Goran Paladin shares his picks and plays for Day 2 of the World Cup.
With Switzerland perceived to be the strongest in Group B and Qatar the weakest, this match already looms as must-win territory for our combatants. Because if the aim is to avoid the uncertainty of the 3rd place ballot and qualify automatically for the Round of 32, a top two finish is required… meaning both Canada and Bosnia & Herzegovina will be gunning for all three points here.
The enormous boost for Canada of course is that they’re at home, and something else worth a fist pump is that coach Jesse Marsch proclaims to be in possession of “the best squad Canada’s ever had”. But results in recent months haven’t been ‘the best’, with draws against Iceland, Tunisia and Ireland outweighing their solitary win over Uzbekistan two weeks ago. Arguably their best player, Alphonso Davies is under an injury cloud coming in, whose pace and creative flair will be sorely missed if he’s ruled out.
Bosnia & Herzegovina are here at powerhouse Italy’s expense, having disposed of the former World Champs in a UEFA Playoff. They’re already exceeding expectations because when head coach Sergej Barbarez took the reins his main goal was to qualify for Euro 2028; a World Cup two years earlier than that is a lovely little bonus. Edin Dzeko is 40 years old, which is ancient in professional football terms but the former Manchester City target man pumped in six goals during qualifying, and he’ll nab one here in a score draw.
Tips
Best Bet: Draw @ $3.50
Best Goalscorer: Edin Dzeko ATS @ $3.30
Same Game Multi: Correct Score 1-1 + Edin Dzeko Score or Assist @ $13.43
FIGHT! FIGHT! FIGHT! Will these two sides pick up where they left off? In November last year USA hosted Paraguay in Pennsylvania. With the home team leading 2-1 and time almost up on the clock, American Alex Freeman and Paraguay’s Gustavo Gomez had a small tussle over a quick throw-in which quickly escalated; Paraguay’s bench emptied, the poor old 4th official was swept away in a sea of bodies, and Omar Alderete picked up a red card… Quite the achievement for someone who had literally seen no game time whatsoever for the visitors!
With that debacle seared into the memories of the players, we can expect this match to be a hostile affair right from the get-go… which will very likely play into Paraguay’s hands. They’ll be quite happy to turn this encounter into a street fight so the Americans can’t bask in the warm glow of hosting a World Cup match for the first time in 32 years. Take away all the warm fuzzies, and hit the yanks with some physicality!
If USA can rise above, using a not-so insignificant patriotic home crowd to their advantage and play the ‘soccer’ they’re capable of, this should be three points in the bag at the end of 90. Despite the best efforts of Miguel Almiron, who was fabulous in a beaten side last November, the USA will be too strong in their opening match.
Tips
Best Bet: Paraguay Over 2.5 cards @ $2.70
Best Goalscorer: Gio Reyna ATS @ $4.50
Same Race Multi: USA to WIN + Folarin Balogun ATS + Paraguay Most Cards @ $6.26
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