Canada vs Switzerland Preview: Akanji Says Co-Hosts Face Tough Test

Switzerland aim to end round-of-16 curse vs Canada in group B finale  

Canada and Switzerland meet at BC Place with 4 points each. Canada lead on goal difference and can make history, while Switzerland need a point to guarantee progression.

Akanji warns Canada says Switzerland won’t roll over in Group B decider...

Switzerland defender Manuel Akanji says Canada won’t have it easy in their Group B finale at BC Place on Wednesday. Canada come in full of confidence after thrashing nine-man Qatar 6-0, but Akanji warned Switzerland won’t just give in.

Co-hosts Canada can lock up top spot and reach the World Cup knockout stage for the first time ever with a win or a draw.

“I know that they ‌want to win, but we also want to win here,” Akanji told reporters on Tuesday.

“We are not going to make it easy for them. We're going to try our best tomorrow. I think if we show our best side, we're going to win tomorrow.

“But they also won't make it easy for ⁠us. So we've got to be ready for it.”

Both sides sit on four points from two games, with Canada top thanks to a better goal difference. Switzerland came into the tournament as Group B favourites. They drew 1-1 with Qatar and then beat Bosnia and Herzegovina 4-1, and a point on Wednesday will be enough to put them through to the round of 32.

“I know that they ‌want to win, but we also want to win here,” Akanji told ​reporters on Tuesday.

“We are not going to make it easy for them. We're going to try our best ​tomorrow. I think if we show our best side, we're going to win tomorrow.

“But they also won't make it easy for ⁠us. So we've got ​to be ready for it.”

Switzerland have made it out of the group stage in five of their last six World Cups. But they’ve hit a wall in the last 16 every time.

They lost to Portugal at that stage in Qatar 2022. Still, there were signs of progress when they reached the Euro 2024 quarter-finals last year.

“I think our strength was always that we work as a team on the pitch,” Akanji added. “We also know we don't have three top-10 players in the world like other nations do, so it only works in that way.

“It's a team sport and we try to improve on things that we didn't do well and ‌I think as well on the last few Euros we went past the round of 16, but we weren't able ‌to do it on the World Cup so far.

“So I hope we can do it this time, but it's still a long way to go. But I think consistency is really important, that we try to do the things the ⁠same way and also try ⁠to improve the things ‌we didn't do well before.”