MY ACCOUNT
The World Cup final does not always involve the two best international teams on the planet but there is a strong argument that the 2022 edition does.
Holders France take on Copa America champions Argentina in what promises to be an intriguingly even contest.
The South Americans are led by Lionel Messi — arguably the greatest player of the modern era, who is still producing on the biggest stage of all.
Whereas Les Bleus have a young pretender in Kylian Mbappe, who most agree is the man ready to take on Messi’s mantle.
This is a World Cup final that may be decided by the tightest of margins. We take a look at the tactical battles that could define the game.
Keeping Mbappe quiet
Mbappe is the World Cup’s top scorer alongside Messi with five strikes but has not found the net since the last 16.
England have been the most successful side in quelling Mbappe’s influence, with right-back Kyle Walker being aided by midfielder Jordan Henderson playing very wide and Bukayo Saka tracking back.
Yet while Mbappe also failed to score against Morocco in the semi-final, his probing runs open up space for team-mates.
In Nahuel Molina, Argentina have pace at right-back and he is likely to be supported by his Atletico Madrid colleague Rodrigo De Paul. They need to keep Mbappe quiet to give Argentina a chance of victory.
Hernandez exposed
French left-back Theo Hernandez has had a torrid time in his last two games, with first Saka and then Morocco’s Hakim Ziyech giving him major problems.
Hernandez should not be blamed for this, as he only has Mbappe in front of him on the left flank and the forward stays high up the field.
Neither does Hernandez have much in the way of protection from midfield, with Didier Deschamps sticking with a double-pivot, where the two midfielders are not able to consistently act as a barrier in wide areas.
With space in front of Hernandez to exploit, we can expect Messi to spend a lot of time on the right — floating over from his nominal central role to try and exploit France where they are weakest.
French pragmatism overstated
For a manager that has already won one World Cup final and has now reached another, Deschamps receives a lot of criticism.
The reason is his pragmatic approach. It is frustrating to see such a talented French team happy to concede the majority of possession but there is a counter-argument.
Though Deschamps keeps his team on a tight leash, he does take gambles, such as leaving Hernandez exposed to maximise the threat of Mbappe.
He could also protect Hernandez by adding a third man in midfield but prefers to field Antoine Griezmann as a No10.
France are willing to be patient, knowing that when they do get possession they have the right players in the correct areas to do the maximum amount of damage.
Battle of counter-punchers
Despite their lack of possession, France have the highest non-penalty xG at this tournament (11.9) and have actually outscored this number with 13 goals across six games.
Their approach is one that Argentina are not averse to themselves. La Albiceleste had only 39% possession in their semi-final against Croatia but ran out 3-0 winners with two of their efforts coming from quick transitions.
By sheer weight of numbers, Messi and Co will likely win the midfield battle against France and control possession, with Lionel Scaloni set to stick with the narrow 4-2-2-2 from the last game.
They will have to be cautious about leaving too much space on their flanks for France to expose and stick tight to Griezmann when they lose the ball.
Finishing touch
Everything points to this being a low-scoring match decided by a moment or two of extreme quality.
While it will be marketed as a battle between Messi and Mbappe, there are other players who can have a major impact.
Julian Alvarez scored twice against Croatia and now has four goals in the tournament — the same amount as his opposing striker Olivier Giroud. They will not get many chances and will need to be at their deadliest.
At the opposite end of the pitch, Hugo Lloris put in a top performance against Morocco and will be looking for a repeat.
Opposite number Emiliano Martinez has proved himself in shootout victories in the Copa America and against the Netherlands, making Argentina favourites if the game goes to penalties.
