Argentina and France are set to compete in the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 final this year. We are looking forward to what will more certainly be an extremely competitive game.
Argentina beat Croatia by 3-0 and defending champion France beat Morocco by 2-0. Will it be Argentina or France to be crowned champions?
Argentina once again makes it to the World Cup final
Lionel Messi scored from the penalty spot, and Julian Alvarez struck twice to help Argentina defeat Croatia 3-0 on Tuesday and reach their second World Cup final in eight years.
After beating Croatia in the semi-final on December 13, coach Lionel Scaloni granted the squad a complete break on December 14 and only returned to the training site at 6 pm today, Doha time.
The squad will be at full strength today when Ángel Di María and Alejandro Gómez return to training. The team’s banned fullbacks, Marcos Acuña and Gonzalo Montiel, will return to tactical training and qualify for the final.
If Lionel Messi could win the World Cup for Argentina for the third time, it would be an ideal way to finish off an extraordinary career. He is determined to capture the World Cup and his country is counting on him.
France advances to the World Cup final
France advances to the World Cup final with a 2-0 victory over Morocco. The Moroccan team fought hard, but in the end, France was the better team and made another back-to-back world cup final.
Theo Hernandez scored on a perfect start for the holders, who were hoping for an early goal to unsettle their team and remain silent the rowdy Moroccan fan base at Al Bayt Stadium.
Morocco and France battled it out closely in the game, with Morocco showing a lot of resilience in the face of injuries to their leading XI players.
However, France proved to be a more experienced team and ultimately won the match by a close margin. This loss has given Morocco a lot of positive attention as they continue to show that they are a force to be reckoned with at the World Cup.
Morocco midfielder hates losing against France
“We were ahead 0-1 early because of a poor goal, then we had to chase after them,” player Sofyan Amrabat told Dutch TV station NOS following the semi-final defeat to France 0-2 on 14/14/12th. “Leading in games like these makes kicking simple. They won.”
Morocco’s 5th-minute goal against Al Bayt yesterday was unlucky. El Yamiq stumbled trying to prevent center player Raphael Varane’s pass to Antoine Griezmann.
Morocco gave up trying to get an equalizer after the early goal, risking being counter-attacked. France, though, booted freely and increased the advantage in the 79th minute when Randal Kolo Muani scored shortly after entering the field.
“Bitter. This loss haunts me” – Amrabat said.
Benzema may reach the final
Karim Benzema left the France squad in Qatar 3 days before the 2022 World Cup opener due to a quadriceps ailment. The striker is able to participate in the December 18 final since coach Deschamps did not call a substitute.
Deschamps evaded this issue at the news conference following the semi-final win against Morocco yesterday.
On December 14, Mundo Deportivo (Spain) stated that the French training staff had pondered Benzema’s comeback and even the gold cup match’s major kick.
The Golden Ball winner has virtually healed from his injury and looked fit at the Real Madrid training center.
Bayern will choose Bounou or Livakovic
According to the Croatian publication 24sata, Dominik Livaković is no longer Bayern’s only goalkeeping option to replace Manuel Neuer, who injured his arm and is out for the season.
Oliver Kahn, Bayern’s CEO and former goalkeeper saw the potential of integrating Yassine Bounou into his club while in Qatar for FIFA duties.
Morocco reached the 2022 World Cup semi-finals because of Bounou, who only surrendered three goals, including one from partner Nayef Aguerd’s own kick and 2 in the semi-final loss to France 0-2.
Bounou, Croatia’s new 27-year-old keeper, is four years older and costs more than Livakovic. Morocco’s goalkeeper, who is under agreement with Sevilla until 2025, is worth $16 million, while Dinamo Zagreb’s Livakovic costs $9 million and has one year remaining on his deal.
Before the Bayern transfer staff gets involved, Kahn will choose who to purchase.
Good omen for Messi?
Messi’s PSG link may help him during the World Cup. Ronaldinho joined PSG in 2001 and won the 2002 World Championship with Brazil in Japan-Korea. Kylian Mbappe joined PSG from Monaco in 2017 and won the 2018 Russian Championship with France.
Since Messi departed Barca for PSG in 2021, he might capture the gold cup with Argentina in Qatar on December 18.
France has won the most World Cups in 24 years
Since the World Cup expanded to 32 teams split into 8 groups in 1998, France has been to the final four times:
- 1998
- 2006
- 2018
- 2022
They won the gold cup twice, in 1998 and 2018. The former World Cup winner, “Les Bleus,” reached the final for the first time in 24 years.
Brazil also made the finals twice in a row, however, they lost the 1998 final and progressed to the cup match in 2002.
The 2022 World Cup selected four players to start the last two matches after France defeated Morocco 2-0 on December 14.
On December 18, reigning World Cup Holders France will play Argentina at Lusail Stadium at 8 pm. The day before, Morocco and Croatia will fight for the third spot.
Argentina has a 34% chance of victory in 90 minutes, while France has 35%, according to Stats Performs. The odds of a draw and extra time are 31%.
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