South Africa vs Canada — Prediction

Both nations reach a World Cup knockout for the first time, and the asymmetry is in the squad depth: Canada carry the sharper finishing edge through Jonathan David — a hat-trick scorer against Qatar — and Cyle Larin, while South Africa's calling card is a disciplined block in front of penalty-saving goalkeeper Ronwen Williams. The deciding factor is that Canadian attacking quality against a Bafana Bafana side that scored just twice in the group stage, even though Teboho Mokoena's return from suspension restores their midfield and Thapelo Maseko, scorer of both group goals, offers a real outlet on the break. The caveats keep this a slim lean: Alphonso Davies is short of fitness and likely only a substitute, Ismael Koné is out with a fractured tibia, and a tense noon kickoff in Los Angeles points to the kind of low-event game nerves can keep level. With both sides defensively solid and neither clinical, a draw that pushes this to extra time and penalties — where Williams is a genuine weapon — is very much in range. Canada to edge it, but narrowly.