USA looked really good in their opening game of the tournament against a Paraguay side who are usually quite organised at the back. The host nation were in full flow under Mauricio Pochettino, but did concede in that game, and I don’t think they’ll be keeping many clean sheets if they play in a similar style throughout the campaign.

This has always been one of the main issues with Pochettino’s approach; his teams look really strong on the ball but lack composure when out of possession, which often turns the game into a bit of a basketball match. This is great for entertainment value, but not so great for building a side that is defensively sound.

Australia scored twice in their opening game of the tournament against Turkiye from an xG of 1.18. They look like they’ll be a really dangerous side in transition, especially with Nestory Irankunda, who has the speed to trouble this USA backline. USA have failed to keep a clean sheet in any of their last nine matches.

Scotland have finally won a game at the World Cup and anything they get from here will be a bonus to the Tartan Army, who should progress to the Round of 32 with those three points, barring a real collapse in the final two games of the group.

Morocco saw 2+ goals in their opener against Brazil and looked seriously impressive. They could have scored twice themselves, and I think they could cover this line on their own, given the confidence that they are currently playing with. 

Morocco have seen 2+ goals in each of their last five matches, but they haven’t been too good at keeping clean sheets across those games, with only one shutout against Madagascar in their last five. Scotland have attacking threat which can contribute to this goal tally on the counter; they scored 4+ goals in both of their warm-up games for the tournament against Bolivia and Curacao.

I don’t actually see Brazil running into too many problems against sides like Haiti due to the range and depth of individual talent that Carlo Ancelotti has at his disposal.

Brazil are clearly quite vulnerable at the back, as we saw in their opener against Morocco, so their approach in these games is likely to be quite bold and trying to outscore the opponent rather than keep everything controlled.

Haiti conceded in the first half against Scotland last time out. They surprised a few people with their level of performance but still looked vulnerable at the back, which is something Brazil will be able to expose more consistently than Steve Clarke’s side did. 

Brazil scored 2+ goals in each of their three matches before the World Cup against Panama, Croatia and Egypt - I expect their superior individual quality to shine through in this game.

Both Türkiye and Paraguay faced defeat on matchday one, which makes this a massive game in their group. 

Türkiye faced a surprise defeat to Australia in their opening game, but there wasn’t too much wrong with their performance - they only conceded two shots on target and took on 30 attempts.

Where the traditional ‘dark horses’ will need to improve is in taking on more realistic efforts. Of their 30 attempts, 16 came from outside the box, resulting in an xG of 1.36, which is a pretty poor total from that shot volume. Their games do often see goals, seeing 29 across their six qualifying matches (4.83 per game).

I expected Paraguay to be a bit more stubborn in their opening game against the USA, but in fairness to them, not many expected that level of display from Pochettino’s side. They will also feel the pressure of this game as it’s pretty much a must-win for both sides if they want to reach the Round of 32, and I see it producing at least two goals.