Our football match prediction:
France
Match Time & Date:
15/07/2018
16:00 GMT
Prediction: 2-1
Croatia
There will be fireworks when France and Croatia face each other at Stadion Luzhniki in the 2018 FIFA World Cup final. France set up a meeting with Croatia by beating the likes of Argentina, Uruguay and Belgium in the knockout stages. Les Tricolores won the showpiece tournament in 1998 and they aim to repeat the success. A man to watch in Didier Deschamps’ team will be Kylian Mbappe, who looks unstoppable at the moment. Croatia did well to beat England in the semis, with Luka Modric producing yet another brilliant performance at the World Cup in Russia. However, the Croats will have a big fish to fry in Sunday’s football match against France, who totally deserve to win their second World Cup trophy. When the two teams met at the 1998 tournament France recorded a 2-1 win over Croatia and the history is likely to repeat itself.
Highlighted Player (Kylian Mbappé):
Kylian Mbappe is a French footballer who plays for Paris Saint-Germain as a forward. The French rising star began his youth career at AS Bondy and in 2013 he moved to AS Monaco. After making 12 appearances for Monaco B, Kylian Mbappe made his debut for the senior team in 2015. Mbappe quickly established himself as a regular goalscorer, with the teenager finding the net 15 times in 29 appearances in the Ligue 1 in the 2016/2017 season. In 2017 he moved to fellow French club PSG on loan, with the option of making the deal permanent. Kylian Mbappe scored 13 goals in 27 appearances for les Parisiens in the 2017/2018 and it has to be noted that Unai Emery’s troops eventually won the national championship. Speaking of his international career, Mbappe played an important role for France at the 2018 FIFA World Cup finals, with the pacey rising star scoring a brace in a thrilling 4-3 win over Argentina in the last 16 of the showpiece tournament. The PSG attacker was born in Paris on December 20, 1998.
Highlighted Team (Croatia):
While the national football team of Croatia also played international matches between 1940 and 1944, they only resumed their duties in 1990 after the country gained independence from Yugoslavia. Vatreni enjoyed a remarkable start on the international stage, winning the third place on their first ever World Cup appearance in France in 1998, while crashing out in the group stage at the 2002, 2006 and 2014 tournaments. Croatia also reached the quarter-finals at the 1996 and 2008 European Championships, proving they are rightly considered one of Europe’s top sides at the start of the 21st century. Long-serving captain Darijo Srna is their most capped player with over 130 appearances for the national team, whereas former Real Madrid striker Davor Suker is one of their most famous players and top scorer with 45 goals. Other notable footballers to have played for Croatia include Luka Modric, Zvonimir Boban, Robert Prosinecki, Ivan Rakitic and Mario Mandzukic. Miroslav Blazevic and Slaven Bilic are the coaches that have been behind team’s biggest success stories up to date.
