It’s come down to four teams and how many would have predicted an all-European lineup in the semi-final. This is not unusual and happened as recently as 2006. England have certainly exceeded expectations from the get-go with Gareth Southgate’s side playing a sparkling brand of football.
The much venerated “golden generation” of Belgium have been unleashed, and have lived up to their top billing. The same can be said about Didier Deschamps France, who overcame far more experienced opponents in Argentina and Uruguay to enter the semi-finals.
Croatia, despite being sluggish in the knockout stages, have been effective, and have matched the feats of Davor Suker and Co from 1998. How and where do the teams stand and who will reach the final?
France vs Belgium
Compared to their counterparts from the other semi-final, Belgium and France endured tougher runs to get to this stage. Not only have they face tougher opponents on paper, they also had to dig deep to overcome situations that had their backs facing the wall.
France barely stepped out of second gear in the group stages, where Deschamps deployed different lineups in all the three games. They topped the group, which also featured Denmark, Australia and Peru but didn’t hit the heights they were expected to hit. Deschamps subsequently received plenty of flak from the press. In came the knockout stages and Les Blues were a different beast from how they started out.
From being 1-2 down early in the second half, a Kylian Mbappe-inspired France blazed past Argentina, and did enough to dislodge a formidable Uruguay outfit. The character the French showed in that game has made them a genuine title contender. The pain of losing the European Championships final to Portugal on home soil should be lingering large in the group. Antoine Griezmann and Paul Pogba, despite starting slowly are close to being their absolute best.
The unsung heroes of France has to be their defence and midfield. N’Golo Kante, fullbacks Benjamin Pavard and Luis Hernandez along with Rafael Varane have hardly put a foot wrong.
Belgium, meanwhile, have grown from strength to strength. If they go on to win the tournament, their last-16 tie against Japan will be a major talking point. With less than half an hour to go, how many teams would have managed to come back from 0-2 down? It was their bench who masterminded the win, and that is what makes the Red Devils so dangerous. It is also believed that Roberto Martinez’s side have already won one of the “finals” in the tournament by getting the better of five-time winners Brazil.
Belgium’s front three of skipper Eden Hazard, Kevin de Bruyne and Romelu Lukaku, at their devastating best, can rip any defence apart. This contest might be decided by the goalkeepers, Belgium’s Thibaut Courtois and French skipper Hugo Lloris; both men played vital roles in dragging their respective teams to this stage.
Our prediction: Belgium to beat France 3-2 and enter the final.
England vs Croatia
A million dollar question is doing the rounds in England: “Is it coming home?”.
A variant of that, “It’s coming home” is far more popular among fans as the glory-starved English try to win the trophy they first won in 1966. This is only the third time in history that Three Lions have reached this stage of the competition and there is a sense of anticipation keeping in mind the way they have gone about their task.
Harry Kane, despite having a subdued outing against Sweden in the quarter-finals is leading from the front. His supporting cast have rallied around him and now have as many as nine goalscorers in their ranks. Expectations were muted coming into the World Cup. Gareth Southgate was holding on to the job because of a bizarre turn of events. There was very little hype surrounding the current lot of players. Compare that to the class of 2006. David Beckham and Co were expected to storm their way to the second title.
At this juncture, England are dreaming, and they have a good reason to. Southgate’s young side – they are the third youngest in the tournament – are marginal favourites against Croatia in the semi-finals.
The relatively fresh Englishmen have a slight edge here. The Croats come to the Luzhniki Stadium having played 240 minutes of football, and having lived through two nerve-wracking penalty shootouts.
Skipper and midfield ace Luca Modric, striker Mario Mandzukic, and defender Sime Vrsaljko suffered knocks against Russia in the quarter-finals. Goalkeeper Danijel Subasic suffered a tear and may well sit out.
A little more bite going forward, for starters, is the need of the hour for a Croatian side who have looked slightly out of sorts. Never rule them out, though. One can’t rule out England snatching a loss from the jaws of victory either. Expect a cagey, calculative encounter here.
Prediction: England to beat Croatia 2-1 in extra-time.
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