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

[BitBakerr1]

The current tournament is the last world cup for some senior players including Ronaldo that's why he was very ambition want to help Portugal to won the trophy because this could be a good achivement for Ronaldo before he is retired but indeed there was no official statement from Ronaldo regarding his retirement from football which probably Ronaldo possibly will playing at least for next 2 or 3 years and speaking about Portugal chances currently i was put them into one of my favourite that because Portugal squad is very good quality besides Ronaldo there are some players who possibly will playing well such as Vitinha, Rafael Leao or Joao Neves who just won champion league trophy with PSG

Will Portugal fail to win the World Cup? i don't know, but certainly understood as a team and as a national team it will certainly have the possibility in future years, but what you don't take into account is that there is a certain gentleman called Cristiano Ronaldo who is doing everything to win this trophy and i wouldn't take him for granted.

They are among the countries that I believe is going to win the World Cup this year, they have a very good squad right now and all they need is determination and determination is already in the club because of Cristiano Ronaldo. All the players in Portugal want Cristiano Ronaldo to win the World Cup and they are going to fight for it and with the squad they have i believe they can actually do it. They should put a fight in this year‘s World Cup because Ronaldo deserve to retire with the World Cup. I believe that we complete his career and I know that is what all the Portugal players want so they should just be determined to do that and they will achieve it.

[Warkop]

Will Portugal fail to win the World Cup? i don't know, but certainly understood as a team and as a national team it will certainly have the possibility in future years, but what you don't take into account is that there is a certain gentleman called Cristiano Ronaldo who is doing everything to win this trophy and i wouldn't take him for granted.

Portugal's squad is undoubtedly one of the strongest among the squads in this world cup. They have a lot of talented and star players. Portugal's defense, midfield and attack are all strong. But we still don't know what the  relationship between the players is like. We know that Ronaldo will try his best to win the world cup. If portugal can perform well as a team, then they have a chance to win the World Cup. Fans have high hopes for Portugal in this World cup.

I totally agree with your statement that almost all top football clubs have Portuguese players, every Portugal line has a complete player and it all depends on how Ronaldo as the captain leads his country, we also know that this is his last world cup so it seems like Ronaldo will play as well as possible, he doesn't want that failure to happen again this year.

[fuguebtc]

There is currently no certainty that Portugal will win the World Cup, or which team will win. However, compared to all the other strong teams, I think Portugal's chances of winning are much lower. There are many strong teams, we can never say that they will win based on just one player. If we could see some more good players in the Portugal team like Brazil, then maybe we could say that Portugal can win this World Cup.

You probably haven't seen the Portugal squad. Or you do not  know the players, that's why you're saying that. Portugal's squad is one of the strongest squads in this world cup.

Portugal is not at  all dependent on ronaldo. Ronaldo is unlikely to even be in the starting XI. They have a lot of talented players. In the attack, apart from Ronaldo, there are three talented players like Joao Felix, Pedro neto and Ramos. All three of them play for giant clubs in Europe and have been in very good form this season.
In the midfield, there is Bruno fernandes, who has played incredibly well this season. Also Silva, Vitinha, and Neves are very talented. And each of them deserves a  place in the starting XI.
In the defense of portugal, there are players like Nunes, Dalot, Cancelo Mendes, Dias and Araujo. Not only is Portugal's squad strong, their bench is also quite heavy.

[Ale88]

Ronaldo won't see another world cup, that much is known. He would be roughly 45-46 years old on the next one, and there is no way that he could play until then. Hell, even if we assume that he plays, like not even Saudis would want a 46 year old Ronaldo, but let's assume that he somehow does, like goes to Portugal buys a club and plays there or something lol.

He would not be good enough for the nation team, and it would be weird to see him there at that age. Lets face it, it's his last one ever.

Maybe we will see Ronaldo play in the World Cup again, but it will be in the Legends FIFA World Cup or the FIFA World Cup with retired players. But as far as I know, no such World Cup is organized. So this year is the last World Cup of Cristiano Ronaldo's life. Even after this World Cup, we may see him retire from all forms of football. He is already 41 years old, I don't think any club would want to accept a player who is 42 or 43 years old, not even the fans. So it is almost certain that we will not see him playing football for much longer after the World Cup.

There are some other legendary players who are going to retire very soon after the World Cup, they are legendary players like Lionel Messi, Luka Modric, Robert Lewandowski and Luis Suarez. Although Luis Suarez has already finished playing in the last FIFA World Cup, he was not called up to the squad for this season. So we can assume his international football career is already over.

