Afellay named the most difficult opponent in the potential group of the World Cup with Ukraine

Former player of the Netherlands national team Ibrahim Afellay shared his thoughts on the draw for the group stage of the 2026 World Cup, where the opponents of his compatriots will be the national teams of Japan, Tunisia and the winner of the playoffs Ukraine, Sweden, Poland or Albania.

“It has to be said that we have to get out of this group, right? But perhaps a more serious struggle awaits us. But on paper these are not the strongest teams. The average Japanese player is technically gifted and eager to fight, so I think they will definitely be the toughest opponent in the group. Take at least Eredivisie players like Ayase Ueda, Kodai Sano, Tsuyoshi Watanabe and Koki Ogawa,” Voetbal Primeur quoted Afellaia as saying.

As a reminder, Ukraine will compete for entry to the World Cup in the spring of 2026. On March 26, the “blue and yellow” team will meet with the Swedish team and then, in case of victory, on the 31st, they will fight against the winner of the confrontation between Poland and Albania.