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

[Ryu_Ar1]

Indeed, every line in Portugal is very good especially for defense and midfield because they have players like Nuno Mendes, Ruben Dias and don't forget Vitinha in their midfield it is a very good composition for me but sometimes Portugal's game is also difficult to predict.

You're right, it's a difficult game to predict, everything has to go his way, but the coach is very good, I think he's very intelligent, and what "the beast" produces is absolutely insane. For me, CR7 is the main figure of this World Cup. I would like Portugal to win the World Cup, not even because of the Portuguese players, just because of CR7. I think that FIFA, referees, and many others have always been against him, but he has come out on top with his football, that's why I want him to win the World Cup and reach 1000 goals.

Cristiano is still one of the iconic figures for Portugal and maybe even for this World Cup but sometimes it seems a bit of a burden because he's pushing himself so hard to achieve what he wants to achieve that he forgets about the club.
I like what he's always done but for this World Cup it's better for him not to push too hard for 90 minutes in all matches because if it's like that it could also disrupt the rhythm because of age problems even though he is still very good for body size and fitness but it cannot be denied that there must be problems in terms of stamina which may be very difficult to reach.  Portugal's schemes at times have relied on speed and sometimes it's not effective when all eyes are on Cristiano as the centerpiece until the end, not that he's bad but at times Cristiano has pushed himself too hard and it's affected the team.

But in other respects he is still very good especially with Cristiano being the first player to feature in six world cups, which is an incredible achievement.

[mikel_012]

For me, Ancellotti's decision to include him in NT is just for advertisers only. He's been spending more time eating grass instead playing better. So i think it makes sense to assume his call is just to appease the fans. That's why just after Ancellotti was saying his name, many of his supporters are chanting his name.

However, i admit Brazil is always lacking of depth on its winger. If Estevao was not injury, Neymar may not be included in NT.

Other than Neymar's news it's also shocking me to see how Joao Pedro is getting dropped off from NT, then he's replaced by Luiz Henrique. I can't believe it!

When it comes to the quality demonstrated in the Brazilian national team's games, Luiz Henrique plays much better than João Pedro, he is undoubtedly one of the best players on the team when he is selected.

I think João Pedro lost his position to Igor Thiago or Rayan, who were called up only once and earned their place in the Brazilian national team, which is very sad for the young Chelsea player.

Regarding calling up Neymar, Ancelotti has always made it clear that if he is physically fit, he will be called up because we all know his technique is excellent, and from what I've seen, the calf injury isn't a major concern for the World Cup.

[Odusko]

Portugal has released the list of players for the 2026 World Cup, and Diogo Jota was included in the squad. He was included as a memorial and out of respect for his demise. I think they should have added Jota’s brother, who also passed away in the terrible accident.

Ronaldo, at 41, is still in the World Cup squad.

Liverpool did honor the memories of both brothers, and I wonder why their own home country team decided to honor only Doigo Jota and leaving out the brother who died through same incident, although let see how they opening game will be since the Brazilian coach already mentioned that they want the spirit of diogo to play the game with them as honor to the dead,. On CR7, in his 41 years of age, this wold cup will be the sixth world cup that Christina Ronaldo will be featured in, and all he have been creating excellent records for his home team.

[Ale88]

Admitted or not Neymar has plenty of fans when Ancelotti announce he will into Brazil squad for world cup those fans are celebrating this moment for Neymar too i can see he was very emotional when know this news and i think this is proven Neymar very love his country and will fight more hard until Brazil can gets good achievement in world cup but regardless all of his controversy Neymar is a good player probably this world cup isn't in his prime but Ancelotti believe Neymar can make the difference and probably he would became an important player for Brazil for this world cup

In my opinion, he was only taken to the World Cup to liven up the dressing room and because the brazilian team operates differently from other national teams. There’s samba and music everywhere and a need for cheerfulness, so perhaps that’s why Neymar is there, given that he’s not in peak physical condition and his recent performances have left a lot to be desired.

I was also thinking another thing besides the pressure from the fans and/or the very same Brazilian federation: if for any reason Brazil will fail during the World Cup, at least having Neymar in the team could help reducing the amount of critics otherwise, without Neymar, everybody would have been like "this happened because Ancelotti didn't call him up". And of course we know that either with or without Neymar Brazil need a miracle to win the World Cup, but I'm sure that people would have blamed it on Ancelotti.

