France
France should complete the formality of qualifying for the knockout phase of the World Cup when they meet Group I rivals Iraq in Philadelphia on Monday. Didier Deschamps were decisive enough to beat a solid Senegal side 3-1 in their opener on Tuesday with Kylian Mbappe bagging an early tournament double.
He looks to be in tip-top form and so does Bayern Munich star Michael Olise, although reigning Ballon d’Or Ousmane Dembele struggled to make an impact. Deschamps will likely keep faith with the starters to breed confidence and consistency, so Desire Doue should keep his place on the left.
The Paris Saint-Germain star is still a little wet behind the ears at international level with only eight caps and two goals, but he never looks overawed and can outshine some of the bigger names against Iraq. Norway winger Antonio Nusa gave the Iraqi right-back a torrid time during his side’s 4-1 win in Boston and Doue can emulate that role by cutting in and firing off shots.
Injuries & Team News
France have been exercising caution over defensive quartet William Saliba, Dayot Upamecano, Theo Hernandez and Malo Gusto in recent days, but there is nothing to suggest that they will not be fit to face Iraq on Monday.
However, Hernandez is reportedly in line to drop out for Lucas Digne in one of three changes to the Bleus XI, another of which will see Manu Kone replace Aurelien Tchouameni in the centre of the park.
After becoming the youngest Frenchman to score on his World Cup debut since Thierry Henry 28 years ago, Barcola is also being tipped to replace Desire Doue on the left-hand side.
Form
| Last Match | Last 6 Matches |
|---|---|
| 3-1 vs Senegal | W W W L W W |
Predicted Line-Up
France possible starting lineup:
Maignan; Kounde, Saliba, Upamecano, Digne; Rabiot, Kone; Dembele, Olise, Barcola; Mbappe
Iraq
The Lions of Mesopotamia were thumped 4-1 by Norway in their opening group game and to be honest they looked well out of their depth with the jump in opposition to what they normally face way too much , the jump is going to be even bigger today when they face France in Vancouver.
Progress from “The Group of Death” was always going to be a really tough ask for Graham Arnold’s side. Realistically the best the can hope for vs France is respectability, we might have seen a few shocks at this world cup but anything other than a France win would top any other result.
It might be in the final game against Senegal that they have the best chane of picking up an historic first world cup point.
Injuries & Team News
For Iraq, wide man Ali Jasim was withdrawn in the second half of the defeat to Norway due to a knock, but the 22-year-old has trained fully all week and is available for selection.
Goalkeeper Jalal Hassan has also overcome a minor fitness concern, but after his unconvincing display against Norway, local reports are speculating that Ahmed Basil could start in between the sticks instead.
Striker Hussein – memorably detained for several hours by US immigration officials – followed up his bedlam-inducing equaliser against Norway with an own goal, becoming just the third man to score at both ends in a World Cup match in the process.
Form
| Last Match | Last 6 Matches |
|---|---|
| 1-4 vs Norway | L L W D L L |
Predicted Line-Up
Iraq possible starting lineup:
Basil; Ali, Tahseen, Hashem, Doski; Bayesh, Al-Ammari, Iqbal, Ali Jasim; Hussein, Al-Hamadi
Betting Odds
| Team | Odds | Bookmaker |
|---|---|---|
| France Win | 1/10 – (1.10) | Grand Ivy |
| Draw | 13/1 – (14.00) | Dream Vegas |
| Iraq Win | 36/1 – (37.00) | 247Bet |
Prediction
France 6-0 Iraq
People tuning in tonight hoping to see a shock result are going to be very dissapointed, France are a heavyweight and showed that in the win over Seengal whilst Iraq are a minnow and were possibly the worst performing team of all 48 in the first round of matches. France will win this and win it very well.