European Qualifiers for World Cup: Where does Hungary stand?

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Hungary ranks at 27th place in Group I of the European qualifiers. However, this does not mean that Hungary will rank this low forever. The national team’s ranking is bound to rise as it is highly likely that Hungary will win more matches and score more goals, so there is some heartfelt excitement for the next Europa League.

What matters, even more, is how good the Hungarian football players are on the bottom level and those who have been playing in second or third-league teams. Those from second or third-league teams cannot make it onto higher levels if there is no depth, and this would make qualifying a dream rather than a reality.

One should first look at where Hungary is standing in Group I of the European Qualifiers concerning team rankings.

Team Rankings

With the November 2021 round of European Qualifiers, Hungary had played its 10th match. As of now, it has won 5 games, lost 3, and drawn 2. There are 11 more rounds to go in the competition before the 2022 World Cup finals in Qatar.

What matters a great deal is how a tournament runs in terms of where a country stands. In the European Qualifiers group stage, there are six groups and each has four teams.

The most successful team from each group will qualify for the World Cup finals in 2022. The second-ranked team from each group will play against one another in what is called the play-offs. The two best teams from the play-off stage will qualify for the World Cup finals of 2022.

The point system is as follows:

Win=3 points

Draw=1 point

Loss=0 points

So, 5 points are needed to win a match, whereas 1 point is awarded if drawn.

Team Squad

Hungarian defenders include Ádám Lang and Ákos Kecskés (permanent players); Attila Fiola  (Videoton), Márk Tamas, Endre Botka, Loïc Négo (Fehérvár FC), and Botond Balogh (regular substitutes); Bendegúz Bolla and Gergő Lovrencsics (on-and pro players).

In the midfield is Tamás Cseri (Videoton), Ádám Nagy, and Dominik Szoboszlai along with András Schafer, and Kevin and Roland Varga.

Up front are Dániel Sallói, Filip Holender,  Ádám Szalai (captain) and Roland Sallai. The team is coached by Marco Rossi who took over the role of head coach in 2018.

The best goal scorers are Roland Sallai and Ádám Szalai, with three goals each so far. Dániel Gazdag is also on three goals, and Dominik Szoboszlai has scored two goals.

The goalkeepers are Lajos Hegedüs, Nyíregyháza Spartacus FC and Balázs Tóth (Puskás Akadémia FC), and these keepers will have their hands full to say the least. Backup comes from Péter Gulácsi and  Ádám Bogdán.

Team captain Ádám Szalai was born in 1987 is now 33, and this may be his last captainship going into the world cup 2026.

Player rankings

Player rankings are determined according to several factors: total minutes played, number of games, number of goals scored by the player, number of assists, and number of yellow and red cards. Some players’ rankings may be lower than 45th place as they have received more yellow and red cards than assists or goals scored: that means that those players cannot qualify for Euro Cup or World Cup 2022.

One thing is certain about the Hungarian national team’s success in the World Cup 2022. Let’s take a look at how many points Hungary has won so far.