Switzerland legend Ricardo Rodriguez says winning their Group B decider against Canada in Vancouver on Wednesday has to be part of the plan if the Nati are to go all the way at this edition.
After conceding an added-time equaliser in a surprise 1-1 draw with Qatar, Murat Yakin’s side swept past Bosnia and Herzegovina 4-1 in a contest containing all five goals after the 73rd minute.
“We want first place,” said Rodriguez (via Blick), whose 1,289 minutes at the World Cup are the most of any player in Switzerland’s history.
“If you want to be world champions, you have to be able to beat every team. I’m just trying to enjoy every game and play as if it were my last World Cup match.”
Co-hosts Canada finished strongly in a 1-1 draw with Bosnia and Herzegovina, then continued that momentum by crushing Qatar 6-0 with the help of a hat-trick for the country’s all-time record scorer, Jonathan David.
“This is not a normal moment for the country and we need to accentuate the success of this moment,” argued head coach Jesse Marsch, speaking about a side whose margin of victory means they will win their section with a draw against Switzerland.
“We’ll stay grounded and we won’t get ahead of ourselves. I’ll make sure that the team is, in all ways, ready to focus and concentrate and compete to win the group and set ourselves up, truly, for success at this tournament.”
Bosnia and Herzegovina and Qatar, who each have one point, meet simultaneously in the final round of Group B matches.
With their section rivals each on four points, that fixture will decide third place barring a hefty goal difference change.
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World Cup 2026: Switzerland v Canada team news
Canada’s Ismael Kone has had surgery on a broken leg the midfielder suffered against Qatar. Nathan Saliba, who scored with a free-kick after replacing Kone in that game, could start this time.
One of Kone’s other potential deputies, 58-cap Stephen Eustaquio, missed the media section of training on Sunday but participated fully on Monday, according to Sportsnet.
Centre-back Moise Bombito returned from injury as a substitute against Qatar and could be in contention to start, having replaced the booked Derek Cornelius at half-time.
Captain Alphonso Davies could make his comeback from a hamstring issue.
Rodriguez shares the record of 14 appearances for Switzerland at the finals with Granit Xhaka, although the left-back failed to complete 90 minutes in a World Cup game for the first time when he was substituted on matchday two.
Ruben Vargas was replaced by Fabian Rieder against Bosnia and Herzegovina before coming on for the forward with 19 minutes remaining.
Switzerland v Canada: World Cup 2026 predicted line-ups
Switzerland starting XI: Gregor Kobel, Silvan Widmer, Nico Elvedi, Manuel Akanji, Ricardo Rodriguez, Michel Aebischer, Granit Xhaka, Fabian Rieder, Remo Freuler, Breel Embolo, Dan Ndoye
Canada starting XI: Maxime Crepeau, Alistair Johnston, Luc De Fougerolles, Derek Cornelius, Richie Laryea, Tajon Buchanan, Nathan Saliba, Stephen Eustaquio, Ali Ahmed, Jonathan David, Cyle Larin
Where to watch Switzerland v Canada: TV channel, live online streams
Kick-off on Wednesday is at 20:00 BST (15:00 ET / 12:00 PT). In the UK, live coverage is on ITV1.
Streaming is available via ITV’s website and ITVX app, which is available on a vast variety of devices for viewing on the go.
World Cup 2026: Switzerland v Canada stats
- Switzerland are one of two European teams to have reached the knockout stages in each of the last six major international tournaments (World Cup and EURO), alongside France
- Murat Yakin’s side conceded a total of two goals in qualifying, having shipped 14 across six matches in their preceding Nations League campaign
- Breel Embolo was Switzerland’s top scorer in qualifying campaign with four goals and is one of five players to have scored multiple goals at both the 2022 World Cup and the 2024 EURO, along with Harry Kane, Kai Havertz, Niclas Fullkrug and Cody Gakpo
- Ricardo Rodriguez is at his fourth edition of the World Cup and has started every single match at six different major tournaments
- The most prolific match at the World Cup was a 7-5 quarter-final defeat for Switzerland against Austria on June 26 1954, also representing the last game at the finals to produce two hat-tricks (Josef Hugi for Switzerland, Theodor Wagner for Austria)
- Canada are unbeaten in 10 games (W6 D4) since a 1-0 home defeat to Australia in October 2025
- Defender Joel Waterman was also part of Canada’s squad at the finals in 2022 but did not make an appearance and is yet to feature at this edition
- With 42 goals in 79 appearances, Juventus forward David is Canada’s record scorer
- David netted six goals in 2025, representing his most in a calendar year for the national team since 2021 (7). He had one shot on target across his 192 minutes of play at the 2022 World Cup
- Larin is their second-top all-time marksman of all time with 32 goals in 92 matches, although the Southampton forward had not scored since October 2024 before the start of these finals
World Cup 2026: Switzerland v Canada prediction
Switzerland 3-1 Canada
Marsch says Canada are at their best when they are ahead, which makes it unfortunate for the Rouges boss that Switzerland have not been behind in any of their last 11 competitive matches since a late 3-2 defeat in Spain in 2024 in which they equalised twice. Victory would be a statement result for the co-hosts, who are likely to find the going much tougher against opponents familiar with the knockout stage of major tournaments.
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