26/03/2026

SPORTS THURSDAY | MAR 26, 2026

30

Underdogs chase World Cup berths

TWO of the final remaining tickets to the World Cup will be up for grabs when a high-stakes playoff tournament kicks off in Mexico tomorrow, bringing together six teams from across the globe. New Caledonia, Suriname, Jamaica, Bolivia, Iraq and the Democratic Republic of Congo form the diverse cast of hopefuls each chasing one of the two berths on offer for this year’s expanded 48-team finals in the United States, Canada and Mexico. The mini-tournament in Guadalajara and Monterrey also serves as a test run for two cities set to host World Cup matches in June, giving Mexico a chance to showcase its readiness after recent security concerns. The straight knockout playoffs begin tomorrow (11am Malaysian time), with the tiny

Players and staff based in Baghdad however made it out of the country after reportedly traveling overland to Jordan before flying out of Amman to reach Mexico. Iraq are bidding to reach the World Cup for only the second time, having qualified for the 1986 finals in Mexico where they lost all three group games against Paraguay, Belgium, and Mexico. For DR Congo, meanwhile, the wait to secure their second World Cup finals appearance has been even longer. The country, formerly Zaire, last played at the 1974 World Cup finals in Germany, where they were eliminated in the group stage after defeats to Scotland, Yugoslavia and Brazil without scoring a goal. DR Congo though have grounds for believing that the long wait to return to the finals could finally be over after battling through African qualifying, eliminating Cameroon and Nigeria to reach these playofffs. – AFP

The team that survives the Monterrey pathway will land in a daunting Group I, where France, Norway and Senegal await. On paper, and according to the latest Fifa rankings, Iraq and the DR Congo will start as the heavy favourites to advance out of the playoffs. Iraq’s preparations however have been hampered by the outbreak of war in the Middle East triggered by US-Israeli strikes on Iran. Iraq coach Graham Arnold initially appealed to Fifa to postpone his team’s playoff, stating that many players and backroom staff had been left stranded due to the war.

French Pacific territory of New Caledonia facing the “Reggae Boyz” of Jamaica in Guadalajara. The winner will advance to meet the Democratic Republic of Congo at the same venue on April 1, with a World Cup ticket on the line. Whoever emerges will join Group K alongside Colombia, Portugal and Uzbekistan. In Monterrey, Bolivia – seeking their first World Cup appearance since the 1994 finals in the United States – take on Suriname, the former Dutch colony on the northeastern coast. The victor will move on to a winner-take-all clash with Iraq next week for second berth on offer.

Italy head coach Gennaro Gattuso hopes to end the nation’s 12 years wait to qualify for the World Cup. – @Azzurri/X

6108/2026

25/03/2026 (WED)

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Draw Date: 25/03/26 (Wed)

Draw No: 6055/26 Venue: WISMA GENTING, KL

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9

Date with destiny

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Italy hoping to end WC pain as playoffs loom

I TALY are hoping to end a 12-year absence from the World Cup as one of the planet’s most important foot balling nations heads to the qualifying playoffs in the midst of another identity crisis. Northern Ireland come to Bergamo for what promises to be a tense semifinal tomorrow (3.45am Malaysian time) as Italy desperately try to not miss a third consecutive World Cup. Gennaro Gattuso led Italy to second in qualifying Group I and has obtained some stability for the Azzurri following the sacking of the volatile Luciano Spalletti. But two heavy defeats dished out by group winners Norway were a stark reminder of how far the national team has fallen since last winning the World Cup 20 years ago – with Gattuso in midfield. Since then Italy haven’t played a knockout match in a World Cup finals, dumped out in the group stage as defending champions in 2010 and four years later, before failing to even reach the last two editions in Russia and Qatar. Both of those qualification failures came via the playoffs and were deeply traumatic events to a footballing hotbed which has lost its self-esteem while rival nations like France and Spain have flourished. The poor performance of Italy’s clubs in this season’s Champions League has only exacerbated a feeling of being left behind, to the point that missing this year’s finals in the USA, Canada and Mexico would be seen almost as a death knell. “I really hope with all my heart that we can reach this goal. “This group of players deserves it,”

Gattuso told reporters yesterday. “We can’t stress the lads, they’re well aware of what the stakes are. There will obviously be a bit of tension but we have to make sure we trasmit positivity.” Gattuso has to deal not just with the pressure of the occasion but also a clutch of injuries which threaten to leave him without several important players for what he hopes will be two matches. One of Wales or Bosnia-Herzegovina await Italy in the final should they get past Northern Ireland as expected. Probably the key doubt is surrounding Sandro Tonali, who suffered a groin injury in Newcastle United’s Champions League exit at Barcelona last week. Gattuso said yesterday that he hoped to have Tonali, an all-action midfielder, available for training in the lead-up to tomorrow’s match but the 25-year-old is by no means guaranteed to start. Federico Chiesa, who hasn’t featured for Italy since their dismal European Championship title defence in 2024, was dropped from the squad on Monday when Italy’s medical staff ruled him unfit to play after he was originally selected in Gattuso’s 28-man squad. Meanwhile Atalanta striker Gianluca Scamacca and central defenders Alessandro Bastoni and Gianluca Mancini are all trying to recover in time from injuries, with Gattuso also saying that Arsenal defender Riccardo Calafiori was feeling “discomfort” on his arrival at the Coverciano training centre. That leaves Gattuso hoping for a drama-free night tomorrow and his players all being ready for a date with destiny in the final. – AFP

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100,000.00

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