[changaa]

France this year is even more fearsome than the last World Cup, it is clear that now they have many very strong players who have clearly matured, and have acquired excellent experience which can really put them in a position to win the World Cup, very strong players who have won everything.

Many give France as favourites among the finalists, considering the current performances of the players they own it may be true, but it depends on what happens, whether there will be injuries or simple mistakes that slow down this theory.
Because at the moment is just theory, the statistics say that, but we'll see what happens as soon as they start to clash.

[m4r1o]

At the very least this decision could be a good step towards strengthening the Brazilian squad for this World Cup, even though there were some names that Ancelotti didn't call up based on his assessment. I'm quite happy with this decision because these players are great talents and their inclusion in the squad will add to the team's attacking power. Some other great players weren't called up, but that decision was probably based on his assessment, so Ancelotti had to make that decision and we hope Neymar can maintain his physical fitness and not get injured.

the Brazilian squad when they select and bring in players like Neymar they cut out as many strong players and don't realize that they are doing an injustice to the Brazilian national team and to all Brazilians, i think that Ancelotti was forced to call him up, and i don't think he would have been happy!

[pewboy]

In every cases, Brazil isn't a favorite anymore. The fact Neymar was requested is an indicative there weren't viable alternatives, anyway. One of the weaknesses of brazilian national team is that players don't have chemistry among themselves.

Everyone in Brazil likes Neymar, everyone is his fan, football in Brazil is sacred and i don't understand how anyone can question who has to decide the fate of a team, Brazil is certainly one of the best teams there are, but i see Neymar as a burden lately, and i don't think he helps this team.

[hd49728]

Everyone in Brazil likes Neymar, everyone is his fan, football in Brazil is sacred and i don't understand how anyone can question who has to decide the fate of a team, Brazil is certainly one of the best teams there are, but i see Neymar as a burden lately, and i don't think he helps this team.

Everyone is too much and it's not true. There are many or you can say most of people in Brazil like Neymar, but not all, not everyone like him. Like in his matches for Santos, there are fans who booed him some times and it's evidence for my saying to counter back your point here.

It's clearly that in the last 10 years or longer than that, Neymar Jr. is a best player in Brazil, the only super star player they have after generation of Ronaldo, Rivaldo, Cafu, Carlos, Ronaldinho, Adriano and Kaka so people in Brazil have many reasons to support Neymar and want him having a last World Cup with the national team. Neymar has many skills that are different than other players called for World Cup 2026 so if he is covered well by his teammates in midfield, his creativeness, key passes can help Brazil in attacks.

[aipercoin]

France have been unstoppable in the FIFA World Cup in the last two seasons and after seeing their squad announced for the 2026 World Cup, I think they will be at that level this season as well. You just take a look the players that France have who are showing artistry in different clubs and have come to the center of discussion by giving their best in those clubs, so it is without a doubt that we will assume that France will be able to challenge other teams very easily in this World Cup. It is right that Mbappe will do something great this season because as far as we know, this player was one of the best players in the previous World Cup tournaments and he scored almost 40 plus goals for his club in the 2025/26 season, therefore, many believe that this player will remain a reliable player for France in this FIFA World Cup as well.

I also believe that France will be truly unstoppable, and that in the next world cup they are truly the most likely to win the championship, these players are very strong and there are many of them and in every department there is the best talent, this is the true essence of football, i am happy that there are such strong teams

[kennycryptoitalia]

Cristiano is still one of the iconic figures for Portugal and maybe even for this World Cup but sometimes it seems a bit of a burden because he's pushing himself so hard to achieve what he wants to achieve that he forgets about the club.
I like what he's always done but for this World Cup it's better for him not to push too hard for 90 minutes in all matches because if it's like that it could also disrupt the rhythm because of age problems even though he is still very good for body size and fitness but it cannot be denied that there must be problems in terms of stamina which may be very difficult to reach.  Portugal's schemes at times have relied on speed and sometimes it's not effective when all eyes are on Cristiano as the centerpiece until the end, not that he's bad but at times Cristiano has pushed himself too hard and it's affected the team.

But in other respects he is still very good especially with Cristiano being the first player to feature in six world cups, which is an incredible achievement.

Cristiano Ronaldo will probably be the historic player par excellence of Portugal, as Maradona is to say of Argentina.
He will certainly become a legend and will be talked about for years, after all he works a lot and you can see that he hammers like a blacksmith in the field.

