World Cup

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World Cup | Quarter-Finals

Dec 10, 2022 at 7pm UK

Al Bayt Stadium

England
1 - 2
France

Kane (54' pen.)
Maguire (90')

FT(HT: 0-1)

Tchouameni (17'), Giroud (78')
Griezmann (43'), Dembele (46'), Hernandez (82')

World Cup 2022: Why to expect a France victory against England

By Ben Knapton, Senior Reporter | 09 December 2022

Ahead of Saturday's World Cup 2022 quarter-final between England and France, Sports Mole looks at why to expect a win for the reigning champions.

Two nations separated by one place in the FIFA World Rankings and a 21-mile strait prepare for battle in Saturday's World Cup 2022 quarter-final, as England take on reigning champions France.

The Three Lions progressed from Group B as winners before recording a 3-0 win over Senegal in the last 16, as Jordan Henderson, Harry Kane and Bukayo Saka found the back of the net.

Meanwhile, Didier Deschamps's men also saw off the competition in Group D to set up a last-16 tie with Poland, who succumbed to goals from Kylian Mbappe (2) and Olivier Giroud in a 3-1 loss.

There is justifiable cause for optimism within the England ranks about their chances of dumping out the reigning champions, with Gareth Southgate's side scoring 12 goals in their four games and coming up against a defence yet to keep a clean sheet in Qatar so far.

France endured nearly as disappointing a Nations League campaign as England before turning up the heat in the Middle East, although they are yet to convince all the critics of their credentials as they aim for back-to-back titles.

The individual excellence of Mbappe has arguably got France over the line in their wins over Denmark and Poland so far, but Les Bleus only need their star striker to be in the starting lineup to secure victory, as recent history has showed.

Kylian Mbappe celebrates scoring for France on November 26, 2022 © Reuters

Indeed, France have remarkably won all nine of their World Cup matches in which Mbappe has started, hence the frenzy that ignited when it emerged that the Paris Saint-Germain striker missed training on Tuesday with ankle discomfort.

However, the ex-Monaco protege - who leads the way in the World Cup scoring charts with five goals - was back in practice just 24 hours later and is expected to take his place in the first XI, which would be an immediate bad omen for England.

The Three Lions can take encouragement from the fact that Mbappe will likely be going up against Kyle Walker, who fans would pay good money to see against the Frenchman in a 100m sprint, but just having the 23-year-old in the starting lineup alone has spelled success for Deschamps and co over the past four years.

It is not just personal factors that weigh heavily in France's favour, as Les Bleus have won eight of their last 10 World Cup knockout matches against European teams, with the exceptions being the 2006 final against Italy and 2014 quarter-final against Germany.

In contrast, England have only won two of their last eight World Cup knockout ties with fellow UEFA nations - being dumped out of the tournament on the other six occasions - and only one of their last eight games with France in any competition has ended in victory.

Furthermore, not since 1990 have England managed to win three World Cup games on the spin, and while the Three Lions can feel confident about making the net ripple against France, the suitcase that Declan Rice joked would hold the trophy on the way home may be better used for clothes instead.