Preparation ahead of the World Cup tournament faced some problems for the All Whites side when they were thrashed 4-0 by Haiti in an international friendly match played at Fort Lauderdale. The Haitian side proved superior throughout the game in terms of execution and were fast breaking down the defense and much more efficient in front of goal.
Ruben Providence broke the deadlock in the 12th minute before the other three goals came in the second half via Lenny Joseph, Frantzdy Pierrot and Markhus Lacroix. According to Reuters news agency, the Kiwis had a poor defensive display in the game, which was described as a “harsh lesson” by team coach Darren Bazeley: definitely, not the type of message a side wishes to hear ahead of a major competition.
In other news, Chris Wood became the all-time caps leader with 89 appearances for New Zealand – a record he’ll be keen to hold on to. It’s also worth noting that this is Haiti’s first World Cup appearance in 52 years, so they’ll be bringing everything they’ve got to the tournament!
| Match | What happened |
| Result | Haiti 4-0 New Zealand |
| Venue | Fort Lauderdale, Florida |
| Haiti goals | Providence, Joseph, Pierrot, Lacroix |
| New Zealand group | Iran, Egypt, Belgium |
| Haiti group | Scotland, Brazil, Morocco |
There are also some other factors worth taking into account, which show why such a loss is particularly important from the perspective of New Zealand’s future. Mainly, because despite the fact that sometimes these games appear to be rather bizarre, nobody would put his World Cup chances on the outcome of a single friendly match, which takes place in June.
Nevertheless, Haiti should not be overestimated as well because its participation in this tournament implies playing in a rather difficult group, which includes not one, but two top-level countries like Brazil and Morocco. In no way could we consider the mentioned result as a fortunate coincidence; this was a pure win due to their effectiveness. People who plan to follow World Cup odds using their smartphones may need to review the list of recommended betting apps in New Zealand.
Firstly, the players should prove that this friendly was a complete exception. The World Cup is coming up very soon, and now they will have to confront such opponents as Iran, Belgium and Egypt.
Speaking about Haitians, such a friendly result will definitely play a positive role in their preparation for the championship. Even though one friendly result will not rewrite the whole tournament forecast, a victory with a 4-goal margin against another participant of the event cannot be ignored.
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