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Will AS Roma’s World Cup Stars Shine in Russia?

John Solano
I

With the World Cup edging closer and closer each day, football fans all across the globe are waiting in anticipation to see who will shine on the world’s stage. Teams have battled long and hard over the past four years and it all comes down to just a brief month of magic to decide who will become the new world champion.

Players from teams everywhere will make their way to Russia, and leave behind the trials and tribulations of their clubs for a brief moment to do their country proud and attempt to bring home that illustrious trophy. AS Roma is one of those clubs that will have to do without some of their stars for a while, with three of their key players certain to be on their way to the big event. Let’s take a look at how their World Cup journey could go when the tournament kicks off in June.

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Allison Becker – GK – Brazil
Becker has been named as the first choice goalkeeper for the Brazilian side in Russia by head coach Tite. His regular playing time at AS Roma recently has undoubtedly helped his push for a starting position, and it seems as though the man in charge has rewarded his form with just that. He has made 22 appearances for the national side and at only 25 years of age he could be the long-term replacement for the legendary Dida who earned 91 caps for his country and won the World Cup back in 2002. The team was drawn in a tricky Group E with Switzerland, Costa Rica and Serbia, but given the quality of the side should be able to progress to the next stage without too much drama. With players like Neymar, Gabriel Jesus and Philippe Coutinho all on fire for their respective clubs, it’s easy to see why they are one of the early front runners to lift the trophy. According to international football betting odds, Brazil are equal favourites with Germany at 9/2 to become the world champions for a record sixth time.

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Federico Fazio – DEF – Argentina
Fazio is another of Roma’s players that should be making his way to Russia. Although, if he does he will probably have to settle for a place on the bench. He was used in Argentina’s last World Cup qualifier back in October, but only came on for Eduardo Silva in the 89th minute. It does seem that coach Jorge Sampaoli does like having him as a back up and his recent form at Roma may just get him in the squad. The team has Iceland, Croatia and Nigeria joining them in Group D and should progress easily to the round of 16. After Lionel Messi threatened to retire from international football following the Copa America final defeat in 2016, many feel that this is the last roll of the dice for Argentina to win the World Cup with the little magician in the side.

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Aleksander Kolarov – DEF – Serbia
Kolarov will be lining up against teammate Becker in Group E. He has been an integral part of the Serbian team for the last decade, making 72 appearances and scoring ten goals. His side will have to play extremely well to get out of the group stage, with the Swiss and Brazil looking like extremely daunting tasks to overcome. However they did come first in the qualifying group and could definitely turn a few heads once the tournament begins.

The thrill of the World Cup is an incredible time to be a football fan let alone a player. They will no doubt do AS Roma and their countries proud, and hopefully have a spectacular tournament.

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