World Cup 2026 Predictions: Former Premier League Striker Calls Every Last-16 Tie - Plus the England Verdict
Clinton's World Cup 2026 Verdict: Kane the Talisman, the Mexico Test and Why France Are "Cooking"
Continuing his weekly Column with Free Bets, Clinton gives his take on England's progress, the Azteca showdown, an unstoppable France side and rounds off with his last-16 predictions.
England did what they had to do, but there's more to come
Your overall thoughts on England's game last night?
They played okay, but if they want to go far in this tournament they need to improve a lot — it's too much in bits andå pieces. They haven't put together a complete game yet, but they've done what they had to do. When you've got a world-class striker like Harry Kane, you can always rely on him even when you're not at your maximum. He'll produce a bit of magic, and that's what he did with his two goals.
At one stage I did think time was ticking, but I always thought England would get something. The longer the game went on, the more defending DR Congo had to do, and eventually England were going to break them down with the quality they have on the pitch and off the bench.
How alarming was that defensive performance, and how can they improve on it?
It's difficult, because you don't have your settled back four. The one Tuchel probably wanted would include Reece James at right-back. At the moment it's Konsa and Guéhi, but at the start it was Stones and Konsa — there's a lot of chopping and changing. Going into the World Cup, defence was always going to be the problem for England: how would they cope at the back? I'd have always played Guéhi plus one other.
That goal was a mistake — a defensive mistake — and then Pickford got beaten at his near post. As a top goalkeeper, he'll know that's a mistake. There were a lot of errors in the build-up, and not just defensively; I look at midfield and everywhere. There were people running here, there and everywhere, trying too hard. But it doesn't matter, because that game's gone now — and when you've got a player like Harry Kane, you've always got a chance of winning football matches.
Where does Kane rank among the forwards you've seen?
He's right up there — one of the best around, for sure. He's in the conversation with the Mbappés and the Haalands, without a shadow of a doubt. As an out-and-out number nine and goalscorer, he's one of the best around.
That second goal was fantastic. He's running away from goal, the goalkeeper doesn't expect it, the defenders don't expect it, but the power he generates on the finish is normal for Harry Kane. I was watching at home with my family and said, "He's going to score here." They asked what I meant — I just said, "He'll score." I've seen him do it many times from across the box, and the power on that shot made it a brilliant finish.
As a striker, how difficult was that second goal?
Very difficult, because he's running away from goal and has to wrap his foot around it. It flew into the roof of the net and the goalkeeper had no chance. A brilliant, brilliant finish. He's England's talisman — I said before the tournament that if England don't have Harry Kane, they've probably got no chance.
The right-back issue came to the fore again, with Declan Rice having to fill in. Does the debate about Trent Alexander-Arnold not travelling only grow louder?
Of course it grows louder. I find it a strange situation. You pick your original squad without Trent and everyone's surprised; then you get an injury, bring in a centre-back — which is bonkers — and in one game you play someone like Ezri Konsa at right-back. No disrespect, but he's nowhere near as good there as Trent. He's a good centre-half, but he's not a right-back. For me, Trent has to be in the squad, even more so when you're chasing a game.
The reason Tuchel put Declan Rice there is that he wants to keep Rice on the pitch — he's good on the ball and can play anywhere. But when you're chasing a game and you want crosses into the box, you need a proper right-back who can pick a pass and deliver, like Trent can. So I feel Thomas Tuchel made a mistake not taking Trent Alexander-Arnold — though he'll say that if they go all the way, he picked the right squad.
Could someone like Kyle Walker have been a better option?
Maybe defensively, but Walker's at the stage where he's retired now, so he was never going to be out there. When you're trying to attack and chase a game, you need someone with pure quality, and Trent is one of the best passers the Premier League has ever seen for the range of balls he can play. I was very surprised he didn't make the squad. But Declan Rice went to right-back and it worked out — you can throw on another attacker, and Rice and Saka combined really well down that right-hand side. So in the end it worked out for England.
Mexico at the Azteca: "their toughest test"
Looking ahead to Mexico at the Azteca — what are your initial thoughts?
That's different. They haven't lost there, have they? They've got the home fans and the altitude, and England are going to struggle with that. It'll be difficult conditions, and Mexico are a good team — I watched them blow Ecuador away. England will have to raise their game, because Mexico have players who can cause them a lot of problems. I still think England can go there and beat them — without a shadow of a doubt — but it'll be their hardest test so far.
It's two defeats in 89 games for Mexico at home. That's some record.
