One of the World Cup's most unexpected playoff guests has its roots in Group A. Playing in the same group as Mexico, the Czech Republic, and the Republic of Korea, the South Africans were considered outsiders, and after the first round they were not taken seriously at all. In fact, the first three halves out of six in the group stage were all lost by South Africa with the same score of 0-1. This left the African team with a defeat to Mexico in the tournament opener and put them in a losing position in the second match against the Czech Republic. However, starting from the second half of the match against the European side, the South Africa team seemed to be replaced. It won the ball from the Czechs, forced errors near its own goal, and finally provoked a foul in its own penalty area. Teboho Mokoena confidently converted the penalty to make it 1-1. After the draw with the Czechs came a completely unexpected victory over South Korea, which was so shocked by the Africans' play that they are now on the brink of missing a chance to advance to the knockout stage even from third place. How many more opponents will put South Africa in an awkward position in this tournament? Such an opponent is dangerous for the other World Cup hosts - Canada. There is little glory to be found against such an opponent, even if you reach the Round of 16. And yet it is quite possible to embarrass yourself and crash out in a ridiculous fashion. Canada settled all questions about advancing to the knockout stage after the second group-stage round. A draw with Bosnia and Herzegovina and a win over Qatar were enough to guarantee at least second place. In a very entertaining and interesting clash in the third round against Switzerland the Canadians fell short, but advancing to face South Africa is unlikely to be a cause for much regret. Undoubtedly the Africans will start the match in a negative or defensive mode, but they no longer resemble the team that could not find itself on the field against Mexico. Also there is no psychological pressure on South Africa. Its players have already become heroes for their compatriots by reaching the knockout stage. Canada has a more serious squad, which together with their home crowd allows calling them fair favorites for the match. At the same time, South Africa can still score, which could lead to a high-scoring overall game.