World Cup 2022 Group C Summary

Check out the latest odds on the winner of Group C 

Argentina

4/11

Poland

9/2

Mexico

9/2

Saudi Arabia

25/1

Fixtures

Group C team summary

Click on each team for a form guide and preview of their World Cup chances

• Argentina will be looking to give Lionel Messi one last chance of World Cup success in what is likely to be his final tournament. They go to Qatar as one of the most in-form teams in the competition, boasting a 35-game unbeaten run that perfectly illustrates a potential that they have failed to convert into recent World Cup glory, albeit coming very close in 2014's final defeat. Their star-studded line-up is capable of going one step further this time around, as long as they can avoid the kind of banana skins that have dogged them in previous tournaments.

• Mexico have progressed through the group stages in each of the last seven World Cups, but have notoriously failed to win any of their subsequent last-16 knock-out games. Given their recent form, such an outcome might again be the best they can hope for in Qatar, and they will have to hit the ground running to get something out of their first two games against Argentina and Poland, and then will still have to do the business against Saudi Arabia. 

• Poland will always be a threat if they can bring the best out of the free-scoring Robert Lewandowski, who spearheads an otherwise workmanlike outfit. Their Nations League struggles against Belgium and Netherlands put the spotlight on their inferiority against the world's elite, and their opening clash against Mexico will be crucial in shaping the outcome of the group.

• Saudi Arabia will start as underdogs in all three of their group games, making their strategy likely to be to thwart and stifle their more illustrious opponents and limit scoring opportunities. Recent form suggests they have the defensive capabilities to do that, but the fact that they concede few goals will count for little if they are unable to prise open opposing defences at the other end of the pitch.

Crunch games

There appears to be no so-called "group of death" in Qatar, but the three games involving Argentina, Mexico and Poland are sure to be keenly contested and any one of them could go either way. All three teams will expect to beat Saudi Arabia along the way, which gives extra weight to the Mexico v Poland encounter in the first set of fixtures. Argentina, who kick off against the Saudis, will still have it all to do against those two in subsequent rounds, and will hope to have qualification in the bag before their last game against Poland, otherwise that could well decide which of the big three misses out.

• Probable qualifiers:   Argentina & Poland

• Possible dark horses:   Mexico