FIFA World Cup 2026 :Canada/Mexico/United States: Discussion Thread

[Slow death]

I'm not backing either Turkiye or Kosovo to win the game. Bookies are favoring Turkiye, but this game is very hard to decide. Turkiye's recent performance has been so poor. They won narrowly against Romania, which is doubting me. Their defense is not that good atm. So it gives Kosovo chance to score as long as Kosovo players can explore the loopholes.
If Turkey are not careful enough with their defense and improve it.  They can get humiliated. by Kosovo. Turkiye disaster class against Montenegro can repeat if they're not getting more discipline in defending.

It's my reason to think the game won't end with goalless. I understood turkiye had superb performance in the group stage, but i also see huge improvement from Kosovo. So it's not gonna be easy game. Unable to kill the game will lead Turkiye to the lose. any opinion?

Kosovo, despite winning their last game, conceded 3 goals. Normally, a team that concedes many goals can only rely on a powerful attack to win. However, in knockout situations like this, when that same high-scoring team faces a team with a good defense that didn't concede any goals in their last game, it becomes problematic, to the point where the high-scoring team loses.

I see Turkey as having a good chance of winning the game. When they put effort into defense, they achieve good results. When they played against Spain, in the game where they scored 2 goals and conceded 2, they played well. And in their last game, which Turkey won and only scored 1 goal (I'm talking about the game against Romania), they had a good defense. If they have a good defense against Kosovo, then Turkey will win. I didn't bet on this game and I won't bet on it. I preferred to bet on Italy and Denmark to win in a multi-bet with total odds of @3.15.

[Oluwa-btc]

Bosnia and Herzegovina really has its work cut out for it. They’re certainly not the favorites against Italy, and Italy is definitely the favorite in this matchup. To be honest, I’d love to see Bosnia and Herzegovina win, but a World Cup without Italy just wouldn’t be the same. A tough match awaits both teams. I hope Edin Dzeko is the one to make it to the World Cup.

I'm so sorry but Bosnia will be on their way home. There's no way they're defeating Italians.

Funny enough, I'm rooting for this Italian side to go on to win the FIFA world cup competition. Weird right?! And completely inconsistent and underdogs for now, yes?! I'm confident they will fo that far.

[Sithara007]

I'm so sorry but Bosnia will be on their way home. There's no way they're defeating Italians.

Funny enough, I'm rooting for this Italian side to go on to win the FIFA world cup competition. Weird right?! And completely inconsistent and underdogs for now, yes?! I'm confident they will fo that far.

OK... fine.. I can see Italy defeating Bosnia in the Path A final and thereby qualifying for the FIFA World Cup of 2026. But Italy going on to become the champions? That's a bit far fetched. I can't imagine that even in my most optimistic scenario. Also, don't forget the fact that if they qualify, Italy will be placed in a very tough group (along with Switzerland, Canada and Qatar in Group B). On top of that, Canada's matches will be played at BMO Field stadium in Toronto, giving them the home advantage. To be honest, I don't think that Italy will make a lot of progress even if they qualify.

[Ahli38]

Bosnia and Herzegovina really has its work cut out for it. They’re certainly not the favorites against Italy, and Italy is definitely the favorite in this matchup. To be honest, I’d love to see Bosnia and Herzegovina win, but a World Cup without Italy just wouldn’t be the same. A tough match awaits both teams. I hope Edin Dzeko is the one to make it to the World Cup.

I'm so sorry but Bosnia will be on their way home. There's no way they're defeating Italians.

Funny enough, I'm rooting for this Italian side to go on to win the FIFA world cup competition. Weird right?! And completely inconsistent and underdogs for now, yes?! I'm confident they will fo that far.

