In Path C, Türkiye will host Romania on March 26 in Istanbul while Slovakia will host Kosovo in Bratislava. The winner of Slovakia vs. Kosovo will host either Türkiye or Romania on March 31 to decide which of the four teams qualifies of the 2026 World Cup.
How They Got Here: Slovakia
Slovakia finished second in UEFA Group A to Germany. They opened up qualifying with a 2-0 win over Germany in September, but they gave the points back in a 2-0 loss to Northern Ireland. After returning the favor, the group came down to the final match against Germany, and only the Germans showed up. The dominating 6-0 win sent Slovakia to the play-offs. Six different Slovak players scored one goal each, with the most exhilarating of the bunch coming from Tomáš Rigo in the 90th minute to down Luxembourg 1-0 in September.
Player to Watch
Dávid Hancko may not have the name cache of Milan Škriniar or the longevity of Peter Pekarík, but he’s playing in the highest profile games this season with Atlético Madrid.
The left-footed centre-back or outside back is both composed on the ball and comfortable defending without it. He’s a well-rounded defender that rarely makes a mistake.
Why They’ll Win
They know how to win ugly. Defensively, they may have the most consistent backline of all the teams in Path C. In front of them, experienced midfielders Ondrej Duda and Stanislav Lobotka combine physicality with calm.
How They Got Here: Kosovo
Kosovo finished second in UEFA Group B to Switzerland, who they lost 4-0 to in the opening fixture of the group. Kosovo settled down after that result though, beating Sweden 2-0 and 1-0 in their two match-ups, and finishing with a 1-1 draw with Switzerland. The Kosovo national team was officially accepted into UEFA and FIFA back in 2016. With two failed World Cup qualifying campaigns in 2018 and 2022, they are in uncharted territory.
Player to Watch
Two goals doesn’t seem like much, but 23-year-old TSG Hoffenheim forward Fisnik Asllani has the potential to be the best player in the play-offs. His ability to drop in and help with build-up will be essential to take some pressure off of a backline without leader Amir Rrahmani. Unfortunately for Kosovo, the Napoli centre-back was called up but couldn’t be selected due to injury.
Why They’ll Win
Asllani and Mallorca’s Vedat Muriqi are the best one-two punch up top of any of the four teams in Path C.
Muriqi is not only captain, but has an impressive 32 goals in 66 appearances with the national team. The chemistry he’s built over the last decade with fellow attacker Milot Rashica could be the institutional knowledge necessary to help Kosovo make history in just their third World Cup qualifying attempt.
How They Got Here: Türkiye
A 6-0 loss to Spain in September was the one blemish in a qualification campaign that saw Türkiye finish second behind Spain in UEFA Group E. A 2-1 in the 54th minute on the final Matchday against Spain would have been enough to win the group, but Mikel Oyarzabal’s goal eight minutes later secured the 2-2 draw and sent Türkiye to the play-offs.
Player to Watch
Real Madrid’s Arda Güler could be the best player in the qualifying play-offs while still not being the most important player on his own team.
Juventus’ 20-year-old winger Kenan Yıldız paced Türkiye with three goals in qualifying, and his form this season with the Italians has been somewhere flirting with spectacular.
Coming up through the Bayern Munich academy and then breaking through at Juventus, where he became the youngest player to captain the Bianconeri in a match back in September, has him primed for the moment despite his youthful age.
Why They’ll Win
Türkiye should qualify on reputation alone. They finished third at the 2002 World Cup and have qualified three times total, with the others being in 1950 (withdrawing for financial reasons) and 1954. They have also qualified for the last three Euros, getting to the quarter-finals in 2024.
How They Got Here: Romania
Romania finished third in UEFA Group H, but qualified to the play-offs as the third place team after snagging 13 points and a +9 goal differential. It didn’t hurt that San Marino were in their group, as Romania poured on goals in 5-1 and 7-1 wins. However, it also happened to be the group in five teams, so Romania really had to get past Cyprus to qualify, which they did 2-0 in June in Bucharest, before settling for a 2-2 draw in Nicosia in September.
Player to Watch
Denis Drǎguş is suspended after his red against Bosnia and Herzegovina and that will be a blow, but Romania should have enough experience throughout the front six to provide some hope.
27-year-old Alanyaspor attacker Ianis Hagi, who can both in the midfielder and on the wing, should be the player who pulls the strings.
Son of Gheorghe Hagi, a star of the 1994 World Cup and the joint-all-time leading goalscorer of Romania, Ianis is still having a fine career and could finish on some all-time lists himself for his country when all is said and done. Hagi was born in Türkiye and plays his club football there too, and that could be an interesting mental edge for him.
Why They’ll Win
Romania might not have the flashy names that Türkiye do, but they have players that do their job. Mircea Lucescu is one of the most decorated managers of all-time, having also managed Türkiye from 2017 to 2019. In 2015, he became just the fifth manager to reach 100 UEFA Champions League matches, and he’s collected 38 official trophies at his many stops. The 80-year-old legend could put an exclamation point on his storied career with an appearance at the World Cup.
Hooligan Soccer Podcast on UEFA Playoffs
More World Cup Coverage
Check out: [Hooligan Soccer – World Cup News] for the latest.
