From France to Saudi Arabia, reranking field

MOSCOW – The opening matches of a World Cup always challenge so much about what we thought we knew about the best teams on earth, and so it has proved again. Favorites have been held or humbled, outsiders have come from nowhere and, just five days since things kicked off, the landscape of many groups has tilted entirely from what was expected.

Here we take a timely opportunity, with every squad having now played at least once, to rerank the 32 teams in order, taking into account form, the eye test and their chances of making some headway.

1. France — Still has plenty in reserve 2. Spain — Multiple attacking threats 3. Brazil — Shaky start won’t faze it

4. Belgium — Full of fire and confidence 5. Portugal — Ronaldo ... unstoppable 6. England — Rode its luck and did enough

7. Mexico — Spectacular opening win

8. Uruguay — Poised and dangerous

9. Argentina — Unconvincing so far

10. Germany — How soon can it recover? 11. Russia — Flushed with new confidence 12. Croatia — Luka Modric’s magic is the key

13. Senegal — A breath of fresh air

14. Denmark — Not to be taken lightly 15. Switzerland — Horrible to play against 16. Sweden — Big opportunity to move on 17. Serbia — Organized and determined 18. Poland — Disjointed and disappointing

19. Iceland — The dream lives on 20. Japan — Can dream start continue? 21. Colombia — Urgently needs a revival

22. Iran — Tougher challenges await

23. Egypt — Can Mo Salah make a difference?

24. Peru — Awesome fans, but a tough road 25. Morocco — Best chance has already passed

26. Tunisia — Lacking in offensive fire

27. Nigeria — Struggling to adapt

28. South Korea — Needs a miracle

29. Costa Rica — Looked off the pace

30. Australia — Rugged but limited

31. Panama — Not up to elite level

32. Saudi Arabia — World Cup’s worst team