It's ridiculous, and at home as well. It's just a hard place to go and play football. Mexico look good at the moment, so it's going to be a really difficult game.
Have you played at altitude yourself?
No, I haven't, and it probably is going to be difficult — I hear it's hard to suck the air in and get your breath back. So it'll be a hard one for the players. But you're at the World Cup; you've got this opportunity. If England can dominate possession, move the ball and avoid chasing the game, they let the ball do the work. I still think England can beat Mexico, but it'll be their toughest test.
What's impressed you most about Mexico?
Their togetherness. They've got Quiñones on the left, who plays in Saudi and was a top scorer, he scored a fantastic goal the other night. Jiménez looks sharp again, and they've got a young lad, Gilberto Mora, in midfield: a youngster who can take the ball and manipulate it. They play as a team, and there's a great togetherness.
What gives them an advantage is the crowd. It's going to be some atmosphere, when the opposition have the ball, the fans are booing. But it's nothing these England players haven't experienced domestically, so they'll handle it. It'll still be difficult, because Mexico play well as a team and have threats up front who can score goals.
The last 16 and a France side that's "cooking"
How is the last 16 shaping up?
It's very good. There are still a few games to go, but it'll be fascinating, you could get someone like Spain playing Portugal, and there are going to be some mouth-watering games. This is the business end of the competition now. Look at yesterday: Senegal were 2-0 up with four or five minutes to go and Belgium were nowhere near it, then Belgium turned it on and got through. Now they play the USA, who impressed me - although they'll miss Folarin Balogun, who was sent off.
There are a lot of interesting games coming up, but I still can't look past France. They're absolutely cooking. And Michael Olise — I know Kylian Mbappé gets all the goals, but I think Olise has been the best player at the tournament.
He's in that Jamal Musiala bracket, but to an even bigger extent?
Oh, yeah. He'll win the Ballon d'Or one day, in my opinion, his game has gone to a different level. You've got Lamine Yamal at Spain too, a ridiculous talent who's even younger, and they're both doing spectacular things. For Bayern, Olise plays on the right, but in this tournament he's played as a 10 and Mbappé must love him, because every time Olise gets the ball he looks up and plays it to him. The connection between the two is frightening. France are probably my favourites - I said that at the start of the tournament - and their bench doesn't weaken them either. The World Cup's heating up!
How do you stop France? Is there a way to prevent that forward line clicking into gear?
You can stop them, of course. You have to go and attack their defence, get at them, open them up and cause problems, and you've got a good chance. They're a good team, but they can be got at the back. You've got to go toe-to-toe, and that's the difficult thing. You can get at them in midfield, against Aurélien Tchouaméni or Adrien Rabiot - they're good players - but it's that front four that's the problem: Dembélé, Barcola, Olise and Mbappé. And if it's not Barcola, it's Désiré Doué. They've got players who can come off the bench and change the game, so it's frightening.
But you've got to go in believing you can beat them, like Argentina did four years ago, building the team around Messi, and Messi turned up, with Mbappé outstanding too. When the current greats move on, I think Olise will be the best player in the world - he's so sharp. The way he gets the ball, shifts it and moves it, as a defender it's a nightmare; you don't know what to do.
Premier League summer: managers on the move and Spurs spending big
The managerial merry-go-round has been dramatic. Vítor Pereira's gone at Nottingham Forest — sacked by email — with Oliver Glasner going in to replace him.
I've only just seen that today, because I've been concentrating on the World Cup and haven't really looked at the Premier League. Then you hear it - Glasner, wow - because he's left Palace to go to Forest. Forest have more money and will get more investment, and he's a good manager, but Vítor Pereira did a brilliant job there, so I was surprised he lost his job. Forest are getting a good manager, though what Glasner did at Crystal Palace was fantastic. He probably just wanted a new challenge. I thought he might go to a bigger Premier League club or to Europe, but there are no jobs available at the moment. I just hope he doesn't start trying to pinch any Palace players. Good move for Glasner and good move for Forest — but you do feel for Vítor Pereira, because the job he did there was very good.
Is it a sideways step for Glasner?
More than likely, but he'll look at Forest as a big club with money and financial backing. He was frustrated at Palace that he didn't have money to spend; they've just sold Elliot Anderson for a big fee, so they'll have money to invest, and the squad's already good. What they've got is an ambitious owner who wants to achieve things and win European trophies, like Palace did last season. That's probably why they brought in a manager like Oliver Glasner.
Enzo Maresca to Manchester City was finally announced.
