OdishaLIVE Bureau
After a rollercoaster of a journey filled with excitement and drama we are finally down to the last eight teams.
- France face a resilient Uruguay in the first quarter final of the tournament.
- Brazil and Belgium go head to head in the second quarter final.
After a rollercoaster of a journey filled with excitement and drama we are finally down to the last eight teams. France, Uruguay, Brazil, Belgium, England, Sweden, Russia and Croatia are the final eight teams that will go head to head with each other to get their hands on that glamorous trophy. Today, France play Uruguay while Brazil face Belgium.
Uruguay vs. France
Uruguay play France in the Nizhny Novgorod Stadium at 7:30 PM IST. Uruguay have been brilliant this tournament. They won all of their matches in the group stages and conceded 0 goals. Their success is down to how strong they are at the back. Their foundation at the back gives their strikers the confidence to express themselves on the counter. They conceded their first goal of the tournament against Portugal, in match which they won by 2-1. France, on the other hand started off their campaign rather unconvincingly, although they won 2 of their matches and drew 1, the manner in which it was won was questionable. But, in the Round of 16 against Argentina, France took centre stage and showed the world what they can produce with their explosive attack.
They took Argentina by storm when they attacked. Although they also had a few blips in defence when Argentina hit them on the counter, they defended pretty well for the most parts of the match and won the game. Uruguay will be a different challenge for the French team as they defend collectively and are organised at the back. France will need to be patient on the ball and create one or two clear chances and be clinical while taking them. As for the Uruguayan side they need to do what they have done throughout the tournament that is defend hard and be organised. They need to frustrate France by not letting through their defence and then hit them on the counter.
Team news and players to look out for
19 year old Kylian Mbappe has announced himself on the World’s biggest stage. While experienced strikers have failed to deliver for their team, this teenage sensation has taken up the responsibility and delivered. He scored two brilliant goals against Argentina in the Round of 16 and will be hoping to take that form into the quarter finals. His pace and movement are something to admire and cherish. He will be looking to cause all kinds of trouble to the Uruguayan defence with his pace and movement and the Uruguayan defence have to be on full alert and mark him properly. Blaise Matuidi is suspended which probably means that Corentin Tolisso will take his place in the line up. Paul Pogba has stepped up this tournament and has displayed some tremendous performances. Most of the French attacks originate from him. He is the heart of the French team. His power, dribbling ability, passing ability and height will all come into play in this match. Uruguay needs to stop him first, if they want to nullify France’s attacks.
As for Uruguay, their man in form Edinson Cavani limped off the match against Portugal after scoring two goals and putting in a man of the match performance. Whether he will play in this match is a doubt and his absence is surely going to affect Uruguay’s chances. His exclusion means that ex- Middles brough man Christian Stuani will fill in for him. With Cavani out, Luiz Suarez needs to take centre stage and deliver. The Barcelona forward has had a mixed tournament but played brilliantly against Portugal in the Round of 16 assisting both of the goals. Diego Godin and Gimenez need to defend like they have defended throughout this tournament. If both the teams play according to their strengths we will witness an intense match with drama filled in it.
Brazil vs. Belgium
Brazil go head to head with Belgium at the Kazan Arena in Kazan at 11:30 PM IST. Many believe that this is going to be the match of the tournament. Both of the sides have talent filled with abundance in their side and we can definitely expect a match of great drama and excitement. Brazil have played well, just enough to make them win games. They drew 1 and won 2 games in their group stages. In the Round of 16, they were professional and beat the Mexican Side who were looking to cause an upset, yet again.
Belgium on the other hand have been brilliant. Many believed that they would not perform as per their expectations but they have shut up the critics playing some brilliant football throughout the tournament. They won all of their matches in the group stages comprehensively and were placed top in the table. They showed character and determination when they came back from going 2 goals down to win the Round of 16 match by 3-2 against Japan. Both play attacking football and both the teams have pace in their attack. This match is expected to be explosive with the football being end to end.
The team which defends the better and nullifies the opponents attack will be the team that comes out on top. Also, both the goalkeepers have to be on their top form as there will be many chances created at both of the ends. Hence, the goalkeeper who is in better form and the one who makes the most saves will help his team to come out on top.
Team news and players to look out for
Neymar Jr finally came into life when he scored one goal and provided one assist in the Round of 16 match against Mexico. Belgium will know his qualities but will be also aware of his antics on the pitch. The Brazilian superstar has already wasted 14 minutes due to his embarrassing acting on the pitch. The forward looks to go down easily and Belgium will know that. But, his quality on the ball is not to be underestimated as he is capable of producing extra ordinary moments out of nothing.
Apart from Neymar who is the obvious candidate to look out for, Brazil’s Philipe Countinho has been playing some amazing football. The Barcelona forward has scored 2 goals and assisted 1 goal in this tournament. Real Madrid Left back Marcelo is also expected to return to the line up after missing out the last game due to injury. But, midfielder Casemiro which provides much needed stability in the midfield will be missing out due to suspension. Man City midfielder, Fernandinho is expected to take his place in the line up.
Belgium’s Romelu Lukaku has been clinical in front of goal. The Manchester United striker has scored 4 goals in the tournament and is behind top scorer Harry Kane who has scored 6 goals. Brazil will know that if he gets one chance, it is most likely that he will score. Eden Hazard has also had a good campaign with the winger having an influential performance in the Round of 16 match against Japan. His trickery and dribbling will cause a lot of problems to the Brazilian defence. Kevin De Bruyne in midfield has had a quite campaign after enjoying tremendous success with Manchester City.
Belgium need to play him more forward and not play him as a deep lying midfielder. His role in the winning goal in the Round of 16 match proves why he should play more upfront. In defence, Spurs pair, Toby Alderweireld and Jan Vertonghen need to be on their sharpest game in order to nullify Brazil’s brilliant attacking force. Marouane Fellaini has been very useful off the bench and Brazil will have problems marking him as he will tend to use his strength and heading ability.
(Story: Raunaq Dash, Edit: Sriram Singh Rattan)
