DOHA, Qatar – When the men’s national team competes in the FIFA World Cup in Qatar later this month, Canadian soccer fans will finally have a 36-year wait come to an end.

Alphonso Davies, Cyle Larin, Jonathan David, and Stephen Eustaquio, to mention a few, are leading Team Canada, who qualified for the World Cup after putting on strong performances in continental qualification competitions.

Journalist for Canadian soccer John Molinaro claims that he has never seen a team like this men’s squad. He claimed that although they are “fearless,” the players will face a “very stiff” task when the competition begins despite being part of Canada’s golden generation of young talent.

The problem, according to Molinaro, who is also the creator and editor of TFCRepublic.ca, is facing off against European giants Belgium and Croatia, followed by top-ranked African nation Morocco in the group round of the competition. The top two teams in each group will go to the 32-country tournament’s knockout stages at the conclusion of group play.

When the men’s FIFA World Cup begins on November 20, these are the countries that Canada will be playing against.

Belgium

On November 23, Canada will play its opening World Cup match against No. 2 in the FIFA men’s international team rankings Belgium.

Romelu Lukaku, a forward, and Kevin De Bruyne, a midfielder, both of whom play for some of the top club clubs in the world, are examples of the star players from the country of Belgium. Belgium advanced to the semifinals in 2018 and the quarterfinals in 2014, however they were defeated by their opponents.

According to soccer expert and former Canadian men’s national team goalkeeper Craig Forrest, Belgium is a team at the “end of a golden generation” that will be under pressure to perform well. He asserted that Belgium would pose a danger despite their key players’ advancing years.

They are of the highest caliber. They are a little bit older, but they also have some fantastic new items,” Forrest told Global News.

“They now have a revolving door (of talent), but they are a team that is expected to do incredibly well, so there is a lot of pressure on Belgium to produce at this World Cup with the skill that they have in their team and the depth that they have.”

Belgium won six games, drew two, and finished first in their World Cup qualifying group with two losses. In eight games, they scored 25 goals while giving up only six.

Romelu Lukaku and Kevin de Bruyne are among the finest players in the world at their positions, according to Molinaro, who spoke to Global News. “They have players of that class,” he added.

“Playing the No. 2 country in the world, who advanced to the World Cup quarterfinals four years ago in Russia, is a difficult test for Canada right away.