I can't believe you guys are still talking about Cristiano Ronaldo taking part at the 2023 World Cup when this edition didn't even start. Anyway, besides the fact that personally I think it's ridiculous to even think about it, let's see what happens in this World Cup: how many goals is he going to score? Possibly in important matches because if he scores an hat-trick against Uzbekistan, well, it's not exactly the same as scoring against Spain or France.

[yudi09]

There will be no more nostalgia for the modern era of soccer at the World Cup once this tournament is over, because Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi will be spectators, not players.
Lionel Messi has already won this trophy with Argentina. Meanwhile, Cristiano Ronaldo has yet to win the World Cup with Portugal.

It’s no surprise that many people are hoping Portugal will give it their all to win this World Cup, as they all want to see Ronaldo—an icon of modern soccer—lift the trophy now that Argentina has done so for Messi.
This isn’t about whether or not they’re Ronaldo fans; they simply want Portugal to win.

How many years or days will we get the next legend after losing these two legends? It is still uncertain. Although there are star players like Kylian Mbappe, Dembele, Julian Alvarez, Vinicius Junior and Rafinha at the moment, they have not yet shown the ability to become legendary players. Although Lamine Yamal is considered the successor of Lionel Messi, he is still far from being a legend.

Kylian Mbappé isn’t quite ready to be considered a legend yet, as he still has many shortcomings that prevent soccer fans from viewing him in the same light as Ronaldo and Messi.
Given Dembele and Raphinha’s current ages—and the fact that they belong to a generation where Ronaldo and Messi were still active, even though they no longer play in major leagues like those in Europe—it feels like they aren’t the right generation to carry on the legacy of Ronaldo and Messi. As for Yamal, given his age, it’s still possible because his performances so far have left a lasting impression on soccer fans, in my opinion.

[Ahli38]

Anyone can improve, in this case for Yamal I wouldn't call improvement, but simply balance, it's true he dribbles a lot and he knows how to do it well, but that's because he has talent.
However, these plays affect the risk of injury, loss of possession and consequently reduced teamwork in many ways.
He doesn't just have to improve in performance, but above all in being in the team.

Yamal is clearly improving, but he is still young and there are many possibilities for him, when you have all eyes on him the most difficult part to train is his mind, without that there is no hope for him, he has to keep his feet on the ground and not do bullshit because then he will come out badly, it's a moment to lose everything he has done up to now.

I personally think that Lamine Yamal is exceptionally talented for a player his age. In the Spanish league he has made a significant contribution through the goals he has scored this season even though he didn’t make the top 3. But he has provided the most assists compared to other players. In several previous World Cup qualifying matches Lamine Yamal has contributed significantly too. And he has also received the highest ratings such as when the Spanish national team faced Turkey or even against Bulgaria. I think Yamal has shown excellent improvement in his performance. He possesses a champion’s mentality despite still being quite young. However he needs to improve his physical endurance to avoid getting injured as easily as he has recently.

[Justbillywitt]

Ronaldo won't see another world cup, that much is known. He would be roughly 45-46 years old on the next one, and there is no way that he could play until then. Hell, even if we assume that he plays, like not even Saudis would want a 46 year old Ronaldo, but let's assume that he somehow does, like goes to Portugal buys a club and plays there or something lol.

He would not be good enough for the nation team, and it would be weird to see him there at that age. Lets face it, it's his last one ever.

There will be no more nostalgia for the modern era of soccer at the World Cup once this tournament is over, because Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi will be spectators, not players.
Lionel Messi has already won this trophy with Argentina. Meanwhile, Cristiano Ronaldo has yet to win the World Cup with Portugal.

It’s no surprise that many people are hoping Portugal will give it their all to win this World Cup, as they all want to see Ronaldo—an icon of modern soccer—lift the trophy now that Argentina has done so for Messi.
This isn’t about whether or not they’re Ronaldo fans; they simply want Portugal to win.

Why would Portugal want to win the World Cup for Ronaldo? If Portugal win the World Cup they will do it for their country and not for Ronaldo because he said it himself that the World Cup is not really an important tournament and he doesn’t need it, since he has won the Euros which is equivalent to the World Cup according to his own dictionary. How I wish Portugal can lift the World Cup, so we will see how Ronaldo will celebrate it, after talking down about the World Cup. I was hoping he would reject the call up to feature for his country in this World Cup.

