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Both teams have the chance to win their third World Cup when Argentina and holders France meet in this weekend’s final at Lusail Stadium.
France will now take on Lionel Messi and Argentina in the World Cup final on Sunday. They would be just the third repeat champion in World Cup history if they win that match.
In this semifinal match, France was the favorite and they proved why as the defending champs scored in just five minutes.
France has made it to the final courtesy of a 2-0 win over Morocco on Wednesday. Theo Hernández fired Les Bleus into an early lead at Al Bayt Stadium, before substitute Randal Kolo Muani made sure of victory with a late finish from point-blank range.
Now, the defending champions can become just the third team in World Cup history to win back-to-back titles, after Brazil in 1958 and 1962, and Italy in 1934 and 1938. What’s more, France boss Didier Deschamps can establish himself as only the second coach in history to lead his side to consecutive World Cups, after Italy’s Vittorio Pozzo.
France, who also won the World Cup in 1998, have only lost one of their three final appearances, on penalties to Italy in 2006.
Striker Kylian Mbappé heads into Sunday’s clash level with club-mate Messi in the race for the Golden Boot, while Olivier Giroud is one goal behind the pair.
Meanwhile, Argentina’s shock opening-game defeat to Saudi Arabia now feels like a very long time ago. Lionel Scaloni’s men have five wins in five since then – albeit one was on penalties – and are on the cusp of lifting the country’s first World Cup since 1986.
The Albiceleste reached their sixth World Cup final with a 3-0 semi-final victory over Croatia on Tuesday, Lionel Messi once again delivering a stellar performance. The Paris Saint-Germain forward opened the scoring from the spot – his fifth goal in Qatar – and later set up Argentina’s third with wonderful individual play. Receiving the ball on the wing, he skinned Croatia’s Josko Gvardiol, advanced into the box, and cut it back for a tap-in for two-goal Julián Alvárez.
Messi, who will be making a record 26th tournament appearance, says Sunday’s game will be his last in the World Cup. Having had to settle for a runners-up medal in 2014, this is the 35-year-old’s final opportunity to get his hands on the men’s game’s most prestigious trophy.
For the final, it’s storyline after storyline. France wants to repeat, with Mbappe getting his second straight World Cup in two tries. Argentina would love if Messi can collect that elusive World Cup, which is the one box the soccer legend hasn’t been able to check off yet in his career. This is likely his last chance to do so.
A victory for Argentina would cap Messi’s career just as a Hollywood screenwriter would have imagined it, but France are simply too strong in every department, aren’t they? France is the likely favoured winner for the finals but only time will tell until the anticipated face-off in the finals.
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