Both Ghana and Panama walked into Group L circling this fixture as their most winnable, with England and Croatia looming as the sterner tests. On paper Ghana have the better hand — Antoine Semenyo, Inaki Williams and Ernest Nuamah give them genuine width, and Jordan Ayew arrives off seven qualifying goals. But the backdrop is messy: Carlos Queiroz only took the reins in April after Otto Addo departed following heavy March friendly defeats, leaving a side still learning its shape.

Panama are the counterweight. Unbeaten through CONCACAF qualifying and conceding just four goals across eight games, they are drilled, compact and built to frustrate exactly the kind of width-reliant attack Ghana favor. The absence of playmaker Adalberto Carrasquilla, who missed warm-ups injured and may only feature off the bench, trims their attacking spark but does little to soften a defense that has been their identity for three years.

The market sees a coin-flip — Ghana favored at only around 45%, with the draw and a Panama win bunched close behind — and this World Cup's group openers have leveled at roughly a 50% clip. Expect a cagey, attritional 90 minutes where a single set-piece or moment of individual quality decides everything. With Ghana's structure unsettled and Panama set up to absorb and counter, a 1-1 draw is the most plausible script.