Italy has actually shown balanced performance in their recent match against Northern Ireland, where they have appeared quite consistent in shoring up their defense. And I personally think that Italy has learned a lot from their mistakes in their previous match against Norway. Italy has given Northern Ireland almost no opportunities to penetrate the heart of their defense with any meaningful threat. As for Bosnia & Herzegovina their defense remains somewhat unconvincing as they’ve been conceding goals frequently lately. And it seems their defense is still easily penetrated by opponents. I’m confident that in the upcoming match Italy will capitalize on Bosnia & Herzegovina’s weak defense to secure a win. And I predict that Italy won’t concede a single goal thanks to their solid defense. On the other hand Gattuso previously stated that he wouldn’t underestimate his opponents. And now he’s saying the same thing about Bosnia noting that Italy needs to be wary of them (Source). I’m confident this is what enabled Italy to beat Northern Ireland. And I’m confident this will lead them to a victory for Italy against Bosnia & Herzegovina next week.

[Fiatless]

OK... fine.. I can see Italy defeating Bosnia in the Path A final and thereby qualifying for the FIFA World Cup of 2026. But Italy going on to become the champions? That's a bit far fetched. I can't imagine that even in my most optimistic scenario. Also, don't forget the fact that if they qualify, Italy will be placed in a very tough group (along with Switzerland, Canada and Qatar in Group B). On top of that, Canada's matches will be played at BMO Field stadium in Toronto, giving them the home advantage. To be honest, I don't think that Italy will make a lot of progress even if they qualify.

I don't see Canada, Switzerland, and Qatar as strong teams that can stop Italy from qualifying for the second round. The Azzurro might be going through bad times but their performance is also improving as they progress through the qualifiers. In the win over Northern Ireland, Italy produced seven shots on goal while their opponents had none. This shows that they are building a good attacking and strong defensive team. The major task before them now is to qualify for the World Cup to avoid missing out for the third time.  I want to see the competition and I hope Gattuso will help them to make an impact.

[paco92x]

I'm so sorry but Bosnia will be on their way home. There's no way they're defeating Italians.

Funny enough, I'm rooting for this Italian side to go on to win the FIFA world cup competition. Weird right?! And completely inconsistent and underdogs for now, yes?! I'm confident they will fo that far.

Italy should win that game, and even though the group they’re in is a bit weak, they should finish in 1st place. But after that, nothing will be easy, and I don’t see Italy reaching the quarterfinals, let alone winning the tournament. They have a decent team, but many other countries are much stronger than them. Not to mention that they haven’t played well in the qualifiers or in the Nations League, so it’s hard to expect much from them.

[emrecemsan]

Sometimes I just question one thing about this playoff format for the World Cup. Why isn't the final match of this phase played at a neutral stadium? I think it'd be better to have it that way.

Because like we say it, it's the final. I don't think any of the sides should be given a home advantage at this most crucial point. Do you agree with my opinion on this?

[Qhunman]

I'm so sorry but Bosnia will be on their way home. There's no way they're defeating Italians.

Funny enough, I'm rooting for this Italian side to go on to win the FIFA world cup competition. Weird right?! And completely inconsistent and underdogs for now, yes?! I'm confident they will fo that far.

I agree on that, bosnia are the underdogs in that match, they are unlikely to defeat Italy. Even if Italy performance in the past hasn't been consistent enough to rally our confidence,they can't afford to lose to the likes of bosnia especially since it is an important match. Again except the game end in a penalty shootout then bosnia may have a chance to win but I don't think the game won' be that difficult for Italy I trust they would defeat bosnia within 90m.

[blomen]

the team i think could pull off a surprise in the playoff finals is bosnia and herzegovina. the italian national team has been on a steady decline over the past 20 years and sometimes exits major tournaments very early. bosnia and herzegovina, on the other hand, has dzeko, who is still scoring goals despite his age, and is a team with real potential.

Sometimes I just question one thing about this playoff format for the World Cup. Why isn't the final match of this phase played at a neutral stadium? I think it'd be better to have it that way.

Because like we say it, it's the final. I don't think any of the sides should be given a home advantage at this most crucial point. Do you agree with my opinion on this?

normally, this should be due to the top seed’s advantage, but this time i think it has to do with luck in the draw. i don’t think it’s such a bad situation, but a neutral venue really would have been better.

[leea-1334]

I'm so sorry but Bosnia will be on their way home. There's no way they're defeating Italians.

