Canada and Bosnia and Herzegovina Open Group B Battle

Co-hosts Canada and Bosnia and Herzegovina kick off their Group B campaign at the World Cup tonight. The two teams face each other at 10:00 PM Bulgarian time (3:00 PM ET) at BMO Field in Toronto. Qatar and Switzerland complete the group.

Prior to the match, an opening ceremony for the World Cup will be held on Canadian soil.

For the “Maple Leafs,” this marks their second consecutive World Cup appearance and third overall, having also participated in the tournament in Qatar four years ago. The European side is making its second appearance at the global showpiece, having previously featured in the 2014 World Cup, where they even secured a victory.

Canada will certainly be without two key players, Alphonso Davies and Moise Bombito, who are not fully recovered from injuries. Haris Tabakovic from the Bosnian squad is also sidelined due to injury. All eyes will be on the potential appearance of 40-year-old Balkan star Edin Džeko, one of only two players remaining from their 2014 Brazil squad. The other is former Arsenal defender Sead Kolašinac.

The Canadian team enters this match on a solid run of form, with two wins and three draws in their last five outings, scoring six goals and conceding three. Their recent results include a 1-1 draw against Ireland, a 2-0 victory over Uzbekistan, and a goalless draw with Tunisia. Before that, Canada drew 2-2 with Iceland and secured a narrow 1-0 win against Guatemala.

Conversely, Bosnia and Herzegovina have shown remarkable consistency, recording five consecutive draws with an aggregate goal difference of 4-4. Their recent results include stalemates against Panama (1-1), North Macedonia (0-0), Italy (1-1), Wales (1-1), and Austria (1-1).