World Cup Final Set: France vs Croatia
Final on Sunday sees France as the favourite
France is in the World Cup final, as predicted by most pundits and fans, the surprise to most is that their opponents on Sunday will be Croatia – who make an appearance in the final for the country’s first time ever.
For France it’s a return to the final for the first time since 2006 with a 1-0 victory over Belgium on Tuesday in the first of the all-European semifinals. French stars Antoine Griezmann, the 2016 European Championship Golden Boot winner, and Kylian Mbappé were at their best against the Belgians.
The second semifinal on Wednesday went to extra time where Croatia advanced with a 2-1 win over underdogs England. It was Mario Mandzukic’s goal that sent Croatia through.
Croatia, who’s squad have been together for a decade, had strong performances from their best players in the centre of the pitch in Luka Modric and Ivan Rakitic of Real Madrid and Barcelona respectively. Ivan Perišić also proved to be a nuisance to England throughout the game. Kieran Trippier scored England’s goal on a magnificent spot kick. The Three Lions were an unexpected bright spot all tournament long but failed to advance.