Funny enough, I'm rooting for this Italian side to go on to win the FIFA world cup competition. Weird right?! And completely inconsistent and underdogs for now, yes?! I'm confident they will fo that far.

Italy should win that game, and even though the group they’re in is a bit weak, they should finish in 1st place. But after that, nothing will be easy, and I don’t see Italy reaching the quarterfinals, let alone winning the tournament. They have a decent team, but many other countries are much stronger than them. Not to mention that they haven’t played well in the qualifiers or in the Nations League, so it’s hard to expect much from them.

My fellow Italian supporter @paco92x,,, I hope the team enter with the same mentality. I mentioned in other thread that they lost out on 2 WCs not because of overconfidence but lack of.

I sincerely hope they approach and play with arrogance,,, there is a salute deserved for Bosnia but there is no way anybody will be entertained by them more than by Italy.

Forza Italia!

[execijutiere]

Sweden are the favourites against Poland, and when we look at the squads, we can see that Sweden’s squad is the more expensive one. In their previous encounters, Sweden has naturally been the dominant side, but we can say that Sweden is going through a dip in form. Poland appears to be in better form in their recent matches, but this could be misleading. I believe both teams have a high potential to score. A tough match awaits both sides. I expect Sweden to eliminate their opponent.

[Lucius]

I would like Italy to be punished for the fact that immediately after finding out who their opponent was, they started celebrating as if they were already in the World Cup. They showed that they did not respect their opponent, which only motivated them even more to play their best.

It's not a tragedy if Italy doesn't make it to the World Cup - it's a tragedy that they're even in these playoffs, which just shows that they're far from the old days of their footballing glory.

[Btcdeybodi]

Bosnia and Herzegovina really has its work cut out for it. They’re certainly not the favorites against Italy, and Italy is definitely the favorite in this matchup. To be honest, I’d love to see Bosnia and Herzegovina win, but a World Cup without Italy just wouldn’t be the same. A tough match awaits both teams. I hope Edin Dzeko is the one to make it to the World Cup.

It surprises me that even at the age of 40, Edin Džeko is still able to perform so well for his countryside Bosnia and Herzegovina. I watched his performance in their last match against Whales, he is superb and even scored the equalizer that made them enter extra time where they finally played a penalty shootout and Bosnia and Herzegovina defeated Whales after penalty. But regardless, his performance will not be enough to compete against Italy who has a strong team and looking forward to pass through the playoff round and qualify for the world cup. Perhaps, if am to chose between Bosnia and Herzegovina and Italy, which of them i predict to win, it is certainly Italy.

[AprilioMP]

[edited out]

Bosnia are not a problem, the pressure is the real deal. Italian players arrive at this playoff final with a lot of pressure because of the two previous failed qualifications, so they know the must win yes or yes, and if for any reason things will start to go south than they can get very nervous. Gattuso must be very good explaining the players they must be playing calmly, without an obsession to score immediately, first of all they must regain confidence. Italy's worst enemy right now is the pressure and the lack of self confidence. It's all in their heads.

The pressure stemming from Italy’s absence from the World Cup and the fact that they must now go through the playoffs has placed a heavy burden on Gattuso. Gattuso has also faced criticism from some quarters after agreeing to take on the role of Italy’s head coach.

I agree that Gattuso must use the locker room and training sessions as opportunities to explain to all the Italian players that the match against Bosnia is not just any ordinary match, but one that will determine the reputation of Italy and the reputation of each of them.
I believe that if he does this, the Italian players will play with an unusual level of passion.

On the other hand Bosnia have nothing to lose, they can just play with no pressure at all, that is a huge plus for them.

Typically, this is when great stamina and energy come out when playing without pressure.

[execijutiere]

The Czech Republic will face Denmark. The Czech Republic isn’t the favorite in this matchup, but we can say they have the potential to beat their opponent. Denmark advanced to this stage by comfortably defeating North Macedonia. The Czech Republic, on the other hand, managed to qualify after a penalty shootout against Ireland. Of course, Denmark has the better chance and is expected to qualify for the World Cup.

