Argentina v France World Cup predictions: Focused French can go back-to-back

Free football tips, best bets and analysis for Argentina v France in the World Cup final on Sunday.

Where to watch

ITV1 & BBC1, 3pm Sunday

Argentina v France World Cup match predictions

France
1pt 9-5 general

The final has been billed as Messi versus Mbappe, but France have other high-quality elements to their impressive attack and they may prove tough to stop.

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Match preview

The 2022 World Cup has been making headlines ever since Qatar was awarded the tournament 12 years ago.

Not all have been positive but the action on the pitch over the last four weeks has had football fans on the edge of their seats for the right reasons.

There has been much to enjoy, from Morocco breaking new ground to some huge shocks, and as we prepare for the biggest match of all on Sunday afternoon we are faced with a plot line that has all the hallmarks of a Hollywood blockbuster.

On one side we have a footballing icon seeking immortality by winning the only major trophy still to elude him. On the other resides the young pretender to his mantle as the greatest player on the planet aiming to guide his country to back-to-back world titles, something only two sides have done before.

It is sixty years since Brazil become the last team to retain the World Cup but France have a huge opportunity to follow in their footsteps by dashing the dreams of Lionel Messi and Argentina in Lusail.

Les Bleus once had a reputation as chokers, having suffered semi-final exits in 1958, 1982 and 1986. But that all changed when Didier Deschamps captained them to World Cup glory on home soil in 1998, and from that moment they have been a model of consistency.

France are appearing in their fourth final in seven editions of international football’s greatest competition. No other country has managed more than two final appearances in that time.

And Deschamps has led Les Bleus as intelligently as a manager as he did as a player despite attracting minimal attention.

He has been happy to let the spotlight fall on others and in the case of Sunday's global showpiece, there are two players hogging almost all of the headlines.

Argentina icon Messi and French superstar Kylian Mbappe are clubmates at Paris St-Germain but their battle on opposing sides in the finl has been likened to a heavyweight title fight in boxing’s halcyon days.

And it’s not just their importance to the destination of the World Cup itself. The pair are joint-top of the Golden Boot standings with five goals – although Messi is leading the award by virtue of one more assist than Mbappe – and they are the outstanding candidates to be awarded the Golden Ball as the tournament’s best player.

Messi has confirmed that the final will be his last World Cup appearance and he approaches it high on confidence after a mesmerising performance in Tuesday’s 3-0 semi-final success over Croatia.

There has been talk in recent years of Messi’s powers being on the wane, but he has rolled back the years in Qatar and his superb assist for Julian Alvarez’s second goal against Croatia was a thing of beauty.

Inevitable comparisons are being drawn between Messi’s exploits in Qatar and those of Diego Maradona at Mexico 1986 when his brilliance was key to Argentina’s last World Cup success.

Lifting the game’s biggest prize would be the perfect, and perhaps fitting, way to round off Messi’s career, but the final hurdle may be the hardest to negotiate.

Argentina have improved greatly since their stunning 2-1 opening defeat to Saudi Arabia, but their run to the final has been kind.
None of their knockout-stage opponents – Australia, Netherlands and Croatia – possessed outstanding attackers, but that is not the case with France.

An inspired Antoine Griezmann playing in behind a front three of Ousmane Dembele, Olivier Giroud and Mbappe is an altogether different proposition for Messi and co to contend with although Giroud is a doubtful starter after suffering a knee injury in training.

France have not played scintillating football, as was often the case en route to the title in Russia four years ago, but they have defended stoutly when necessary and come up with match-winning moments.

And, unlike Argentina, they have passed a seriously tough test. France’s quarter-final success over England has been described as fortunate given to the poor performance of referee Wilton Sampaio and Harry Kane’s penalty miss.

But they were the better side before scoring the opening goal and had a couple of big second-half chances before Giroud grabbed a late winner.

They made hard work of their semi-final against Morocco, but Les Bleus carved out the better chances and there is a suspicion that they might have had further gears to engage had the Moroccans found a leveller.

Deschamps has built a team with a winning mentality and outstanding individual qualities. Those ingredients may be enough to get them over the line.

Key stat

France have won nine of their last ten World Cup fixtures

Team news

Argentina
Papu Gomez is a doubt. Gonzalo Montiel and Marcos Acuna are available after suspension.

France
Striker Olivier Giroud is a doubt after suffering a knock to the knee in training on Saturday. Dayot Upamecano and Adrien Rabiot missed the semi-final against Morocco but could come back into contention. A number of French players missed periods of training this week due to a virus but all trained on Saturday.

Probable teams

Argentina (4-4-2) E Martinez; Molina, Romero, Otamendi, Acuna; De Paul, Paredes, Fernandez, Mac Allister; Messi, Alvarez.

France (4-2-3-1) Lloris; Kounde, Varane, Upamecano, Hernandez; Tchouameni, Rabiot; Dembele, Griezmann, Mbappe; Giroud.

Inside info

Argentina

Top scorer in probable team Lionel Messi
Star player Lionel Messi
Penalty taker Lionel Messi
Assist ace Lionel Messi
Set-piece aerial threat Cristian Romero
Card magnet Nicolas Otamendi

France

Top scorer in probable team Olivier Giroud
Star player Kylian Mbappe
Penalty taker Antoine Griezmann
Assist ace Antoine Griezmann
Set-piece aerial threat Olivier Giroud
Card magnet Aurelien Tchouameni

Argentina v France Bet Builder

France to win Les Bleus have triumphed in seven successive World Cup knockout matches and can find a way to win against Argentina, who are facing by far their toughest match of the tournament.

Under 2.5 goals Six of the last eight finals have featured less than three goals and another low-scoring outcome seems likely.

Marcos Acuna to be carded The Sevilla left-back loves a tackle and he will have his hands full with fleet-footed France attacker Ousmane Dembele.

Price guide 17-1