New Zealand vs Ukraine

New Zealand’s preparations for the 2026 World Cup continue at BMO Field in Toronto as they take on European rivals Ukraine in a friendly.

Fresh off qualifying for the World Cup finals for the first time since 2010, New Zealand dispatched Ivory Coast 1-0 in their first summer friendly last week, extending their winning streak to seven matches. Though all six previous victories yielded margins of 3+ goals, it’s worth noting that they had faced fellow Oceanian rivals. However, that win over the African powerhouse halted New Zealand’s run of seven consecutive winless encounters against non-Oceanian teams (D2, L5), marking their first triumph in such a contest since June 2023. Darren Bazeley’s side will now aim to defy another unwanted trend and arrest a seven-game winless run against European nations since the start of 2017 (D1, L6). They may take confidence from holding the Republic of Ireland to a 1-1 draw in their most recent such fixture in November 2023. 

Meanwhile, Ukraine’s road to next summer’s World Cup has yet to start due to their UEFA Nations League commitments in March. Serhiy Rebrov’s side slumped to a heartbreaking 4-3 aggregate loss to Belgium in the quarter-finals despite winning the first leg 3-0 at ‘home.’ It proved a bitter pill to digest as they lost 4-2 to Canada in a friendly last week, putting themselves at risk of suffering three consecutive defeats for the first time under Rebrov’s stewardship. High scoring has recently been a common theme for the Ukrainians as their last four matches produced 3+ goals, with three seeing both teams on the scoresheet. Therefore, their first meeting with New Zealand could be fun to watch.