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The Independent UK
The Independent UK
Sport
Kieran Jackson

Serbia World Cup 2022 squad guide: Full fixtures, group, ones to watch, odds and more

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Spearheaded in attack by one of the Premier League’s most in-form forwards in Aleksandar Mitrovic as well as Juventus hotshot Dusan Vlahovic, Serbia will fancy their chances of progressing from the group stage in Qatar this winter.

The Serbs stunned Portugal in their qualifying group, with Mitrovic heading in a late winner to seal their passage to the World Cup, finishing impressively top of the group.

While they did not qualify for Euro 2020, Serbia were at the last World Cup in Russia and came third in a group which included Brazil and Switzerland - two of their opponents this time round too.

With impressive Ajax playmaker and ex-Southampton man Dusan Tadic captaining the side, Serbia will likely be battling with the Swiss and Cameroon for the second qualification spot from Group G.

Here is everything you need to know:

Group fixtures (all times GMT)

Thursday 24 November: Brazil vs Serbia – 19:00

Monday 28 November: Cameroon vs Serbia – 10:00

Friday 2 December: Serbia vs Switzerland – 19:00

Confirmed squad

Goalkeepers: Marko Dmitrovic (Sevilla), Predrag Rajkovic (Mallorca), Vanja Milinkovic-Savic (Torino).

Defenders: Stefan Mitrovic (Getafe), Nikola Milenkovic (Fiorentina), Strahinja Pavlovic (RB Salzburg), Milos Veljkovic (Werder Bremen), Filip Mladenovic (Legia Warsaw), Strahinja Erakovic (Red Star Belgrade), Srdjan Babic (Almeria).

Midfielders: Nemanja Gudelj (Sevilla), Sergej Milinkovic-Savic (Lazio), Sasa Lukic (Torino), Marko Grujic (Porto), Filip Kostic (Juventus), Uros Racic (Braga), Nemanja Maksimovic (Getafe), Ivan Ilic (Hellas Verona), Andrija Zivkovic (PAOK), Darko Lazovic (Hellas Verona).

Forwards: Dusan Tadic (Ajax), Aleksandar Mitrovic (Fulham), Dusan Vlahovic (Juventus), Filip Duricic (Sampdoria), Luka Jovic (Fiorentina), Nemanja Radonji (Torino).

Ones to watch

Star – Aleksandar Mitrovic: Serbia’s all-time record goalscorer - with a terrific strike-rate of 50 goals in 76 caps - the lethal Fulham striker will be going into this World Cup in red-hot form given his start to the season in the Premier League. In a side with numerous attacking top-class outlets, Mitro will likely get the service he craves from out wide. He also scored in the last World Cup in Russia, in the 2-1 loss to Switzerland.

Breakout talent – Dusan Vlahovic: The 22-year-old was closely linked with a move to Arsenal in January before he moved to Juventus from Fiorentina. He also has a brilliant strike-rate - eight in 16 appearances - for his country and will be looking to shine at what will be his first major tournament.

100/1

Prediction

It’s a tricky one to call between Serbia and Switzerland for second in the group, with Brazil the clear and obvious favourites for top spot. It could well come down to the final match between the two countries but despite Serbia’s impressive qualifying progression, Switzerland’s superior tournament record and victory in 2018 gives them the edge over the Serbs. Knocked out in the group stage.

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