England vs France Match Analysis & Prediction
10/12/2022 10:00 pm
Allez Les Bleus or it’s Coming Home will be ringing around the Al Bayt Stadium at the full-time whistle on Saturday evening, as England face France in their World Cup 2022 quarter-final.
The Three Lions claimed a 3-0 victory over Senegal to progress to the last eight, while the reigning champions beat Poland 3-1 to keep their hopes of back-to-back title alive.
England looked most likely to concede in the early stages against Senegal, who did not allow the Three Lions a second to breathe with their effective pressing, but the tide soon turned when Jude Bellingham took the game by the scruff of the neck.
Bellingham set up Jordan Henderson for the opening goal in the 38th minute before playing a huge part in Harry Kane’s 52nd goal just before the break, and Garenth Southgate’s decision to bring Bukayo Saka back into the side was vindicated, as the Arsenal man made it three for England after 57 minutes.
However, quarter-final exits have been commonplace for England, who have been eliminated at this stage in the 1954, 1970, 1986, 2002 and 2006 tournaments, and six of their last eight World Cup eliminations have come against fellow European nations.
A three-game run without conceding a goal at the World Cup stands England in good stead, and Southgate could now become the first Three Lions head coach in history to lead the team o more than one semi-final, but the most daunting of daunting foes is standing in their way.
Olivier Giroud’s 52nd goal was enough to see the AC Milan attacker storm to the top of the France charts, as Les Bleus displayed a clinical edge that Robert Lewandowski’s Poland had no answer to.
Giroud still has some way to go to become France’s outright leading goalscorer, with Eugenie Le Sommer having 85 to her name, but the veteran’s strength and link-up play complements the explosiveness of Mbappe perfectly, and England’s rearguard will have their work cut out for them here.
Les Bleus have now reached the quarter-finals of the World Cup in five of the last seven editions, including each of the last three, and France have prevailed in eight of the last 10 knockout ties against fellow UEFA nations, but they are yet to silence all the critics.
England vs. France Head to head
These two nations have previously met on 31 occasions across all competitions, where England have claimed 17 victories while France have won nine, and they have drawn in five. England have scored 71 goals and conceded 39. In their last five meetings, France have won three, England one with one draw.
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26/03/2008France1England0Friendlies
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17/11/2010England1France2Friendlies
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11/06/2012France1England1European Championship
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17/11/2015England2France0Friendlies
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13/06/2017France3England2Friendlies
England Team News
Raheem Sterling flew back to the UK over the weekend, but he will be back with the squad on Friday and will be pushing for inclusion in the squad.
Callum Wilson is nursing a minor strain but was never expected to start, while Declan Rice missed training on Wednesday due to illness.
England's Last 5 Matches
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26/09/2022England3Germany3Nations League
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21/11/2022England6Iran2World Cup
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25/11/2022England0United States0World Cup
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29/11/2022Wales0England3World Cup
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04/12/2022England3Senegal0World
France Team News
Mbappe missed training on Tuesday due to discomfort in his ankle, but he was back on the practice pitches on Wednesday and should start on Saturday.
Jules Kounde and Aurelien Tchouameni will both miss any potential semi-final if they are booked here, but Deschamps is unlikely to factor in any on-field disciplinary infringements
France's Last 5 Matches
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25/09/2022Denmark2France0Nations League
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22/11/2022France4Australia1World Cup
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26/11/2022France2Denmark1World Cup
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30/11/2022Tunisia1France0World Cup
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04/12/2022France3Poland1World Cup
England vs. France: Odds and Predictions
Main Prediction
France To Qualify: Yes
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