We all kind of knew that was going to happen. He's Pep's disciple, so Pep may have had a big say in the next appointment, and we know the style of football he plays - a lot of the players will know him. Man City will put pressure on Arsenal this coming season, because it's going to be a big campaign for them. They've already brought in Elliot Anderson, and I don't think their spending stops there, they'll bring in more players.
Álvaro Arbeloa going to Fulham is an interesting one.
Yeah, that one surprised me. I thought someone like Glasner might go there. But Fulham have clearly seen something in Arbeloa. He used to play for Liverpool, went to Real Madrid, and did okay when he took over there at the back end of last season. It's a different appointment, so he must have interviewed really well. I'd be interested to see how he does, but he's got big shoes to fill, because the job Marco Silva did there - before going to Benfica - was outstanding. He was first-class and so close to getting them into Europe. But sometimes when you've been at a club a long time you want a change, and that's what Marco Silva's done.
Tottenham have had some summer. Mateus Fernandes joining, Sandro Tonali about to arrive — a real statement of intent.
Definitely. You always hear rumours, and when Tottenham stayed up I thought they'd go for it this summer. That's a big statement: nearly £185m for the two of them, and they're two top players. Tonali's a bit too much money in my opinion. A fantastic player at a good age, but around £100m?
Then again, people will point out that Elliot Anderson went for big money too. Fernandes is a good player from West Ham, so they've got two midfielders.
I feel they're effectively sorted in there if Micky van de Ven stays, I think one of the centre-backs, maybe Romero, will leave. Marcos Senesi is a good signing, and Andy Robertson brings experience. They've got good players in Maddison and Kulusevski coming back from injury, who they paid big money for. They probably just need a striker now, maybe a wide man too. If they add a centre-forward, Tottenham will be challenging - not necessarily for the title, but for the top four and Europe next season, because the squad's good. The hierarchy have backed Roberto De Zerbi, and they're going to have a right good go. Some really good signings.
And Everton announcing Hayden Hackney, a shrewd addition for their midfield?
Definitely, a good signing. I think Palace were interested and I was hoping he'd come to Crystal Palace, but it's a good bit of business. He was the best player in the Championship last season — an exciting young player who likes to get box to box, score goals, get on the ball and make things happen. His boyhood club is Middlesbrough and he probably wanted to get promoted with them, but it's a good signing for Everton. I just hope David Moyes throws him straight in and gives him the chance to express himself. He's ready for the next level, and I do think he's a Premier League player.
Clinton's Last-16 Predictions
Clinton's projected round-of-16 match-ups and scorelines. Some ties still depend on results to come, so a handful are based on his expected qualifiers (noted below).
| Last-16 Tie | Clinton's Call | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Paraguay vs France | France | 0-2 |
| Canada vs Morocco | Morocco | 1-2 |
| Portugal vs Spain* | Spain | 1-2 |
| USA vs Belgium | USA | 2-1 |
| Brazil vs Norway | Brazil | 2-1 |
| Mexico vs England | England | 1-2 |
| Argentina vs Egypt** | Argentina | 2-0 |
| Colombia vs Ghana | Colombia | 2-1 |
| Switzerland vs Algeria | Switzerland to edge it | (no score given) |
In his own words:
- Paraguay vs France — France to win 2-0. "Paraguay have been good, but I'll go 2-0 France."
- Canada vs Morocco — Morocco to edge it 2-1. "That's tough, but I'll go Morocco."
- Portugal vs Spain — Spain to win 2-1. Assuming Portugal get past Croatia: "That's a tough one — I think it'll go all the way. Portugal, if they turn up, are very good. I'll just go Spain to win 2-1."
- USA vs Belgium — USA to progress by 2-1. "USA, just to edge it — even though their striker's suspended. I still think Belgium got lucky."
- Brazil vs Norway — Brazil to win 2-1. "Norway will score, but Brazil win it 2-1."
- Mexico vs England — England go through 2-1. "Mexico will take the lead, but England win it 2-1 — Harry Kane."
- Argentina vs Egypt — Argentina win 2-0. He expects Argentina to beat Cape Verde and Egypt to beat Australia: "Whoever it is, I still think it's Argentina — 2-0."
- Colombia vs Ghana — Colombia to progress 2-1. "I think Colombia will win that 2-1." He also fancies Colombia to progress against whoever comes through of Switzerland/Algeria.
* Assumes Portugal come through their tie with Croatia. ** Argentina's opponent depends on the Egypt vs Australia result; Clinton backs Argentina regardless.
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