ARGENTINA (FIFA RANKING: 3RD)
Lionel Scaloni's Albiceleste are unbeaten in 35 games
COACH
Lionel Scaloni, 44, was the assistant during Argentina's 2018 World Cup campaign. As coach, he took Argentina to third place at 2019 Copa America before they won the continental title last year. Argentina came through World Cup qualifying without losing, and head to Qatar unbeaten in 35 games.
Will Lionel Messi emulate Diego Maradona? Only time will tell
KEY PLAYER
At 35, Lionel Messi knows this is surely his last chance to emulate Diego Maradona and lead Argentina to World Cup glory. He heads to Qatar having more caps and scored more goals for Argentina than anyone else. He has also been in excellent form in the build-up to the World Cup.
Best World Cup performance: Winners in 1978 and 1986
How they qualified: Runners-up to Brazil in the single South American qualifying group
GROUP FIXTURES
Nov 22: v Saudi Arabia
Nov 26: v Mexico
Nov 30: v Poland
SQUAD
Goalkeepers: Emiliano Martinez, Franco Armani, Geronimo Rulli (Villarreal)
Defenders: Marcos Acuna, Juan Foyth, Lisandro Martinez, Nicolas Tagliafico, Cristian Romero, Nicolas Otamendi, Nahuel Molina, Gonzalo Montiel, German Pezzella
Midfielders: Angel di Maria, Leandro Paredes, Rodrigo De Paul, Alexis Mac Allister, Enzo Fernandez, Exequiel Palacios, Guido Rodriguez
Forwards: Lionel Messi, Lautaro Martinez, Paulo Dybala, Joaquin Correa, Julian Alvarez, Nicolas Gonzalez, Alejandro Papu Gomez
MEXICO (FIFA RANKING: 13TH)
COACH
Argentine tactician Gerardo 'Tata' Martino will plot the downfall of his own country as Mexico manager
Gerardo Martino - The Argentinian, who turns 60 on the first day of the World Cup, was appointed in 2019 with the goal of leading the "Tri" to the quarter-finals for the first time in more than three decades. He has also managed Barcelona as well as the Argentine and Paraguayan national teams.
It's once again time for the World Cup, and Guillermo Ochoa to shine
KEY PLAYER
Guillermo Ochoa - The 37-year-old is the Mexican national team's most capped goalkeeper. He was chosen as Mexico's first-choice goalkeeper at the 2014 World Cup and won plaudits that year for almost single-handedly holding mighty Brazil at bay to help his side earn a precious 0-0 draw.
Best World Cup performance: Quarter finals in 1970 and 1986
How they qualified: Finished second in the North, Central America and Caribbean region final qualifiers
GROUP FIXTURES
Nov 22: v Poland
Nov 26: v Argentina
Nov 30: v Saudi Arabia
SQUAD
Goalkeepers: Rodolfo Cota, Guillermo Ochoa, Alfredo Talavera
Defenders: Kevin Álvarez, Néstor Araujo, Gerardo Arteaga, Jesús Gallardo (Monterrey), César Montes, Héctor Moreno, Jorge Sánchez, Johan Vásquez
Midfielders: Edson Álvarez, Roberto Alvarado, Uriel Antuna, Luis Chávez, Andrés Guardado, Érick Gutiérrez, Héctor Herrera, Orbelín Pineda, Carlos Rodríguez, Luis Romo
Forwards: Hirving Lozano, Raúl Jiménez, Henry Martín, Rogelio Funes Mori, Alexis Vega
POLAND (FIFA RANKING: 26TH)
COACH
Czeslaw Michniewicz will look to guide Poland into the last 16 at leastCzeslaw Michniewicz, 52, was appointed in January after Paulo Sousa left. Born in present-day Belarus, Michniewicz managed nine Polish clubs before he was appointed coach of the country's U-21 team in 2017. He led them to the Euro U-21 finals in 2019.
Robert Lewandowski will very much be in the running for the Golden BootKEY PLAYER
Robert Lewandowski is one of the greats of Polish football. The country's record appearance maker and goalscorer, Lewandowski will hope to fare better than in Russia four years ago. The reigning two-time winner of the European Golden Shoe has also won the Best Fifa Men's Player award the past two years.
Best World Cup performance: Third place in 1974, 1982
How they qualified: Finished second in European qualifying Group I and defeated Sweden 2-0 in play-off
GROUP FIXTURES
Nov 22: v Mexico
Nov 26: v Saudi Arabia
Nov 30: v Argentina
SQUAD
Goalkeepers: Wojciech Szczesny, Bartlomiej Dragowski, Lukasz Skorupski
Defenders: Jan Bednarek, Kamil Glik, Robert Gumny, Artur Jedrzejczyk, Jakub Kiwior, Mateusz Wieteska, Bartosz Bereszynski, Matty Cash, Nicola Zalewski
Midfielders: Krystian Bielik, Przemyslaw Frankowski, Kamil Grosicki, Grzegorz Krychowiak, Jakub Kaminski, Michal Skoras, Damian Szymanski, Sebastian Szymanski, Piotr Zielinski, Szymon Zurkowski
Forwards: Robert Lewandowski, Arkadiusz Milik, Krzysztof Piatek, Karol Swiderski
SAUDI ARABIA (FIFA RANKING: 51ST)
Journeyman coach Herve Renard is now in charge of the SaudisCOACH
Herve Renard, 54, was appointed to lead the Green Falcons in 2019. The Frenchman's coaching career has involved stints in Europe, Asia and Africa. He won the Africa Cup of Nations with Zambia in 2012, and followed that up by making Ivory Coast champions of the same tournament in 2015.
Salem al-Dawsari is nicknamed 'The Tornado'KEY PLAYER
Winger Salem al-Dawsari, nicknamed "Tornado", is participating in his second World Cup after 2018. During World Cup qualifiers, he saved Saudi Arabia from a loss to Yemen, scoring to force a 2-2 draw. He also gave his team three valuable points by scoring the winner against Uzbekistan.
Best World Cup performance: Round of 16 in 1994
How they qualified: Finished first in Asia zone qualifying Group B
GROUP FIXTURES
Nov 22: v Argentina
Nov 26: v Poland
Nov 30: v Mexico
SQUAD
Goalkeepers: Mohamed Al-Owais, Nawaf Al-Aqidi, Mohamed Al-Yami
Defenders: Yasser Al-Shahrani, Ali Al-Bulaihi, Abdulelah Al-Amri, Abdullah Madu, Hassan Tambakti, Sultan Al-Ghanam, Mohammed Al-Breik, Saud Abdulhamid
Midfielders: Salman Al-Faraj, Riyadh Sharahili, Ali Al-Hassan, Mohamed Kanno, Abdulelah Al-Malki, Sami Al-Najei, Abdullah Otayf, Nasser Al-Dawsari, Abdulrahman Al-Aboud, Salem Al-Dawsari, Hattan Bahebri
Forwards: Fahad Al-Muwallad, Haitham Asiri, Saleh Al-Shehri, Firas Al-Buraikan
