For France it will be their third World Cup final, emerging victorious on home soil in 1998, and beaten in 2006 in a match made famous by Zinedine Zidane’s headbutt on Italian defender Marco Materazzi. Croatia, meanwhile, will be making their first final appearance; their previous best showing came in 1998 when they reached the semi-final to be beaten, ironically enough, by France.
History and form suggests that France will emerge victorious again. Whilst they did not play particularly well to win their group, when it came to the knock-out stages of the tournament, they have shown their true quality, disposing of Argentina, Uruguay and Belgium, with a combination of attacking flair, midfield power and defensive solidity.
One name that has really caught the eye is 19-year old striker Kylian Mbappe, whose two goals against Argentina and performances against the Belgians, in particular, have captured the public’s imagination.
If he is allowed to run at the Croatia defence as he done with other teams in the tournament, then the Balkan side could find themselves in trouble early. Alongside him Atletico Madrid’s Antoine Griezmann has had an excellent World Cup and will offer a consistent goal threat.
The French are also strong in midfield, with the Premier League duo of N’Golo Kante and Paul Pogba offering solidity and pace in transition, whilst Blaise Matuidi will help close down the opposition quickly. Rpahael Varane and Samuel Umtiti have been very solid in defence, whilst captain and goalkeeper Hugo LLoris demonstrated his value with excellent saves against both Uruguay and Belgium.
By contrast, some would argue that Croatia’s path to the final has been eased by the early elimination of more favoured teams in their half of the draw. They were excellent in the qualifying stages, particularly when thrashing Argentina 3 – 0,, but have struggled in the knock-out games, needing penalties to beat both Denmark and Argentina, and coming from behind to beat England in extra-time in their semi-final.
However, they have shown great character in all those matches, particularly against England when they were second-best in the first half of that match so by no means can be discounted.
In Luca Modric, their captain, they have a contender for player of the tournament, whilst his midfield partners of Ivan Rakitic and Ivan Perišić also possess real quality. They also have a potent striker of their own in the shape of Mario Mandžukić, scorer of the winner against England, and France will need to be wary of the Croat movement and ability to attack from the flanks.
One factor that could tip the match in France’s favour is that they should be less fatigued than Croatia. All their matches have been decided in regulation time, whereas the Croats have played an extra 30 minutes on three consecutive occasions. In addition, France will have an extra day to prepare for the final, having played on Tuesday, a day earlier than the Croats.
The omens point to another French triumph, but do not discount the Croats and their powers of recovery.