Every international football competition has that one surprise contender that rips up all pre-tournament predictions, confounds pundits and garners support from the neutral fans.

While these dark horses have never won the World Cup, they are teams who went further than expected.

There was co-hosts South Korea’s fairy-tale run to the 2002 World Cup semi-finals, a 38-year-old Roger Milla inspiring Cameroon to the last eight in 1990 and most recently, Croatia’s unlikely place in the 2018 World Cup final.

There is a case to be made for every team in Group F, bar Belgium, that they could take on the mantle of being overachievers in Qatar.

By now, this Belgian team must be tired of being described as the dark horses. From their perspective, the story of the last decade has been “close, but not close enough” and their coach Roberto Martinez knows that he has the best generation of players in Belgium’s history.

Since his appointment as the Red Devils’ coach in 2016, Martinez has led Belgium to third place at the 2018 World Cup, losing to eventual winners France in the semi-finals. At Euro 2020, Martinez’s side were beaten by winners Italy in the quarter-finals.

Qatar will be the Belgian golden generation’s last shot at World Cup glory. Key defenders Jan Vertonghen and Toby Alderweireld are 35 and 33 respectively, Axel Witsel is 33, Eden Hazard and Kevin de Bruyne are 31 while goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois is 30.

Gone are the days where they are seen as dark horses because they will arrive in Qatar with one mission – now or never.

BACK WITH A BANG

After 36 years in the World Cup wilderness, Canada are finally where they want to be regularly – with the big boys.

Canada, alongside Mexico and the United States, will host the 2026 World Cup and hence their spot at that edition is already secured. But while that may still be four years away, the Maple Leafs will want to show that they do belong on the world stage on merit with a respectable showing in Qatar.

While most of the squad compete in Major League Soccer in the US, they do have talented individuals like Bayern Munich’s Alphonso Davies and Lille’s Jonathan David who are shining in Europe.

Canada have already surprised one region by finishing top of the table ahead of Mexico and the US in the Concacaf qualifiers, and if they can repeat the feat in the World Cup’s Group F in the coming fortnight, the world will sit up and take notice of them.

NEW MAN HOPING TO INSPIRE

On the last three occasions that Morocco have been at the World Cup in 1994, 1998 and 2018, they have crashed out in the group stage. In fact, it has been 24 years since Morocco last tasted victory in the World Cup Finals, which came in a 3-0 win over Scotland. It is largely expected that they will make it four group-stage exits in a row in Qatar.

But Walid Regragui, the shortest-serving head coach at Qatar 2022 given that he was appointed only on Aug 31, will have other plans. He will want to make a name for himself by leading Morocco to the next stage.

The Atlas Lions will go into the World Cup with players who feature prominently for their clubs in Europe. Players like Romain Saiss (Besiktas), Yassine Bounou (Sevilla), Sofyan Amrabat (Fiorentina), Nayef Aguerd (West Ham), Noussair Mazraoui (Bayern Munich) and Achraf Hakimi (Paris Saint-Germain) will ensure that quality is high within their ranks.

But their Achilles heel could be the lack of time spent with their new coach. The new man must find a winning formula in time.

CAN LIGHTNING STRIKE TWICE?

Runners-up in 2018, Croatia will be hoping for a similar campaign this time, if not one better.

They will be without two key players from the last squad – midfielder Ivan Rakitic and forward Mario Mandzukic– who have retired from national duty.

And just like Belgium, this is likely to be the last campaign for a host of their veterans including 37-year-old captain Luka Modric; vice-captain Domagoj Vida, 33; Dejan Lovren, 33; Ivan Perisic, 33; and forward Andrej Kramaric, 31.

No one expected Croatia to make the final in Russia, where they lost 4-2 to France. No one expects them to do it now either. History could repeat itself.

GROUP F FIXTURES
Morocco v Croatia (Nov 23, 6pm)
Belgium v Canada (Nov 24, 3am)
Belgium v Morocco (Nov 27, 9pm)
Croatia v Canada (Nov 27, 11.59pm)
Croatia v Belgium (Dec 1, 11pm)
Canada v Morocco (Dec 1, 11pm)

TEAM FACT FILES

BELGIUM
Last World Cup: Third
Best World Cup performance: Third (2018)
Fifa Ranking: 2
Record in qualifying: 6 wins, 2 draws

The coach : Roberto Martinez
The former Everton tactician’s contract is set to expire following the end of the World Cup. So how Belgium fare will dictate his future.

Martinez’s unique 3-4-2-1 has meant that the Belgians are prolific in attack.

Until their recent 1-0 loss to the Netherlands in the Uefa Nations League, they had scored in an astonishing 49 consecutive games dating back to 2018. 

The star: Kevin de Bruyne
As regular viewers of the English Premier League would attest to, de Bruyne is capable of unlocking the best defences in football. He is once again enjoying a remarkable season with 12 assists in 16 matches for City.

But while he has Erling Haaland to make the most out of those sumptuous passes for his club side, can the likes of Romelu Lukaku and Dries Mertens be as efficient up front?

CANADA
Last World Cup: Did not qualify
Best World Cup performance: Group stage (1986)
Fifa Ranking: 41
Record in qualifying: 8 wins, 4 draws, 2 losses

The coach : John Herdman
The 47-year-old Englishman is one of the most inexperienced coaches at the World Cup, at least in the men’s game.

He made his name as coach of the Canadian women’s team whom he led to the quarter-finals of the 2015 Women’s World Cup before taking over the men’s side in 2018. 

The star: Alphonso Davies
There are few in world football who possess the kind of blistering speed and lethal left foot that Davies has.

Such is Herdman’s faith in Davies that the coach has shown in previous matches that he will deploy him according to who the opponents are.

While he is a left-back for Bayern Munich, Davies has featured at left wing-back, left wing, as an attacking midfielder or even up front for Canada. 

MOROCCO
Last World Cup: Group stage
Best World Cup performance: Round of 16 (1986)
Fifa Ranking: 22
Record in qualifying: 7 wins, 1 draw

The coach : Walid Regragui
The 47-year-old Moroccan took up the job after the sacking of former head coach Vahid Halilhodzic.

Regragui played almost 50 matches for the national team. In his first three matches in charge, which have all been international friendlies, he has led the team to two victories over Madagascar and Chile and a draw against Paraguay.

The star: Hakim Ziyech
Chelsea winger Ziyech announced his retirement from international football in February 2022 after falling out with then coach Halilhodzic.

But with the appointment of Regragui, he is back in the national fold and will have a significant part to play at the tournament.

He has seen very little game time with the Blues – one start in 14 matches – but as he has shown during his four-year spell with Ajax, he can produce magical moments. 

CROATIA
Last World Cup: Runners-up
Best World Cup performance: Runners-up (2018)
Fifa Ranking: 12
Record in qualifying: 7 wins, 2 draws, 1 loss

The coach : Zlatko Dalic
Appointed in 2017, Dalic earned hero status for leading Croatia to the 2018 World Cup final. But his reputation has since taken a hit after a last-16 elimination at Euro 2020 and his side’s recent Nations League campaign where performances have not been at the level that fans have come to expect from the side.

In June, they were beaten 3-0 by Austria. But their form has improved and they are riding their momentum into Qatar with a five-match unbeaten run, which includes a 1-0 win over world champions France .

The star: Luka Modric
Awarded the Golden Ball (for the best player at the tournament) at the last World Cup, Modric knows what it takes to perform on the biggest stage.

The former Ballon d’Or winner has already confirmed that this will be his last competition with the national team, so you can expect that he will be determined to put on masterful displays in the middle of the park and inspire his side to repeat the heroics of 2018.