The first-ever winter world cup is almost here. It’s time to look at which teams are the strongest and which players are the ones to watch out for specifically. In order to list down the players to look out for, we have specifically looked at the U23 category and players who play quite often for their respective clubs this season. It is to be noted that, these players might not start all the matches for their teams in the World Cup and could potentially miss out on getting called up altogether, but if and when they do represent their country in Qatar, they definitely have the potential to be game changers.

Group B consists of one of the surprise packages from 2018 – England, along with the USA, Wales and Iran

The below visualisation shows the percentile ranks of the U23 players to watch out for from Group B. All data from this season.

Bukayo Saka | Arsenal | England | 21 years old

Bukayo Saka endured one of the cruellest endings in the final of Euro 2020. The 21-year-old Arsenal attacker missed the decisive penalty that decided England will finish as runners-up and not as winners of the tournament. However, since then Saka has gone on to become one of the key players both at club and country level. Saka has been used in different positions by Gareth Southgate including at left-wing back. However, Saka is at his best when played on the right side of the front three. Saka, as seen in the visual above, ranks above average for a number of attacking metrics – most specifically for creativity. He is closer to the box and likes to take on the opposition defenders with his impressive dribbling ability. Saka could very well start all the games for England at the World cup given his current form. However, it will be interesting what kind of role the 21-year-old Arsenal player has at the World Cup.

Sardar Azmoun | Bayer Leverkusen |IR Iran | 27 years old

Given the lack of U23 options from Iran, Sardar Azmoun is the player to watch out for from this Iran team. Azmoun, playing for Bundesliga side Bayer Leverkusen after signing a pre-contract in January 2022 and joining the club in the summer. After entering the professional football scene with a lot of expectations on his shoulders, Azmoun was part Iran’s 2018 World Cup squad but retired from the international scene temporarily. He returned to international football once again in 2019. Azmoun, so far, has not lived up to the initial hype that surrounded him but will be a player to watch out for from this Iran side given his experience.

Brenden Aaronson | Leeds United | USA | 22 years old

Leeds United secured the signature of USMNT international Brenden Aaronson in the recently concluded summer transfer window. Since his move, Aaronson has started every league game for the club and has also put in some eye-catching performances. The 21-year-old has played the majority of his minutes in the no.10 role. He brings a lot of energy and hard work to the pitch. Ranking, 81st percentile for Key Passes per 90 minutes, Aaronson brings a lot of flair to his game. Aaronson is already an important member of the USMNT. From a tricky group, a lot of burden will lie on young Aaronson’s shoulders to carry his team to the next round at Qatar.

Brennan Johnson | Nottingham Forest | Wales | 21 years old

One player in English football who has caught the eye of most fans over the course of the last one and half years is Nottingham Forest’s Brennan Johnson. Johnson who impressed for the most part last season and was vital in Forest’s promotion from the Championship and has started his life in the Premier League very well, even though his club hasn’t. Originally from the Forest academy, Johnson made his senior debut for Wales in 2020 and has since been a regular at first-team level. Johnson can pretty much play anywhere in front but has predominantly been used in a more central role. Johnson’s numbers at the start of this season look decent for a 21-year-old. With the attacker already an integral part of Wales’ system during the qualifying campaign, he will now be expected to perform well at the highest level to help his team secure a place in the further rounds of the 2022 World Cup.