2022 World Cup: 7 Footballers Who Perform Better for Their Countries Than Their Club

• After four long years, the 2022 World Cup is here, and fans are set for five weeks of pure entertainment and heartbreak
• The tournament normally sees players rise to the occasion to defend their country's flags
• Some of these players only raise their performances to world-class standards compared to their club displays

After weeks of anticipation, several days of preparation and the four-year-long wait, the 2022 World Cup is finally here. 17 straight days of football should be entertaining, exciting and intriguing.

As teams prepare to take the field, players are expected to rise to the occasion and represent their countrymen and women. However, some of these players oddly perform well only for their countries.

For some weird reason, some of these players are only remembered for their performances on performances on international stage rather than in their clubs.

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A few names spring to mind when thinking about some of those players. Sports Brief looks at some of them.

1. Christian Pulisic

The Chelsea star is an important player for the USA football team (USMNT). He has amassed 52 caps and scored 21 goals. Meanwhile, he is yet to live up to the hype at Chelsea, struggling to nail down a starting spot.

2. Eden Hazard

Hazard has yet to hit the ground running at Real Madrid. As captain of Belgium, he always seems to rise to the occasion. He has scored just seven goals for Los Blancos since his big-money move in 2019. He is a regular starter for Roberto Martinez's side and is expected to perform this year.

3. Gareth Bale

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Bale struggled in the latter stages of his Real Madrid career but is always comfortable when wearing the colours of Wales. He has 108 caps for Wales and played a pivotal role in their qualifying for their first tournament in 58 years.

4. Nampalys Mendy

Mendy has had a stop-start career at Leicester City since he joined in 2016 as N'Golo Kante. However, he is an important player for Senegal, especially in their run to the African Cup of Nations glory. With Sadio Mane ruled out, he and his teammates must step up.

5. Guillermo Ochoa

Ochoa is somehow a World Cup legend. He starred in the 2014 event with stunning saves, especially against Brazil. His club form is somewhat all over the place. This will be his fourth tournament, and he hopes to produce another memorable performance for Mexico. He has 132 caps for Tata Martino's side.

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6. Antoine Griezmann

Griezmann has scored 42 goals for France in 110 appearances. he played a key role in France's World Cup triumph in 2018. However, his club form has been disappointing at Atletico Madrid. With Karim Benzema ruled out of the tournament, he should lead the line for Les Bleus.

7. Alvaro Morata

Surprisingly, Morata has 27 goals for Spain in 57 appearances. This will be his first World Cup. His club form has been up and down, but his experience should be crucial for Luis Enrique at this tournament.

Hazard makes World Cup prediction

Sports Brief earlier reported on Hazard tipping South American giants Brazil Argentina, and France to win the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

Belgium kick off their group stage campaign on November 23 with a clash against Canada before facing Morocco and Croatia

The 31-year-old has rated Brazil, Argentina and France as the teams most likely to be crowned champions in Qatar due to their quality.