PREVIEW: Canada begin World Cup journey vs. De Bruyne’s Belgium

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So it begins. For the first time in 13,316 days, the Canadian men's national team will play at the FIFA World Cup on Wednesday. Canada open their campaign against arguably the most formidable opponent of Group F: Belgium. The Red Devils, led by manager Robert Martínez, enter the World Cup second in FIFA's World Rankings, and they finished third in the last tournament, losing a narrow semifinal to eventual champions France. The Belgians are, undoubtedly, one of the strongest sides in international football. In UEFA's World Cup Qualifying, they topped their group with six wins and two draws from eight matches, earning a direct spot in Qatar. In nine matches played in 2022, Belgium have won four, drawn two, and lost three games. Belgium and Canada have squared off just once before -- a friendly match in Ottawa in 1989 -- and the Belgians took a 2-0 victory on that occasion. They've played Concacaf opposition at a World Cup more recently however, beating Panama 3-0 in the group stage in 2018. They also defeated the United States in the round of 16 at the 2014 World Cup The past year has been a roller-coaster for the Belgians, who beat World Cup-bound Poland 6-1 in UEFA Nations League play but also lost twice to the Netherlands. They ended up finishing second in a tough Nations League A group, behind the Dutch but ahead of Poland and Wales, but results haven't been wholly satisfying for a team who many feel may be on their last chance to win a World Cup with its current generation of stars. On paper, this Belgium side is a fearsome opponent to welcome Canada into the men's World Cup for the first time since 1986. That fear begins, of course, with Kevin De Bruyne, Manchester City's talismanic attacking midfielder who can tear defences apart in innumerable ways -- he already has three goals and 10 assists in 14 Premier League games this year.

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Beyond him, though, Belgium's squad is packed with stars. Youri Tielemans is in excellent form for Leicester City right now. Thibaut Courtois might well be the best goalkeeper in the world at the moment. Eden Hazard might not be at the top of his game at club level right now, but the 123-cap veteran has won the Champions League, La Liga, the Premier League, and enough other trophies to fill a bank vault. Canada may have breathed a sigh of relief upon discovering that Inter Milan striker Romelu Lukaku will miss this game with injury, but Martínez will not be disheartened by turning to Michy Batshuayi (Fenerbahce) or Jérémy Doku (Rennes). Speaking of Canada breathing a sigh of relief, they'll have done so again in the past few days when it became clear that their own squad has a clean bill of health prior to the Group F opener. Star man Alphonso Davies, who missed his last two Bundesliga matches for Bayern Munich and has been eased back into training with a hamstring injury, is apparently fit to start -- according to both himself and his coach. The same is apparently true for Stephen Eustáquio and Milan Borjan, who both had minor knocks over the past week of training as well. So, all signs are pointing toward Canada having a full-strength starting XI for the first time since June. That's good news, of course, because Canada will need it. Belgium pose, beyond doubt, the most difficult test John Herdman's team has ever faced, and therefore they'll need as many things as possible to go right for them.

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The odds are not in Canada's favour, but there are certainly paths to success for them in this contest. Belgium, one of the oldest squads on average at this tournament, are likely to deploy a back three that includes 33-year-old Toby Alderweireld and 35-year-old Jan Vertonghen, neither of whom were track stars even 10 years ago. Martínez often has his backline play quite high up the pitch as well, which may present an opportunity for Canada's fleet-footed forwards like Alphonso Davies or Tajon Buchanan to get in behind. Canada, likely to play much of this game without the ball, could find moments to strike with long passes that bypass midfield and find an attacker on the break behind the Belgian defenders (provided they can stay onside). Canada's own defenders -- likely Kamal Miller, Steven Vitória, and Alistair Johnston in a three -- will need to be particularly vigilant not to be pulled out of position by the likes of De Bruyne, who will be looking to thread balls in between them. John Herdman's side have faced difficult opposition before, and they're used to playing against possession-hungry opponents. Sometimes, as it did against the United States, that can play into Canada's hands. Belgium are not the United States, however, and this will be a new challenge for the Canadians. They'll enter this match with considerably less pressure and lower expectations on them than the Belgians, but a point or three in this contest would nonetheless be an extraordinary achievement that could well go a long way toward getting Canada into the knockouts. Having seen some surprises already at this tournament -- most notably, Saudi Arabia defeating Argentina on Tuesday -- it's clear that anything can happen, and Canada will certainly believe they, too, can pull off something remarkable. After months of anticipation and analysis, the time has finally come. Canada's preparations are done; now, it's time to execute.

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