Supercoach World Cup | Harry's Fixture Analysis and Team Reveal


<p>Fixtures matter more than anything in the opening weeks. </p>



<p>We get six trades after every round, and the whole game is using them to target the matchups, chasing the good teams against the weaker ones. </p>



<p>I&#8217;d much rather load up on Spain when they&#8217;re drawn against Cabo Verde than when they run into Uruguay.</p>



<p>But you can&#8217;t churn the whole squad every week. You need a core that holds up across all three group games, then spend the rest of your trades on the upside plays for that round. </p>



<p>And this matters most right now, in the group stage, where the gap between the big dogs and the minnows is at its widest.</p>



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<h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>The Numbers I&#8217;m Using</strong></h3>



<p>This all comes off the bookmakers, so think of it as the market&#8217;s read on how each side is expected to go. </p>



<p>Two numbers do the heavy lifting: projected clean sheets and projected goals.</p>



<p>Clean sheets point you at the defenders worth owning. Goals point you at the attackers. That&#8217;s the whole game in two columns.</p>



<p>It&#8217;s not perfect. It ignores base stats, and it won&#8217;t tell you which player to pick from a given side. </p>



<p>But picking good players from teams the market expects to dominate is about as sound a strategy gets. </p>



<p>Get the team right, and the player calls get a lot easier.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>The Group Stage Big Picture</strong></h3>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="657" src="https://blog.scplaybook.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/image-1-1024x657.png" alt="" class="wp-image-2405690" style="width:832px;height:auto" srcset="https://blog.scplaybook.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/image-1-1024x657.png 1024w, https://blog.scplaybook.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/image-1-300x192.png 300w, https://blog.scplaybook.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/image-1-768x492.png 768w, https://blog.scplaybook.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/image-1-640x410.png 640w, https://blog.scplaybook.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/image-1-1200x769.png 1200w, https://blog.scplaybook.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/image-1.png 1215w" sizes="(max-width: 639px) 98vw, (max-width: 1199px) 64vw, 770px" /></figure>



<p>Spain, Germany and Brazil are the non-negotiables. </p>



<p>You want exposure to these three most weeks, and it&#8217;s the attack that sets them apart. </p>



<p>They sit clear of the field on projected goals, so the firepower is where the value is.</p>



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<p>Then there&#8217;s the all-rounder tier: France, Argentina, Portugal, Belgium, England and Switzerland. Strong at both ends. </p>



<p>It barely matters whether you go attack or defence here, because you&#8217;re getting elite fixtures either way.</p>



<p>After that, the clean-sheet crew: Mexico, Colombia and Canada. Their value is at the back. </p>



<p>If you&#8217;re picking from these sides, target the defenders and the keeper, not the strikers.</p>



<p>Netherlands, Uruguay and Norway round out the pool, but they&#8217;re depth rather than core.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Week 1: Read the Openers</strong></h3>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="657" src="https://blog.scplaybook.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/image-2-1024x657.png" alt="" class="wp-image-2405691" style="width:871px;height:auto" srcset="https://blog.scplaybook.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/image-2-1024x657.png 1024w, https://blog.scplaybook.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/image-2-300x192.png 300w, https://blog.scplaybook.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/image-2-768x492.png 768w, https://blog.scplaybook.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/image-2-640x410.png 640w, https://blog.scplaybook.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/image-2-1200x769.png 1200w, https://blog.scplaybook.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/image-2.png 1215w" sizes="(max-width: 639px) 98vw, (max-width: 1199px) 64vw, 770px" /></figure>



<p>The opening round doesn&#8217;t fall evenly, and that&#8217;s where the early trades earn their keep. Here&#8217;s how the first fixtures shape up.</p>



<p>The ceiling plays are Germany and Spain. Germany vs Curaçao and Spain vs Cabo Verde are about as soft as openers get, and the projections back it: Spain are tipped for over three goals in that first match alone. </p>



<p>This is double-attack and captaincy territory.</p>



<a id='o0OFFdcZTalQgUl5O6t7CQ' class='gie-single' href='https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/2280411218' target='_blank' style='color:#a7a7a7;text-decoration:none;font-weight:normal !important;border:none;display:inline-block;' rel="noopener">Embed from Getty Images</a><script>window.gie=window.gie||function(c){(gie.q=gie.q||[]).push(c)};gie(function(){gie.widgets.load({id:'o0OFFdcZTalQgUl5O6t7CQ',sig:'iqnyHUIY7Z21_J4U2yEofVVfqBVlHIZfWupzemfmIfQ=',w:'594px',h:'396px',items:'2280411218',caption: true ,tld:'com',is360: false })});</script><script src='//embed-cdn.gettyimages.com/widgets.js' charset='utf-8' async></script>



