Team Canada is looking to punch its ticket to the next round of the FIFA World Cup with a win over Switzerland in a high-stakes match on Wednesday.
The faceoff is a key part in the Canadian men’s quest to advance further in the tournament.
“To go into the Switzerland game in a position to win the group, I think we’ve always expected that,” Canadian striker Cyle Larin said ahead of training on Monday.
“I think the group, we’ve always expected to be where we are, just from the quality we have in the group, the talent we have. I think we’ve always expected to be in this position.”
Before squashing Qatar 6-0 in Vancouver on June 18, the Canadian men had never won a World Cup game. Switzerland, currently 19th in FIFA’s official ranking, has made it to the tournament’s knockout round five times.
Canada and Switzerland have only ever faced each other once, with the Canadians taking the 3-1 win in the Swiss city of St. Gallen in May 2002.
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Canadian head coach Jesse Marsch will have to make at least one change to the starting 11 players he deployed against Qatar after central midfielder Ismaël Koné suffered a broken leg early in the second half. Nathan Saliba came on in relief in his World Cup debut, scoring off a free kick in the 64th minute of the match.
“Between Nathan, Mathieu Choiniere, Jonathan Osario, Niko Sigur, we’re going to have to figure out how to use all of our players to get the best out of each game and help fill in the void of what Ismaël has meant to the team, which has been many, many things,” Marsch said to reporters Friday afternoon.
“Koné’s been an incredible player, maybe our best player in the tournament so far. And he’s also a big personality in the group. So we’ll manage it, but it won’t be easy.”
The Swiss drew 1-1 against Qatar on June 13 and beat Bosnia and Herzegovina 4-1 on June 18, scoring the last two goals in the final 20 minutes of play. Switzerland also went undefeated in European qualifying to get to the World Cup.
Kickoff is set for 3 p.m. eastern, noon Pacific.
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Due to the higher number of competing teams, this is the first time a Round of 32 — the round Canada is looking to qualify for — has been played at the FIFA World Cup. It is set to run from June 28 to July 3 with 16 total matches.
Currently, Canada owns a goal differential of plus-six and is tied with Switzerland for first in Group B with four points. But placement remains key for the Canadians.
With a win or draw against Switzerland, Canada will finish first in Group B.
Capturing first place allows the team to get more than a week off to rest before playing on July 2 in Vancouver against a third-place finisher from Group E, F, G, I or J, which also involves the Canadians not having to travel to the pitch.
In addition, a win in the Round of 32 would allow Canada to stay put in Vancouver for the Round of 16.
The extra rest would also provide time to evaluate Canadian star Alphonso Davies’ status and whether he is in the starting lineup in the Round of 32.
A loss would likely drop Canada to second in the group, unless Bosnia and Herzegovina beats Qatar by a wide enough number to catch up from their current minus-three placement.
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Finishing in second place would insert Canada on the opposite end of the schedule, setting it up to play on the first day of knockout play, which is currently set for Sunday at 3 p.m. eastern in Los Angeles against the second-place finisher in Group A.
In a scenario where Bosnia and Herzegovina runs the scoreboard against Qatar, leaving Canada to drop to third place, Canada will play a group winner from Group D or E in either Boston or San Francisco.
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