[jaberwock]

Spain will definitely be great with Yamal, but lets remember that they are lacking a proper striker, and while they have won great so far, I am still fearing that it will not be as easy in the biggest cup of the world.

Ferran Torrest is their "striker", and he is not even a striker, he is a great forward, but not a striker type of player like Haaland or Lewandowski type of goalscoring machine type of striker, he is "let's bring the ball upfront and pass very well" type of tiki taka guy. Which worked for them so far, but not sure if it will work at world cup, where it is the biggest stage of football.

[Emitdama]

Their best result since 2000s is just a 4th place... They have 0 World Cup in their history. Of course this doesn't mean that they won't have any in the future.

But I mean they've been much better in Euros. Even if they win a World Cup as well later on I don't think it'll happen in presence of Ronaldo.

I agree with you; they’ve got some excellent players and sooner or later they’ll win the World Cup, just like Spain, who’ve always been a good team but didn’t win their first World Cup until 2010 with incredible midfielders like Xavi, Iniesta and Busquets, combined with a style of play that was unstoppable.
Portugal are following in their footsteps; they have top class midfielders in Vitinha and Joao Neves, but they always struggle a bit in attack  if Cristiano Ronaldo isn’t there, they start to struggle to score. The next World Cup could be their time.

And what if Cristiano Ronaldo’s son were to win it?

In the last few decades, Portugal's overall performance increased, but sadly they have never had a chance in the World Cup. This is miserable for them. This time, they have a good squad with Ronaldo, who is always a big influence, but this is not working for them.

Maybe they are taking this as pressure, which is not helping them to have good results. Maybe they are facing a situation like PSG Mbappe's presence never works for them, but after his exit, now they have two titles in two years. Or Ronaldo's presence is not working for Portugal, and after his exit, they could be able to win the title because things like these also work.

[Bitcoin_people]

Will Portugal fail to win the World Cup? i don't know, but certainly understood as a team and as a national team it will certainly have the possibility in future years, but what you don't take into account is that there is a certain gentleman called Cristiano Ronaldo who is doing everything to win this trophy and i wouldn't take him for granted.

Portugal's squad is undoubtedly one of the strongest among the squads in this world cup. They have a lot of talented and star players. Portugal's defense, midfield and attack are all strong. But we still don't know what the  relationship between the players is like. We know that Ronaldo will try his best to win the world cup. If portugal can perform well as a team, then they have a chance to win the World Cup. Fans have high hopes for Portugal in this World cup.

I totally agree with your statement that almost all top football clubs have Portuguese players, every Portugal line has a complete player and it all depends on how Ronaldo as the captain leads his country, we also know that this is his last world cup so it seems like Ronaldo will play as well as possible, he doesn't want that failure to happen again this year.

Portugal currently has many good players and good stars who are in almost every top club. In that case, if Ronaldo can lead well in this World Cup, then the team will definitely move forward completely. As a captain, Ronaldo can certainly be a good leader, but in addition, the manager must also have good strategies. I believe that Ronaldo will not fail to win the trophy in this World Cup, so he will definitely play with his best performance and if every player in the team plays strongly, then everything will be possible.

[Slow death]

There are players who have very bad luck, like Neymar, which I believe everyone knows about, who was injured a few weeks before the World Cup games. Fortunately for him, he still has hope of playing in the World Cup. But in Lennart Karl case, the situation seems worrying. He was injured during training and taken to the hospital, according to coach Nagelsmann. Now they are waiting for the results of the tests to determine the next steps: whether he will remain in the squad or be released and another player called up in his place. It's a sad situation.

[Jessie2121]

Why would Portugal want to win the World Cup for Ronaldo? If Portugal win the World Cup they will do it for their country and not for Ronaldo because he said it himself that the World Cup is not really an important tournament and he doesn’t need it, since he has won the Euros which is equivalent to the World Cup according to his own dictionary. How I wish Portugal can lift the World Cup, so we will see how Ronaldo will celebrate it, after talking down about the World Cup. I was hoping he would reject the call up to feature for his country in this World Cup.

