The road to the 2026 World Cup begins on Thursday for the Philippines and Vietnam, who square off at the Rizal Memorial Stadium in Manila for their opening qualifying tie in Group F.

Iraq will be widely expected to sail through the section as group winners, leaving Thursday's competitors and Indonesia to engage in a three-way fight for the second third-round qualification berth.

Match preview

Not until 1998 would the Philippines try their hand at World Cup qualifying, and not until 2014 would the world's 138th-ranked nation win a match in the preliminary rounds, so it will come as no shock to learn that the hosts are still waiting for their maiden appearance in the globe's most prestigious tournament.

However, the Philippines have shown steady signs of progress in competitive action since failing to win any of their nine first-round matches between 1998 and 2002, amassing an all-time best of 11 points in the second round of qualifying for the Qatar World Cup to finish third in the section behind China and Syria.

By finishing in the bronze medal position, the Street dogs earned a ticket to the third round of qualifying for the upcoming Asian Cup, only to fall to the superiority of a perfect Palestine in that four-team section, while a fourth-placed finish in the group stage of the AFF Championship was best consigned to history as well.

Since German-born Michael Weiss took over for the second time in June, though, the hosts have strung a respectable set of results together, only losing two of their last six friendly contests - to Chinese Taipei and Bahrain - and overcoming Nepal, Afghanistan and Kyrgyzstan.

The Street Dogs also navigated their final three home games of 2022 World Cup qualifying without suffering defeat - their longest unbeaten streak to date - and Weiss's men will have momentum on their side when they lock horns with an out-of-sorts Vietnam crop.

Also yearning for their inaugural appearance at the World Cup, Thursday's visitors can proudly boast to sit 44 places higher than the Philippines in the latest FIFA World Rankings, thanks in no small part to finishing as runners-up to Thailand in the 2022 AFF Championship.

Making waves at the biennial Southeast Asian tournament is nothing new for the world's 94th-ranked nation, who were champions in 2008 and 2018 and have got as far as the semi-finals in each of the last five editions, but their recent exploits have left a lot to be desired.

From June to September, Vietnam strolled to three successive friendly wins against Hong Kong, Syria and Palestine with three clean sheets in tow, but they have since fallen to defeats against China, Uzbekistan and South Korea without scoring a single goal, and conceding 10 at the wrong end of the field.

Six of those 10 strikes came in a mauling at the hands of South Korea on October 17, but the Golden Star Warriors enjoyed their best World Cup qualifying campaign to date for the 2022 event, reaching the third and final preliminary round before finishing rock bottom of their section.

Promoted from youth team manager to first-team head coach this year, Frenchman Philippe Troussier will lead Vietnam into their sixth meeting with the Philippines this week, and the Golden Star Warriors have come up trumps in four of their previous five battles, including a 1-0 friendly victory last December.

Team News

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While the vast majority of the Philippines squad ply their trade in or close to their homeland, there is European representation in the ranks in the form of ex-Premier League goalkeeper Neil Etheridge, who now plays backup to John Ruddy at Birmingham City.

The 33-year-old is poised to earn his 77th cap for the national team as captain, while 18-year-old Santiago Rublico makes the long journey from Atletico Madrid - whose academy team he represents - to don his national team's colours.

With 80 caps and 14 goals to his name, 35-year-old attacker Patrick Reichelt is his nation's third-highest appearance maker and goalscorer, but he remains a ways off of Phil Younghusband, who tops the charts with 52 strikes in 108 matches for his country.

In contrast, all 28 of the visitors' representatives are based in the top tier of Vietnamese football, but Troussier has lost experienced 55-cap defender Do Duy Manh to an unspecified injury ahead of November's fixtures.

Centre-back Que Ngoc Hai requires just nine more caps to become the Golden Star Warriors' highest male appearance maker of all time, while Nguyen Tien Linh can become his nation's outright third-highest scorer with a 19th goal on Thursday, although Le Cong Vinh's 51 efforts remains insurmountable.

Philippines possible starting lineup:
Etheridge; Rublico, Rontini, De Murga, Sato; Manny Ott, Villanueva; Curran, Mike Ott, Porteria; Reichelt

Vietnam possible starting lineup:
Dang; Phan, Hai, Bui Tien; Xuan, Do, T. A. Nyugen, Vo; Pham, T. L. Nyugen, V. Nyugen

We say: Philippines 0-1 Vietnam

While Vietnam's recent results may appear alarming at first glance, the calibre of opposition must be taken into account, and the Golden Star Warriors boast a touch more pedigree at this level than their hosts.

The Philippines ought to give their visitors a good run for their money, but as was the case in December 2022, we expect Vietnam to nick a goal and shut up shop to get their qualification campaign off to a flyer.


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