Twelve teams will be at the World Cup from North and South America. I have the reigning champions as the best.
Argentina will be one of the teams to beat at this World Cup, with Lionel Messi returning to defend the trophy he led his country to back in the winter of 2022. There are other teams from Central America and South America, though, that could also be a spoiler at this tournament.
Here’s how I rank all 12 teams from the Americas ahead of Mexico’s World Cup opener on Thursday against South Africa.
If there was a trophy for the team that will bring the best vibes to the World Cup this summer, it’s Curaçao. You see the players’ training entrances and dancing, their traveling school bus â it’s absolutely epic. They’ll make the most of the tournament on and off the pitch from an experience standpoint and hopefully from a playing perspective.
Most of the players are from the Netherlands, so there will be a solid base for this squad that ultimately lacks international experience. (Im also hoping to vacation in Curaçao after the tournament.)
Obviously, Panama got a tough group with England, Croatia and Ghana. This team will be leaning heavily on midfielder Adalberto Carrasquilla and AnÃbal Godoy, who plays for San Diego FC and has 159 international caps to his name. Panama will have to be solid defensively against three strong opponents with no lapses in concentration. Also, on a positive note, the warm climate won’t affect them.
Panama has stumped teams in the past in CONCACAF, so I wouldn’t count them out, but making real noise in this tournament will be a difficult task. Set pieces will be key.
Keep an eye out for that Croatia game. I think Panama could pull off a surprise.
Haiti could surprise some people here. It has had some solid results in friendlies, including a 4-0 win over New Zealand back on June 2.
Also, Haiti will have a potential home-field advantage in the U.S. with a lot of fans at every game. Dont rule this team out.
Paraguay is back at the World Cup for the first time since 2010, when it made the quarterfinals in South Africa.
It will have a big defensive focus, but it could have some flaws where it lacks concentration when the game is in transition. I also could see the Paraguayans struggling to score.
Overall, this is the most direct team in South America with the fewest passes in CONMEBOL qualifying, so it wont need many passes to score. Paraguay also had the most tackles of any team in its 18 qualifiers.
Under head coach Jesse Marsch, the high press is going to be Canadas biggest strength. It could also be its biggest weakness, though, if it can’t sustain it for the entirety of a game against quality opposition later in the tournament. Canada will have to take advantage of playing its group games in its home country.
Alphonso Davies will be the clear generator of chances going forward, but is the Bayern Munich man 100 percent healthy and in form? Whether thats the case for the entirety of the tournament will determine how successful Canada can be.
The first thing I think of with Mexico is inconsistency, both in terms of coaching and personnel. You never quite know what youre going to get with El Tri.
Goalkeeper will be a question going into the tournament. Chivas keeper Raul Rangel will start, but I will be patiently awaiting some magic from potential memorable Memo Ochoa moments and Memo memorabilia.
Going forward, there will be a lot of pressure on strikers Santiago Giménez and Raúl Jiménez to score the big goals.
Can Bielsa ball prove itself on the world’s greatest stage? Manager Marcelo Bielsa always emphasizes the high press and aggression, which are already part of the garra charrúa mentality.
There has been talk of friction in the squad, which is alarming, but it’s time for the leaders to ge