When I see this statement I laugh because the words of footballers are not suppose to be taken to heart completely, is funny at first when Ronaldo said the World Cup isn't an important tournament, that's bull shit, if it isn't important why is he still answering the call up? Why not allow the young ones to enjoy themselves and show their skills? Honestly, if by chance Ronaldo wins the World Cup I mean Portugal wins the World Cup believe me, Ronaldo will be so happy because he will have to add it to trophies he has won as a footballer and he can even retire after the World Cup. Let us not think that Ronaldo is playing for the team, sometimes he does it for himself and that comment he made that the World Cup doesn't mean to him if you check deep inside of him you would know that he is saying it for attention because he really does want that trophy.

[ILuckyGuyI]

There are players who have very bad luck, like Neymar, which I believe everyone knows about, who was injured a few weeks before the World Cup games. Fortunately for him, he still has hope of playing in the World Cup. But in Lennart Karl case, the situation seems worrying. He was injured during training and taken to the hospital, according to coach Nagelsmann. Now they are waiting for the results of the tests to determine the next steps: whether he will remain in the squad or be released and another player called up in his place. It's a sad situation.

I'm going to be honest on this. I can't be so sentimental about Neymar.    Because man, this guy has sometimes acted like he is injured also.

He is a very talented player of course. But I don't see him anymore like he loves to play football professionally. As he couldn't play properly for a long time I wouldn't call him to national team if I were in Ancelotti's place.

[yudi09]

There will be no more nostalgia for the modern era of soccer at the World Cup once this tournament is over, because Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi will be spectators, not players.
Lionel Messi has already won this trophy with Argentina. Meanwhile, Cristiano Ronaldo has yet to win the World Cup with Portugal.

It’s no surprise that many people are hoping Portugal will give it their all to win this World Cup, as they all want to see Ronaldo—an icon of modern soccer—lift the trophy now that Argentina has done so for Messi.
This isn’t about whether or not they’re Ronaldo fans; they simply want Portugal to win.

Why would Portugal want to win the World Cup for Ronaldo? If Portugal win the World Cup they will do it for their country and not for Ronaldo because he said it himself that the World Cup is not really an important tournament and he doesn’t need it, since he has won the Euros which is equivalent to the World Cup according to his own dictionary. How I wish Portugal can lift the World Cup, so we will see how Ronaldo will celebrate it, after talking down about the World Cup. I was hoping he would reject the call up to feature for his country in this World Cup.

It’s not just for Ronaldo. If Portugal were to win the World Cup, it wouldn’t be wrong to view this from a positive perspective, given that Ronaldo’s role and stature for Portugal make it a worthy achievement.
Furthermore, the teams competing in this World Cup are all aiming for the same goal. But it’s not wrong to hope that Ronaldo can win it this time, to cap off his career as an athlete who has brought so much joy to so many people through soccer.

[$crypto$]

There are players who have very bad luck, like Neymar, which I believe everyone knows about, who was injured a few weeks before the World Cup games. Fortunately for him, he still has hope of playing in the World Cup. But in Lennart Karl case, the situation seems worrying. He was injured during training and taken to the hospital, according to coach Nagelsmann. Now they are waiting for the results of the tests to determine the next steps: whether he will remain in the squad or be released and another player called up in his place. It's a sad situation.

Another player cannot be called up to replace him because according to the data I read the application deadline was on June 1, now it is more than that date so inevitably Lennart Karl must still join the German squad with an injury, I hope he is not bad because he is a young player.

Actually I don't pay much attention to Lennart Karl, if I'm not mistaken he's not a main player right?

[ndutndut]

Will Portugal fail to win the World Cup? i don't know, but certainly understood as a team and as a national team it will certainly have the possibility in future years, but what you don't take into account is that there is a certain gentleman called Cristiano Ronaldo who is doing everything to win this trophy and i wouldn't take him for granted.

Portugal's squad is undoubtedly one of the strongest among the squads in this world cup. They have a lot of talented and star players. Portugal's defense, midfield and attack are all strong. But we still don't know what the  relationship between the players is like. We know that Ronaldo will try his best to win the world cup. If portugal can perform well as a team, then they have a chance to win the World Cup. Fans have high hopes for Portugal in this World cup.

I totally agree with your statement that almost all top football clubs have Portuguese players, every Portugal line has a complete player and it all depends on how Ronaldo as the captain leads his country, we also know that this is his last world cup so it seems like Ronaldo will play as well as possible, he doesn't want that failure to happen again this year.

