Thursday's World Cup 2026 qualifying predictions, betting odds and tips: Hungary heading for the playoffs

Best bets

Victor Osimhen anytime goalscorer vs Gabon
4pm Thursday, Fifa+
2pts 11-8 Betfair, Paddy Power, Hills 

Hungary to win & under 3.5 goals vs Armenia
5pm Thursday
1pt 7-5 BoyleSports, Coral, Ladbrokes

Ruslan Malinovskyi anytime goalscorer vs France
7.45pm Thursday, Amazon Prime 
1pt 10-1 general

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Thursday's World Cup qualifying predictions

By the end of this month's World Cup qualifiers we will know a large portion of the 48 teams who will be making the trip to the USA, Canada and Mexico next summer.

Hungary are highly unlikely to be one of the 12 European group winners – they trail Portugal by five points with two games remaining in Group F – but victory in Armenia on Thursday and a Portugal win away to Ireland will see them clinch a playoff ticket.

They will get a second bite of the cherry even if they lose as the Magyars host Ireland in their final group game. But they will be eager to seal the deal and, having drawn 2-2 with Portugal in their last game, Marco Rossi's side are expected to see off Armenia with minimal fuss. 

Hungary could only muster up a 2-0 win in the reverse fixture, though, so any success in Yerevan may be a low-scoring one. 

France can go one better than the Hungarians as a win over Ukraine will see Les Bleus confirmed as Group D winners.

They are strong favourites to book their cross-Atlantic passage with a game to spare but France were held to a 2-2 draw by Iceland last time, a side Ukraine beat 5-3 last month.

There are plenty of threats in Ukraine's forward line, none more so than Ruslan Malinovskyi. The Genoa midfielder found the net in his last club game against Sassuolo and he scored three goals in two appearances during last month's international break. 

Quotes of 10-1 about Malinovskyi breaching a France defence which has kept just six clean sheets in 14 matches look far too big to ignore.

Osimhen can take Nigeria one step closer to World Cup

South Africa pipped Nigeria to top spot in their section of African qualifying, leaving the Super Eagles to navigate a four-team playoff for the final World Cup ticket. 

Given the talent at Eric Chelle's disposal, it would be a major disappointment should they not make next summer's finals and while Gabon will provide a stern test in the playoff semi-final and have former Arsenal star Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang leading the line, Nigeria have a talisman of their own who is in devastating form. 

Victor Osimhen has scored six Champions League goals for Galatasaray this term – one more than Harry Kane, Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland – and bagged a hat-trick on his last international start for the Super Eagles. 

Gabon conceded three goals away to Gambia last month and a red-hot Osimhen won't need a second invitation to punish a weak defence.

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