Germany to brush off lowly Luxembourg
Having made a hesitant start to their World Cup 2026 qualifying campaign, Germany will expect to brush off lowly Luxembourg when the teams meet on Friday.
After suffering a rare defeat on Group A’s opening matchday, Die Nationalelf quickly recovered; however, they still sit third in the standings, just above their pointless visitors.
Expected to stroll straight through as group winners and book an automatic spot at next year’s global finals, Germany instead started off with a first-ever away defeat in World Cup qualifying.
Surprisingly beaten 2-0 in Slovakia early last month, Julian Nagelsmann‘s side then returned to action three days later, hosting Group A’s third seeds Northern Ireland in Cologne.
It was another unconvincing performance, with the score tied at 1-1 before Nadiem Amiri and Florian Wirtz both struck in the final 20 minutes to avoid more embarrassment on home turf.
The four-time world champions now resume their campaign sitting third in the table, with a tricky trip to Belfast scheduled straight after Friday’s home fixture.
Only the first-placed team in each group advances straight to the newly expanded 48-team finals, meaning Germany must catch and overhaul Slovakia if they want to avoid a playoff.
Luxembourg have also lost eight of nine friendlies between the neighbouring nations, with the sole exception a shock 2-1 home win back in 1939.
Like history, current form is not on their side, as Les Lions Rouges suffered back-to-back defeats in their first set of World Cup 2026 qualifying fixtures.
After keeping just five clean sheets in their last 18 games, Germany can both pick up maximum points and post a rare shut-out.
Credit: sportsmole.co.uk
Belgium play host to North Macedonia
In a clash at the top of Group J in a World Cup 2026 qualifier, Belgium will welcome North Macedonia to Planet Group Arena on Friday.
The second-placed hosts have 10 points while the first-placed visitors have 11, and with the sides having four and three matches left to play in the group respectively, the race to claim the only automatic qualification spot for the World Cup is sure to go down to the wire.
The hosts triumphed 6-0 when they faced Kazakhstan on September 7, and they have now scored 17 times in their four group outings.
Rudi Garcia‘s side’s win was their second consecutive 6-0 victory, but they did concede two or more goals in five of their previous nine.
Belgium will be wary of the threat posed by third-placed Wales, who also have 10 points, as defeat against North Macedonia would give their group rivals a significant boost before they play each other on October 13.
Failure to qualify for the World Cup would be seen as a disaster considering the nation have reached the group stage of eight of the past nine editions of the competition.
Belgium’s performances of late have improved given they are undefeated in five – they won four games – whereas they had lost five and drawn one of the six outings before the beginning of their unbeaten streak.
Friday’s clash is set to be a tense affair given the result will have significant ramifications on World Cup qualifying for both teams.
Credit: sportsmole.co.uk
France aim to make it three wins when they face Azerbaijan
France will be aiming to make it three wins from their three 2026 World Cup qualification fixtures when they continue their Group D campaign with a home fixture against Azerbaijan on Friday.
Les Bleus are top of Group D on six points, while the visitors are bottom of the section on one point, two points behind second-placed Iceland ahead of the next set of fixtures.
France were not exactly at their best in their two World Cup qualification fixtures in September, but they managed to post two wins, beating Ukraine 2-0 before recording a 2-1 victory over Iceland.
Didier Deschamps‘s side actually had to come from behind to overcome Iceland, with Kylian Mbappe and Bradley Barcola on the scoresheet after the visitors had taken a surprise led through Andri Gudjohnsen, and six points from two matches has left them at the top of Group D.
France are two-time World Cup winners, lifting the famous trophy in 1998 and 2018, while they were runners-up in 2022, losing an incredible final against Argentina on penalties.
France have only faced Azerbaijan on two previous occasions, which occurred during qualification for Euro 1996, posting 2-0 and 10-0 wins against the National Team.
France will be missing some important players on Friday, and Azerbaijan are capable of making this an uncomfortable match for the Blues. That said, we are expecting the hosts to navigate their way to an important victory in Group D to move onto nine points in the section.
Credit: sportsmole.co.uk
Sweden, Switzerland faceoff in Stockholm
Sweden will be looking to shake off an embarrassing defeat to Kosovo when they welcome Switzerland to Stockholm this Friday for a tasty World Cup qualifier.
Two games into their campaigns, the Swedes remain winless, while the Red Devils are top of the group with six points to their name.
Pressure is rapidly mounting on Sweden’s manager Jon Dahl Tomasson following a woeful start to their World Cup qualifying campaign, which includes a shock 2-0 defeat to Kosovo during the previous international break.
Arsenal and Sweden legend Freddie Ljungberg was one of many Swedish pundits to underline his frustration with the result, with the 48-year-old telling Viaplay: “It was crystal clear from the start, and we have huge problems. What the hell is going wrong?”
A 2-2 draw with Slovenia leaves the Blagult with just one point from their opening two games, leaving the team facing a real possibility of missing out on yet another major tournament.
In recent years, Sweden failed to qualify for the 2024 European Championships, as well as three of the last four World Cups. In fact, their last appearance at a major tournament was at the 2020 Euros.
The Swedish FA refused to pull the trigger on Tomasson, with the Director of Football going on to give his full backing to the current coach in the midst of the current slump.
While the Swedes ponder how to turn their form around, Switzerland are simply looking to keep their current momentum train firmly on the tracks.
Credit: sportsmole.co.uk
FIXTURES
Group A
Northern Ireland 18:45 Slovakia
Group B
Group D
Group J
Kazakhstan 14:00 Liechtenstein
The post Today’s UEFA World Cup Qualifiers Fixtures & Previews appeared first on The Ghanaian Chronicle.
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