World Cup Now: Picking our team of the Group Stage after first round
Brazil's 2-0 victory over Serbia on Thursday marked the end of the first round of group-stage matches at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
Ahead of the start of the second round Friday, "World Cup Now" hosts Warren Barton, DaMarcus Beasley and Jimmy Conrad picked their Team of the Group Stage (so far).
Goalkeeper: Thibaut Courtois, Belgium
Conrad: I know people are going to say, "Oh, Memo Ochoa! He saved a big penalty again for Mexico in that 0-0 draw vs. Poland." But Thibaut Courtois also saved a penalty and made other big saves to keep Belgium relevant when they were getting pumped by Canada. He's my goalkeeper of this first round.
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Belgium's Thibaut Courtois makes an incredible penalty kick save after Canada drew a handball in the box.
Defender: Romain Saïss, Morocco
Barton: Saïss played extremely well. He organized the back line, he threw himself in front of the ball. To go against Croatia, which got to the Final in Russia and looked to do well here, I just thought he was excellent organizing his back line and defending.
Midfielder: Gavi, Spain
Beasley: The youth has served us quite well so far. Any time that your name aligns with Pelé, you're doing pretty good. And I'm just talking about this game. I know that Gavi has won the Golden Boy award for the best young player in the world, but I'm just talking about this performance and what he means to Spain. He's a great player. I think he will have a phenomenal career. At 18 years and 10 days old, the youngest player to score at a World Cup since Pelé.
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Watch Spain's Gavi scoring a goal against Costa Rica in the 74 minute in the 2022 Men's FIFA World Cup.
Forward: Olivier Giroud, France
Conrad: Giroud scored two goals, and I think what's cool is that, with the second goal against Australia, he set the record for most goals for the French national team, beating out Thierry Henry. We're talking big names here. He has been a loyal member of every club he has played for, always puts in the dirty work, and now he has a record that's going to be tough to overcome. He's actually benefited from Karim Benzema, the reigning Ballon d'Or winner, getting hurt right before the start of the tournament.
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Olivier Giroud scored two goals against Australia to help lead France to a 4-1 victory.
Read more from the World Cup:
- World Cup Daily: Portugal, Brazil look like contenders in tournament debuts
- USMNT vows not to sit back, will attack England in key clash
- Who should USA fans root for in Iran vs. Wales?
- Team USA could change world's perception of American soccer vs. England
- World Cup Power Rankings: France still looks like the team to beat
- How to watch every game of the 2022 World Cup
- 101 most memorable World Cup moments
- Stu Holden's top 50 players at the World Cup
Check out the full schedule for the World Cup and how to watch each match live here.