NewsMane v Van Dijk as Reds discover World Cup opponents

The draw for the opening phase of the competition was held on Friday evening, setting up the eight groups of four teams who will face off to reach the knockouts.

This year’s World Cup will get under way on November 21 and conclude with the final on December 18.

And Reds teammates Sadio Mane and Virgil van Dijk will come up against each other after Senegal and the Netherlands were drawn together in Group A alongside the hosts.

There is also a potential match-up between Liverpool’s England contingent and Andy Robertson’s Scotland or Neco Williams’ Wales, with the final European qualifier still to be decided.

Group A

Qatar, Ecuador, Senegal, Netherlands

Group B

England, IR Iran, USA, Wales/Scotland/Ukraine

Group C

Argentina, Saudi Arabia, Mexico, Poland

Group D

France, United Arab Emirates/Australia/Peru, Denmark, Tunisia

Group E

Spain, Costa Rica/New Zealand, Germany, Japan

Group F

Belgium, Canada, Morocco, Croatia

Group G

Brazil, Serbia, Switzerland, Cameroon

Group H

Portugal, Ghana, Uruguay, Korea Republic