Design: Sam Richardson)