[bastisisca]

Cristiano Ronaldo have confirmed for Portugal team at World Cup 2026 and become his 6 appearance in World Cup, its awesome achievement how Cristiano Ronaldo keep on the higher level physical and make manager keep calling him to play at World Cup exactly for this time he was over 41 years old. Based on several national team have released the official announcement players calling likely Cristiano Ronaldo become most older players in World Cup 2026.

Several team already announcing the players list for World Cup 2026, I am waiting my favorite team England announce 26 players for participating at World Cup 2026 and who will miss the highest level football competition?

I think it will be his last World Cup as a player, he is now of a certain age.
It's also true that he has changed his style of play and "tasks" on the pitch, but i don't think that at 45 he can still play, or maybe he can? In the meantime, let's see how this round goes. Maybe the next European will be able to play it.

[cande86]

This World Cup is going to be historical in many ways because things are getting to the top 48 countries, 3 countries are hosting, and now big legends are going to be preparing for the last time. All three big names are coming and giving their best for their countries because it's the last time for them to have this honour and show the best soccer to fans. Cristiano Ronaldo is at his best, especially after he is going to win the Saudi League; he can do something for Portugal as well.

While Neymar Jr. is also included in the Brazilian side, this is also a good job by Brazilian coach Ancelotti. After watching the Portuguese side, I am expecting good from them because they have a well-balanced squad that can do much better than from their previous engagements.

ye, certainly every world cup is historic in its own way, in every world cup it has been remembered for some important and particular event, so every time there has been a memory whether it was good or bad, the world cup is like this, memorable and always full of emotions, from start to finish and i think this too will be legendary.

[Mame89]

In every cases, Brazil isn't a favorite anymore. The fact Neymar was requested is an indicative there weren't viable alternatives, anyway. One of the weaknesses of brazilian national team is that players don't have chemistry among themselves.

Everyone in Brazil likes Neymar, everyone is his fan, football in Brazil is sacred and i don't understand how anyone can question who has to decide the fate of a team, Brazil is certainly one of the best teams there are, but i see Neymar as a burden lately, and i don't think he helps this team.

The entire Brazilian public loves Neymar, as evidenced by his omission from Ancelotti squad. This also put pressure on Ancelotti who ultimately decided to include him in the squad. However, there are rumors of Neymar suffering another injury, which Santos has confirmed. If this rumor is true, I feel sorry for him, as if the World Cup hates Neymar. Neymar is never in peak condition every time it's World Cup time.

Just yesterday many were happy to see him in the Brazil squad, but suddenly there's news of Neymar injury again. If this is true it would be a testament to Neymar poor fortunes in recent World Cups. In 2014, he suffered an injury, despite being Brazil hope, as the World Cup was held in Brazil. In 2018, he arrived injured, despite scoring goals and being a key player but Brazil still fell in the quarterfinals. In 2022, he was injured again in the first match after his comeback and scored a beautiful goal against Croatia then Brazil lost dramatically on penalties. This year's World Cup was probably his last chance to play but he remained injured, perhaps because the World Cup still hated Neymar.

[changaa]

I was also thinking another thing besides the pressure from the fans and/or the very same Brazilian federation: if for any reason Brazil will fail during the World Cup, at least having Neymar in the team could help reducing the amount of critics otherwise, without Neymar, everybody would have been like "this happened because Ancelotti didn't call him up". And of course we know that either with or without Neymar Brazil need a miracle to win the World Cup, but I'm sure that people would have blamed it on Ancelotti.

the Brazilian federation wants Neymar, they want him because he is the last Brazilian with a clear identity that can still distinguish between the great talents that exist, he is the only one that the whole world knows and Brazil wants to have an identity, but he is certainly only the shadow of the past, he is no longer Neymar that we knew before

[KTChampions]

This World Cup is going to be historical in many ways because things are getting to the top 48 countries, 3 countries are hosting, and now big legends are going to be preparing for the last time. All three big names are coming and giving their best for their countries because it's the last time for them to have this honour and show the best soccer to fans. Cristiano Ronaldo is at his best, especially after he is going to win the Saudi League; he can do something for Portugal as well.

While Neymar Jr. is also included in the Brazilian side, this is also a good job by Brazilian coach Ancelotti. After watching the Portuguese side, I am expecting good from them because they have a well-balanced squad that can do much better than from their previous engagements.

