France will be out to become only the third team ever to win back-to-back World Cups on Sunday versus Argentina. Can Kylian Mbappe lead his side to a historic result or will Lionel Messi finally get his hands on the World Cup trophy?
Argentina are slight favorites on Sunday with bookmaker 10bet having the odds at 1.86 for Messi’s crew to triumph. The odds are at 1.95 for France to become world champions again.
※ Current Odds Date & Time: December 17th, 1:30 P.M. (EST)
Back in the 30s, Italy was able to defend its crown and Brazil is also a back-to-back winner from the 1958 and 1962 editions. Considering the rarity of the achievement, joining the list would be massive for France.
Both teams are looking for a third World Cup win. In addition to the last tournament, France also triumphed in 1998 while Argentina won the biggest prize in world football back in 1978 and 1986. These are two of the best sides in international football and the stage is perfectly set for a fascinating encounter on Sunday.
France have an illness bug doing the rounds at the camp, but Mbappe is healthy and that’s the most important thing for the team. He can change a game in an instant and Mbappe looks bound to have a big performance on Sunday after not registering any assists or goals in back-to-back games.
Meanwhile, Messi seems incapable of not being part of any goal action. He has become the first Argentinian player ever to score in three different knockout stage matches at a single World Cup and he’s tallied five goals and three assists in total across six appearances in Qatar.
Messi has scored 42 percent of Argentina’s goals at the tournament and no other player has a higher contribution of goals for a team, although Mbappe isn’t far behind with 38 percent, sharing the second spot with Richarlison.
Stopping Messi will definitely be the biggest key to success for France but special focus must also go on Julian Alvarez. The Manchester City man heads into Sunday’s match-up boasting some incredible numbers. He’s been on the pitch during 11 of the 12 goals the team has scored at the tournament while he has been off the field during all the five goals Argentina have conceded.
There’s quite a bit of history between France and Argentina. The two have previously clashed 12 times and Argentina leads the head-to-head series with six wins to three. The last meeting came in the round of 16 at the 2018 World Cup and a Mbappe brace led France to a 4-3 victory. Argentina blew a 2-1 lead in the game and Sunday offers the team an opportunity to show that lessons have been learned from the mishap.