[KTChampions]

I could be wrong, but Türkiye is overrated, they play significantly weaker away from home than at home. If Kosovo are as good as they were in the game against Slovakia, the game will be more equal than the bookmakers think.

Turkey showed a really good performance in Euro 2024. We reached quarter finals there. But I must admit a fact here. We haven't really been able to qualify for the World Cup for 24 years.

Our current manager Montella has done a good work so far though. He is the most successful name we have had recently. We are one step away from finally joining the main tournament. I hope we will make it.

I also hope that Türkiye will go to the World Cup (to be honest, 24 years sounds unrealistic, I didn’t even know that this streak lasted so long). I'm thinking from a betting perspective and the odds didn't seem entirely accurate to me. Partly because Türkiye, even with its highly volatile results, is a well-known brand, while Kosovo is a team from nowhere. It's clear that Kosovo should be undervalued, and this is reflected in the odds.

[Ale88]

Dzeko is an experience striker with lots of goals scoring skills and would utilize any opportunities given to him and I don't expect any defender of the Italian side to not take him seriously, if anything I feel they would even make him the focus point in that game so as to always keep him in check to avoid any mistakes too.

I would like to see Italy go all the way but we all know it's not going to be easy at all as they are good teams still to play even they win this particular fixture.

Italians are the favourites even on away ground, but they shouldn’t be cocky like they were when they found out they would play against Bosnia. They’ve already experienced that kind of cockiness against North Macedonia, and we all know what happened. Bosnia is miles better than Macedonia, so we’ll see what’s going to happen.

That is just a small stupid episode that the press made it look like some huge. Three players were happy when they saw Bosnia qualified instead of Wales, and the British team is better than Bosnia, that is a fact. Also keep in mind that they still had all the adrenaline because they had just played the match. As Italian, I was happy too Bosnia qualified instead on Wales. Does it mean we already won the match? Absolutely not. They are a tough team.

[free-bit.co.in]

Sweden are the favourites against Poland, and when we look at the squads, we can see that Sweden’s squad is the more expensive one. In their previous encounters, Sweden has naturally been the dominant side, but we can say that Sweden is going through a dip in form. Poland appears to be in better form in their recent matches, but this could be misleading. I believe both teams have a high potential to score. A tough match awaits both sides. I expect Sweden to eliminate their opponent.

Sweden and poland are strong teams. Neither team  can be underestimated. Sweden has talented  players like Gyokeres in the center of its attack and Poland has lewandowski in its attack. Sweden won their last match against ukraine 3-1 . On the other hand, poland secured a 2- 1 victory against Albania. I am sure that the Sweden vs. poland match will also be very exciting. I can not consider Sweden as a favorite. Poland also has the full ability to win.

[snipie]

As Italian, I was happy too Bosnia qualified instead on Wales. Does it mean we already won the match? Absolutely not. They are a tough team.

Italy wouldn't expect an easier opponent than Bosnia and Herzegovina honestly to play against. Even Kosovo skill isn't that bad and both nations should be taken seriously.

I also hope that Türkiye will go to the World Cup (to be honest, 24 years sounds unrealistic, I didn’t even know that this streak lasted so long).

I also want to see them back in World Cup this year. They improved comparing to the previous years but there are a lot of things to improve in this team to stay competitive once qualified.

The Czech Republic will face Denmark. The Czech Republic isn’t the favorite in this matchup, but we can say they have the potential to beat their opponent.

Denmark is favourite team to win the game. It will be a big surprise to see them quitting by Czechia. Maybe just the bigger surprise will be Italy in case of..

[Agbamoni]

Funny enough, I'm rooting for this Italian side to go on to win the FIFA world cup competition. Weird right?! And completely inconsistent and underdogs for now, yes?! I'm confident they will fo that far.

Italy to win the World Cup, that's laughable. It is coming from you, that's why it is even more laughable:

You did not include Spain, France, England, Brazil, or Argentina in your 2026 campaign  . I have a weird guess Italy will go far in the World Cup, but they wont win the World Cup. Good defence wins you a title, not in the World Cup, though.