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#1 Brazil
Brazil takes the number one spot because of its impressive qualifying campaign, and a squad filled with superstars and important players for their respective clubs. They never faltered in their qualifying campaign, scoring an impressive 41 goals and conceding just 11 goals in what was a horrendous campaign for the other CONMEBOL teams.
In attack, Neymar has been the undisputed leader for a while, and rightly so. He has been sensational in the past three seasons, rising to a status where he's being compared to Messi and Cristiano. He needs to be firing on all cylinders for Brazil to have a good chance of winning the tournament. Gabriel Jesus has made the centre forward position his own, while Coutinho is becoming more and more impressive with every appearance. Willian, Roberto Firmino and Douglas Costa are backups who would have made the first team in any other squad.
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In midfield, Paulinho has been impressive this season for Barcelona and Brazil, after not being expected to do well. Casemiro has become indispensable for Real Madrid, while Renato Augusto has consistently done well for Brazil. They have more options in Fernandinho and Fabinho.
In defence, every position is covered with at least two first team club players. David Luiz, Miranda, Thiago Silva, Marquinhos - an enviable set of center-backs. Dani Alves is the frontrunner to start at right back, while Marcelo, Filipe Luis and Alex Sandro could start at left back. The goal is guarded by either Alisson or Ederson, depending on this season.
Brazil has a brilliant squad who play attacking and exciting football. The 3-0 win over Chile, 3-0 vs Argentina, 4-1 vs Uruguay - each of these victories in the qualifying campaign would have made a Brazilian fan dance, Samba style! Brazil has a great chance to win the trophy in 2018, and is my favorite for the tournament based on the qualifying campaign.
Defence: 9/10
Midfield: 8/10
Attack: 9/10
Key Players: Neymar, Coutinho, Marcelo
