Qatar - the host nation with the worst record in World Cup history.

In the match between the Netherlands and Qatar, Louis van Gaal's team easily secured a 2-0 victory, advancing to the Round of 16 as group winners. Below is an assessment of the winners and losers after the final Group A match of the 2022 World Cup.

The Netherlands easily won against Qatar thanks to the brilliant performance of Cody Gakpo, and the young PSV star continued to create a memorable milestone in his career. He scored the opening goal for the Netherlands in all three group stage matches at the 2022 World Cup. The last player to achieve this was Altobelli of Italy at the 1986 World Cup. Statistics show that Gakpo finished the match against Qatar with an 84% pass accuracy rate, 49 touches, 4 successful tackles, 3 successful interceptions, and 1 goal.

Barcelona midfielder De Jong played brilliantly in this match, excelling as the "master" of the Netherlands' midfield with impressive ball control, passing, and orchestration. Thanks to De Jong's ability to control the game, the Netherlands continuously pressured Qatar. According to Whoscored, De Jong was the second highest-rated Dutch player in the match (7.8 points), only slightly behind his teammate Gakpo (8.1 points). Coach Van Gaal hopes his player will continue to maintain his current form to help the Netherlands go far in this World Cup.

Since Van Gaal took over in August 2021, the spirit and style of play of the Netherlands have been completely different from those of his predecessors. In the 2022/23 Nations League, Van Gaal led the team to the semi-finals. At the 2022 World Cup, despite not having the same abundance of players as France, Portugal, or Brazil, the Netherlands still made their mark. They finished the group stage in first place, just as they did in the 2014 World Cup, where Van Gaal's Netherlands finished third overall. Now, fans hope the Netherlands can replicate that achievement.

The Spanish coach faced immense pressure to lead Qatar to a successful World Cup campaign on home soil. Unfortunately, given the limited capabilities of the Qatari players, things proved too difficult for Sanchez, despite his attempts to make adjustments and changes throughout the matches against Ecuador, Senegal, and the Netherlands. Ultimately, all of that was not enough to help Qatar achieve their goals. Perhaps after the biggest football event on the planet concludes, Sanchez will leave.

Host nation Qatar has been criticized for allegedly buying their World Cup spot, and the reality is that without the money, they might never have had the chance to experience the atmosphere of this tournament. Their defeat to the Netherlands in the final match of Group A at the 2022 World Cup made Qatar the host nation with the worst record in World Cup history.

With this result, Qatar became the only host nation so far to have not earned a single point after the group stage. Specifically, Qatar finished the tournament with 0 points, scoring 1 goal and conceding 7, with a goal difference of -6. The Gulf team also became the host nation with the fewest goals scored and the second host nation in the 21st century to be eliminated in the group stage of a World Cup (after South Africa in 2010).

In other news, England secured their place in the next round as group B winners after a resounding victory over Wales.

The crucial six-point match between Iran and the USA ended with a narrow victory for the American team thanks to the only goal scored by "American captain" Christian Pulisic in the first half.