Dave1962

Oviedo have won the opening two legs of this tie, which were both played at Gipuzkoa. Given that Oviedo are now playing at home, where they have beaten Gipuzkoa the last three times they have welcomed them, I’m predicting they will continue their dominance against this opponent.

The world number one is by far the highest-ranked player in this tournament. In his last event, the PGA Championship, he opened with a three-under-par round. With another solid opening round, Scheffler could well be the first-round leader.

As one of the hosts of this tournament Mexico play in the opening game of the 2026 World Cup. Their last two friendlies saw them draw with Belgium and Portugal. They have ranked forty-five places higher than their opponents. With tougher opponents to come, the hosts will be wanting to collect all three points from their opening game.

South Korea finished top of their group to qualify for the World Cup, while Czechia had to go through the play-offs. South Korea are ranked sixteen places higher than Czechia. South Korea have equipped themselves well in previous World Cup campaigns, and there is every chance they will cope with the conditions better than Czechia. They last met in 2016, and South Korea won.

Bosnia and Herzegovina finished second in their group and had to come through the play-offs. Their two opponents were Wales and Italy. In each of those games, at the end of ninety minutes, each side had scored once. They finally came through both games on penalties. If they can get a result against Wales and Italy, then there is every chance they can beat Canada.

USA are ranked twenty-four places above Paraguay. They are sure to have plenty of support, being one of the host nations. These two played a friendly last November, which USA won. That was their third consecutive win against Paraguay.

Switzerland are ranked thirty-six places above Qatar. Switzerland qualified for this tournament by finishing top of their group. Qatar had a poor Arab Cup, losing to both Tunisia and Palestine and only managing a draw against Syria. Switzerland should have too much class for their opponents.

Brazil do not appear to be one of the dominant South American teams, having only qualified in fifth. Morocco come into this game as Africa Cup of Nations champions. The way Morocco play, they are likely to create plenty of chances, and if a few of them go in, then there is every chance of them winning this game.

When Scotland needed to win, they beat Denmark to qualify for the World Cup. They have since played two friendlies, which they lost. They are ranked forty places above Haiti in the FIFA rankings. Scotland need the win to get their campaign up and running. With games against Brazil and Morocco to come, Scotland will be looking to secure all three points as a foundation for progressing in the competition.

Australia may be the outsiders to win this group, but they could cause Türkiye plenty of problems. Türkiye came through the play-offs and struggled to beat Romania and Kosovo. Both those wins were by a single goal scored in the second half. Both those teams are ranked lower than Australia. Australia are ranked five places lower than Türkiye, but if they can get the lead, they may go on to get the win.

England return to competitive football, and with a full-strength team they should do much better than their last game, which was a friendly at home against Japan where they lost. England are ranked seven places higher than Croatia in the FIFA rankings. The last two times England have played Croatia they have won by a single goal. This could be another closely fought game. In qualifying, England won all eight games, while Croatia won seven and drew one. Another England win by a single-goal margin could once again be the outcome of this game.

Once again, the English fans will be full of hope that their team can win this tournament for the first time since 1966. They have the players to achieve this. In qualifying they won all eight games, scoring twenty-two goals and conceding none. If they can again be a team that is difficult to break down, the England team have a good chance of winning this competition.

For England to win the tournament, they will probably once again be relying on Harry Kane to be the main goalscorer. In addition to any goals he scores in open play, if any penalties are to be taken he is the player the team look to to take the spot kick. He has been in great form for Bayern Munich, so hopefully he can come away from this tournament as top goalscorer.