You might be surprised, but every World Cup is unique, no two are ever the same 
I'm sure Ancelotti didn't want to take Neymar and wouldn't have, but some circumstances trump the wishes of coaches. Since football is, first and foremost, a business (especially an event like the World Cup), Neymar's presence was predetermined.
By the way, I'm not sure that Ronaldo is in his best shape now, it seems his results have been declining lately, but he is undoubtedly planning to be in peak shape for the World Cup.

[Lida93]

Admitted or not Neymar has plenty of fans when Ancelotti announce he will into Brazil squad for world cup those fans are celebrating this moment for Neymar too i can see he was very emotional when know this news and i think this is proven Neymar very love his country and will fight more hard until Brazil can gets good achievement in world cup but regardless all of his controversy Neymar is a good player probably this world cup isn't in his prime but Ancelotti believe Neymar can make the difference and probably he would became an important player for Brazil for this world cup

In my opinion, he was only taken to the World Cup to liven up the dressing room and because the brazilian team operates differently from other national teams. There’s samba and music everywhere and a need for cheerfulness, so perhaps that’s why Neymar is there, given that he’s not in peak physical condition and his recent performances have left a lot to be desired.

I saw the reaction of the player when his name was mentioned among those that will represent Brazil at the World Cup, and as a huge fan of the iconic Brazilian football star I was moved with some sort of emotions seeing how excited the player is about his inclusion to the team, this goes a long way to show how important that moment was for Neymar who was skeptical about playing in the world cup, what's left now is for Neymar to stay fit and also reward coach Carlo Ancelotti by putting up a good performance at the World Cup.

[Fiatless]

England coach Thomas Tuchel has submitted his 55-man provisional World Cup list. Some of the surprising exclusions are Manchester City midfielder Phil Foden, AC Milan defender Fikayo Tomori, and Manchester United defender Harry Maguire. Maguire posted on his Instagram that he was sure that he would have made some good contributions to the squad. He expressed his shock by the decision. Tuchel defended his decision stating that Harry lacked mobility.

[Agbamoni]

I saw the reaction of the player when his name was mentioned among those that will represent Brazil at the World Cup, and as a huge fan of the iconic Brazilian football star I was moved with some sort of emotions seeing how excited the player is about his inclusion to the team, this goes a long way to show how important that moment was for Neymar who was skeptical about playing in the world cup, what's left now is for Neymar to stay fit and also reward coach Carlo Ancelotti by putting up a good performance at the World Cup.

Neymar and Vinicius are the last set of players who inherit the Brazilian style of football, which is popularly known as “Joga Bonito.” Once they quit professional football, we will not watch that style anymore unless another player inherits it, but for now, they are the only two. Although Gabriel Jesus has that flare but its not original to that of Neymar. I doubt Neymar was called to fill up space in the dressing room. I see him as someone who will bring maturity on the field.

[Muba20]

France this year is even more fearsome than the last World Cup, it is clear that now they have many very strong players who have clearly matured, and have acquired excellent experience which can really put them in a position to win the World Cup, very strong players who have won everything.

Many give France as favourites among the finalists, considering the current performances of the players they own it may be true, but it depends on what happens, whether there will be injuries or simple mistakes that slow down this theory.
Because at the moment is just theory, the statistics say that, but we'll see what happens as soon as they start to clash.

Considering the performance, the chances of France becoming a finalist are undoubtedly very high. But not everyone can perform equally as expected in the World Cup. There are many who are expected to do well but do poorly, while those who were not expected to do well are showing good results. In every World Cup, something happens that is almost impossible. In the World Cup, a small team can score a goal against a big team at any time and secure victory in the match. Therefore, even if a team is considered good, there is no guarantee that the team will do well. Moreover, not all players' performances are as expected in the World Cup.

[hyudien]

England coach Thomas Tuchel has submitted his 55-man provisional World Cup list. Some of the surprising exclusions are Manchester City midfielder Phil Foden, AC Milan defender Fikayo Tomori, and Manchester United defender Harry Maguire. Maguire posted on his Instagram that he was sure that he would have made some good contributions to the squad. He expressed his shock by the decision. Tuchel defended his decision stating that Harry lacked mobility.

I'm not surprised by the omission of the three names.
Foden has experienced a significant decline in performance and moreover there are many choices of midfielders in the England national team, who are currently much better than him, as well as Maguire and Tomori, Maguire although this season has shown his quality again with Man Utd, it is not enough to impress Tuchel.
The point is that there are too many above-average quality players for the England squad so it will be difficult to compete for a place.