Uruguay Vs France Preview: Les Bleus ready for another South American challenge

Luis Suarez and Edinson Cavani were instrumental in Los Charruas' wins against Russia and Portugal.

The competition is getting a lot tighter as we progress deeper into the World Cup. France take on Uruguay in a quarterfinal game which is poised to be one the most exciting attack Vs Defence battles that this World Cup has seen. Not discounting thefact that both the teams are good in the other aspects of their game, this one will be a very close one to call.

Uruguay have let in just one goal so far in the competition and they have by far the best defence in the World Cup. France on the other and have one of the most potent attacks that this World Cup has seen and we saw their attacking potential in the match against Argentina.

About the teams

France’s position in the World Cup at the moment comes as no surprise, as the whole footballing fraternity expected this team of talented individuals to perform at their best. The road to the quarterfinals has been made to look easy by this France squad which has blitzed almost all their opposition on the way to facing Uruguay in the last eight.

Although, their performance in the group stages was subdued, the match against Argentina saw this young group of stars shift into a whole new gear and Argentina were no match for their attacking threat, as they let in three goals in under 11 second half minutes. Kylian M’bappe is a future star and his performance has been peaking at the right time. France will look to capitalise on his good form and help crack the rock-solid Uruguayan defence .

Uruguay themselves have been stellar in this tournament, much like France. So far, they have won all their games leading up to this fixture and are carrying a lot of momentum going into the clash against Didier Deschamps’ men.

The group stage showcased to the world how much of a defensive powerhouse this side are with the likes of Diego Godin, Jose Gimenez and their keeper,  Fernando Muslera.

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Come to the knockout stage match against Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal, their stellar partnership upfront comprising of Luis Suarez and Edinson Cavani, stepped up to the plate and showed their class. Uruguay scored two amazing goals with both coming from the PSG man. The interesting thing here is that both these goals scored by Cavani were assisted by Luis Suarez. Although, Uruguay lacks quality in midfield, they make up for it with their talent in both attack and defence.

Venue

The match will be played at the Nizhny Novgorod Stadium. The stadium’s capacity is 43,319 and it has previously hosted five other fixtures in this World Cup, notably the Group D game between Argentina and Croatia, where Croatia beat Messi & Co. 3-0.

Probable  Lineups

Uruguay: Muslera, Varela, Gimenez, Godin, Laxalt, Nandez, Torreira, Vecino, Bentacur, Suarez, Cavani.

France: Lloris, Pavard, Varane, Umtiti, Hernandez, Pogba, Kante, M’bappe, Griezmann, Matuidi, Giroud.

What to Expect

France and Uruguay, as mentioned before have their strengths in attack and defence respectively. Both the teams will be relying on each other to make errors and with their clinical attacking potential, the game should be a very exciting affair.

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Khel Now predicts

Uruguay 1 – 1 France (France through on penalties).