The Road to World Cup 2026 and UEFA Nations League

[Wellen Wolf]

Mexico 0 Colombia 4!

Jhon Arias was not selected as he was rested to help him settle in at Wolves.
Yerson Mosquera sat it out on the bench.
And for those interested, Raul Jimenez was not selected as he is injured.

 

[Lupo]

Raul went off injured in Fulham's game last week I think

 

[Deutsch Wolf]

Cape Verde have qualified

 

[Wellen Wolf]

Cape Verde have qualified.

I work in Luxembourg and, as such, they form part of the large Portuguese speaking community that I know and work with. They are deliriously happy, especially a lad I know whose dad played for the national team. Good for them.
On the other hand, each expansion since I first watched 16 teams compete in England in 66 means it broadens access. The way things are going with 48 next year and proposals for 64 in 2020 will result in a boring, uncompetitive jamboree with ridiculous hurdles for fans who want to travel to support their country.

 

[BillyDee]

Agreed. The point is that these are supposed to be the Finals. Everyone gets an opportunity to qualify, not everyone should be in the Finals.

 

[Hereford Wolf]

Kane Brilliant

 

[Templeton Peck]

Tuchel is building a proper team.

 

[Hereford Wolf]

Pen

 

[Sniffer]

Tuchel is building a proper team.

They’ve looked good in the last 3 matches. How Tuchel ever thought that having balance on either flank and having runners going beyond Kane on both sides of him is beyond comprehension for none of the country with the exception of Southgate.

 

[Lupo]

Italy beat Israel 3-0 in Udine to guarantee a play off spot (Norway's extraordinary GD makes them virtually impossible to catch), a brace for Mateo Retegui (remember him?) to make it 4 wins from 4 for Rino Gattuso

 

[Templeton Peck]

Foden, Bellingham and Kane cannot all start in England’s system, insists Tuchel

The England head coach has played down the prospect of fielding the trio together, while he has also suggested he is unlikely to take five No 10s to the tournament – meaning at least one big-name player could miss out

www.theguardian.com

Finally, someone gets it.

 

[White Wolf]

Forget starting, I don't think I'd even have Foden in the squad! Spoiled for options, we don't need to shoehorn someone in who hasn't been at it for about 18 months. Off the top if my head I don't think he's ever had a good game for England, his ouput is rubbish in internationals. At least Tuchel sees the problem enough not to start them all I guess.

 

[Templeton Peck]

Forget starting, I don't think I'd even have Foden in the squad! Spoiled for options, we don't need to shoehorn someone in who hasn't been at it for about 18 months. Off the top if my head I don't think he's ever had a good game for England, his ouput is rubbish in internationals. At least Tuchel sees the problem enough not to start them all I guess.

Still get the usual idiot journos saying he 'has to find a place for xxx'. No he doesn't. If he wins the tournament with Nick Pope up front I really won't care.

 

[leedswolf]

No he doesn't. If he wins the tournament with Nick Pope up front I really won't care.

Peak Total Football...

 

[Banjo]

Wales' play-off game is (home) versus Bosnia, with the winner playing the winner of... Italy v N.I.

Christ.

Ireland are away to Czechia.

 

[Alan]

Curaçaooooooo

I'm going to lose my shit (positive) watching them at a World Cup.

 

[jlo]

Wales' play-off game is (home) versus Bosnia, with the winner playing the winner of... Italy v N.I.

Christ.

Ireland are away to Czechia.

Ooh, but I see Wales will host the final if they win which could be quite an advantage, or at least a great atmosphere!

 

[Deutsch Wolf]

The top four seeded countries will not be able to meet each other until the semi-finals of next year's World Cup for the first time in the tournament's history.
Fifa has announced that Spain (1st seed) and Argentina (2) will be 'paired' and placed into groups in opposite halves of the draw.
France (3) and England (4) will also be paired, which means England will not be able to come up against Spain or Argentina until the semi-finals, and France until the final.
This only applies if the four countries win their groups.
When two teams are paired, they are placed in opposite halves of the knockout bracket and cannot meet each other until the final. This happens at Wimbledon, and in the new Champions League format, where seeds are kept apart in pairs.
Fifa wants to ensure the top-ranked countries do not meet earlier in the knockout rounds, thus potentially creating blockbuster games later in the tournament. The same ranking system was used for the Club World Cup in the summer.

 

[Lupo]

So Ronaldo's 3 match ban for his sending off against Ireland amended to 2 games suspended for a year meaning he will now be eligible for the opening games of the World Cup and only missed the qualifier against Armenia

 

[Elephant Pyjamas]

So Ronaldo's 3 match ban for his sending off against Ireland amended to 2 games suspended for a year meaning he will now be eligible for the opening games of the World Cup and only missed the qualifier against Armenia

Fuck me.

I can't get my head around how openly corrupt that is.

No doubt JD81 will be along in a minute to tell me I'm wrong though.