Our prediction for this World Cup 2026 match:
Belgium
Match Time & Date:
23/11/2022
20:00
Prediction: 2-1
Canada
Belgium and Canada square off against each other at Ahmad bin Ali Stadium in their World Cup opener. The Red Devils are seen as one of the main favourites to win the title, but the Canucks should not be written off just yet. A man to keep an eye on in Roberto Martinez’s team will be Man City superstar Kevin De Bruyne, while Inter striker Romelu Lukaku will be assessed ahead of the kick-off as he is carrying a hamstring injury.
Milan attacker Divock Origi, on the other hand, has been left out of the squad. Meanwhile, Canada impressed in the CONCACAF World Cup qualifiers, with the team finishing the process in top position, above both Mexico and USA. Bayern Munich wing-back Alphonso Davies is a major doubt, and he faces race against clock to be fit for the Group F opener. Anyhow, home win should be considered as Roberto Martinez has a number of top-class players to choose from.
Highlighted Player (Thibaut Courtois):
Born on 11 May 1992, Thibaut Courtois is a very talented Belgian goalkeeper who plays for Chelsea. Courtois began his senior football career at Genk, but after spending two seasons at Cristal Arena, he joined Chelsea in 2011.
The club chiefs decided to send him on loan to Atletico Madrid, but seeing that Courtois impressed during his spell with the La Liga team, Jose Mourinho confirmed in June, 2014 that the Belgian goalkeeper would return to Chelsea for the 2014/2015 campaign. Thibaut Courtois helped Chelsea win the Premier League trophy in 2015, but the general impression is that he had performed much better while at Atletico Madrid. He won the La Liga title in the 2013/2014 season, while lifting the UEFA Europa League trophy in 2012.
Two years later Courtois participated in the Champions League final, but Real Madrid proved to be a big catch for Atletico Madrid. Speaking of his individual awards, Thibaut Courtois was named the La Liga Goalkeeper of the Year (2013).
Highlighted Team (Canada):
Canada national football team played their first official match back in 1924 when they suffered a 3-2 loss to Australia in Brisbane. The following year the two teams faced each other one in Adelaide, with the Canadians managing to get their revenge on the Socceroos. The Canucks had several unsuccessful attempts to make it to the World Cup finals, but in 1986 they finally booked their place at the showpiece tournament.
Canada faced France in their opener, with Jean-Pierre Papin scoring the winner for les Tricolores in the dying minutes of the match. The Canadians were beaten by Hungary and USSR in the next two group games as well and, as a result, they failed to advance to the knockout stages.
Speaking of the team’s trophies, the Canucks won the CONCACAF Gold cup on two occasions (1985, 2000), with the team beating Honduras and Colombia respectively in the title games. Canada national football team play their home games at BMO Field and the capacity of the venue is 30,000.
Man City 
Everton
Bournemouth
Crystal Palace 
Chelsea 
Fulham
Newcastle 
Aston Villa 
Nottingham Forest 
Tottenham
Southampton 
West Ham 