Portugal lineup in this World Cup is truly impressive, and this squad will make opposing teams fearful when facing them. The current Portuguese squad is predominantly comprised of young players with extensive experience at their respective clubs and each player possesses a winning mentality. Furthermore, Portugal is in a group that could be considered very easy to overcome making it easier for them to advance to the round of 16.

So, my prediction is that Portugal will go far this season and even win the World Cup. Honestly, the lineup is very competitive. The coach must be able to utilize each player's potential and make sound decisions, including regarding Ronaldo. Admittedly at 41 years old Ronaldo certainly won't be able to play at his best for 90 minutes. Therefore, the coach must be brave enough to use him or even occasionally use him as a super sub, as he can still make a difference for Portugal.

[Distraction]

There are only 6 days left! Are you going to watch the first match of the World Cup? It's Mexico - South Africa which I can't say exciting...    But as a tradition I guess I would watch it. Mexico should be winning that.

Another player cannot be called up to replace him because according to the data I read the application deadline was on June 1, now it is more than that date so inevitably Lennart Karl must still join the German squad with an injury, I hope he is not bad because he is a young player.

Actually I don't pay much attention to Lennart Karl, if I'm not mistaken he's not a main player right?

Germany would really make use of a great talent like him. There is still a diagnosis process now so we will see if he will be able to recover.

If the injury isn't serious then he shouldn't be replaced with another player I believe.

[Muba20]

Their best result since 2000s is just a 4th place... They have 0 World Cup in their history. Of course this doesn't mean that they won't have any in the future.

But I mean they've been much better in Euros. Even if they win a World Cup as well later on I don't think it'll happen in presence of Ronaldo.

I agree with you; they’ve got some excellent players and sooner or later they’ll win the World Cup, just like Spain, who’ve always been a good team but didn’t win their first World Cup until 2010 with incredible midfielders like Xavi, Iniesta and Busquets, combined with a style of play that was unstoppable.
Portugal are following in their footsteps; they have top class midfielders in Vitinha and Joao Neves, but they always struggle a bit in attack  if Cristiano Ronaldo isn’t there, they start to struggle to score. The next World Cup could be their time.

And what if Cristiano Ronaldo’s son were to win it?

In the last few decades, Portugal's overall performance increased, but sadly they have never had a chance in the World Cup. This is miserable for them. This time, they have a good squad with Ronaldo, who is always a big influence, but this is not working for them.

Maybe they are taking this as pressure, which is not helping them to have good results. Maybe they are facing a situation like PSG Mbappe's presence never works for them, but after his exit, now they have two titles in two years. Or Ronaldo's presence is not working for Portugal, and after his exit, they could be able to win the title because things like these also work.

They might win the title after Ronaldo leaves, maybe you're right, but it's very sad. Portugal has been a symbol of bad luck in the World Cup. There's no doubt that Ronaldo is a world-class player. But it could also be that the rest of the team can't play well with Ronaldo, which is why they end up losing. Football can never be played on one player. After all, team performance is the most effective. When Ronaldo comes on the field, the opponents are under pressure because of his style of play, his teammates may also be under the same pressure. Football is not played under pressure. This kind of pressure often makes good players perform poorly. Although this is just my personal opinion. But if we look at the Portugal team, we can see that they have quite good players. But despite having good players, they are not able to reach the final goal. So, I can agree with you that Portugal could really have won without Ronaldo.

[KTChampions]

Portugal's squad is undoubtedly one of the strongest among the squads in this world cup. They have a lot of talented and star players. Portugal's defense, midfield and attack are all strong. But we still don't know what the  relationship between the players is like. We know that Ronaldo will try his best to win the world cup. If portugal can perform well as a team, then they have a chance to win the World Cup. Fans have high hopes for Portugal in this World cup.

When I look at the Portugal national team's roster, it seems to me that they only had a more stellar squad under Luís Figo. But what's most interesting is that if you rank teams by squad value, Portugal only seems to be in third place, behind France and Spain. And the gap is quite large: France's squad value, if I remember correctly, is 1.7 billion, while Portugal's is 1.1 billion. Probably the main contribution to this imbalance is the inflated price of Yamal and Mbappe  

[Suleiman the Magnificent]

Based on what I've watched of the friendly matches so far, it doesn't look like it's going to be a tournament worth our expectations. Especially a few of the favorites seem like they might genuinely surprise us. But at least it's good just for the chance to watch Messi and Ronaldo. Who knows, maybe we'll get to watch these two in the final of what could be their last World Cup, I hope so, at least.