<p>Norway vs Iraq is the other one circled. Over half of Norway&#8217;s projected group goals land in this single game, which makes Haaland the must-captain for round one, even if he doesn&#8217;t stay in the side all tournament.</p>



<p>The softer openers worth a week-one punt: Switzerland vs Qatar, Mexico vs South Africa (the tournament opener) and Colombia vs Uzbekistan. </p>



<p>None are season-long anchors, but the fixtures are there for week one.</p>



<p>And the heavyweights I&#8217;m happy to wait on. Brazil vs Morocco, France vs Senegal and England vs Croatia are all must-owns for the tournament, but none of those openers is worth rushing into. </p>



<p>Get them in from MD2 when the fixtures soften.</p>



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<h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>My Squad</strong></h3>



<p>My defence barely moves. I want defenders who are good across all three weeks, and I&#8217;ll happily bench an MD1 defender who comes good later. </p>



<p>Hakimi is the example: Morocco cop Brazil first up, then get Haiti and Scotland, so he sits week one and comes in for the softer run.</p>



<p>The six trades go on the mids and forwards, rotating toward whoever&#8217;s drawn the weakest opponent, with a handful of stable picks I leave alone. </p>



<p>The rule I&#8217;m holding to: always have representation from Spain, Germany, Brazil, France, Portugal and Belgium, then pick my moments for Argentina, England, or for doubling up.</p>



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<p>Here&#8217;s where the squad sits.</p>



<p>Germany is a double attack from the off, especially for MD1. I can&#8217;t quite justify a forward spot for Havertz, so I&#8217;m leaning two attacking mids instead. </p>



<p>Right now that&#8217;s Wirtz and Musiala, though Kimmich has been in the mix. Toss of a coin.</p>



<p>Spain is where I&#8217;m going against the grain. Most teams I&#8217;m seeing are on Cucurella, but with over three expected goals in MD1 I&#8217;d rather double their attack and chase clean sheets elsewhere. </p>



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<p>Oyarzabal was a star in qualifying and outshone Lamine Yamal: six goals to zero, with higher expected assists too (2.27 to 0.94). </p>



<p>I want both for week one, which means I might start without Mbappe.</p>



<p>Norway is the Haaland captaincy play, and once that opener&#8217;s banked, he&#8217;s likely my route into Mbappe for MD2.</p>



<p>Switzerland I&#8217;ve got nothing in, despite the odds. Their friendly against the mighty Socceroos didn&#8217;t convince me. If I go there, it&#8217;s in defence.</p>



<p>Portugal is a double-up from the start. The fixture is good in MD1 against DR Congo and stays good throughout. Bruno Fernandes and Nuno Mendes are locks for me.</p>



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<p>Belgium gives me Courtois between the sticks. Good fixtures throughout and reliable, which is exactly what I want from a set-and-forget keeper.</p>



<p>Brazil I&#8217;m fading for the opener against Morocco. Gabriel is likely a bench piece, and I&#8217;ll bring in a Brazil attacker for MD2 and MD3.</p>



<p>France is where my team is shaky. I don&#8217;t love the draw against Senegal, but would I be surprised by a 4-0? No. </p>



<p>I&#8217;ve got Olise on the bench to loop in if he runs riot, but I&#8217;m happy to punt against Mbappe for better fixtures and fix it from MD2. I will not be watching this game.</p>



<p>Colombia is likely a defender, probably Munoz, chasing the points I missed in PL SuperCoach. Colombia get forward too, so it&#8217;s the best of both worlds. </p>



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<p>And it&#8217;s hard not to be tempted by James Rodriguez: he might not be the player he was, but six assists and two goals in qualifying, and the most creative player in their squad.</p>



<p>England I&#8217;m fading for MD1 against Croatia and targeting for MD2 and MD3.</p>



<p>Argentina have good fixtures throughout, just never amazing, and I&#8217;m not sure who the standout pick is. </p>



<p>Romero to get his head on a Messi free kick is the obvious shout, or Messi himself. I&#8217;ll call it closer to lock-out.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>My Plan</strong></h3>



<p>For MD1 I&#8217;m doubling up on Germany and Spain in attack, captaining Haaland, and locking in defenders I won&#8217;t touch for three weeks. Everything else is fair game for the six trades.</p>



<p>Get the core right, then let the fixtures tell you where to spend. In the group stage, the mismatches are the edge.</p>


Supercoach World Cup | Harry’s Fixture Analysis and Team Reveal

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