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After a brilliant four weeks of football, the World Cup has come to an end. After one of the best tournaments we have seen for years, it was France who came away with their second world title.
France were among the favourites to win the tournament coming into the World Cup, partly down to the embarrassment of riches available to them in the final third. But despite how strong they looked on paper, France didn’t exactly impress in the group stage.
They needed the help of VAR to beat Australia, before Kylian Mbappe scored the only goal as they snuck past Peru, a win which secured them a place in the round of 16. The final game with Denmark was virtually a dead rubber, and they played out a dull 0-0 draw.
France came to life in the round of 16 though, and their game with Argentina was one of the best matches of the tournament. They came out on top, thanks to a double from Mbappe, and a sensational strike from Benjamin Pavard.
In the quarter finals, they put out Uruguay, who many had been seen as dark horses heading into the tournament. They breached a defence who had conceded just one goal in their previous four matches, on two occasions. The first came from Raphael Varane’s header, and the second was scored by Antoine Griezmann, thanks to a horrible error from Fernando Muslera.
The semi-final saw them come up against Belgium’s golden generation, who had just beaten Brazil, and were looking like the Real deal. It was France who got the better of the semi-final though, with Samuel Umtiti’s header enough to see them through.
Then to the final, where they faced Croatia, who were appearing in their first major tournament final. They produced one of the most exciting finals we have seen, as France won 4-2, picking up their first world title since 1998.
It was a World Cup that will live long in the memory of the French, and here are five reasons why they came home with the trophy.
#1 They got the best out of Paul Pogba
It was probably the most asked question in English football last season- how do you get the best out of Paul Pogba? Manchester United tried him in a deeper role, as part of a midfield three, and even out on the left, but he never seemed to hit the heights that were expected of him when he first moved to England in 2016. It was a different story for France this summer though, as he finally looked like the sort of player United bought from Juventus, and he played a crucial role in taking Les Bleus to the title.
He was massively helped out by the presence of N’Golo Kante in the middle of midfield. The Chelsea man can cover the ground of two men in midfield on his own, and that meant Pogba could have slightly more impact further forward, without leaving his defence too exposed. He began the tournament by playing a key role in the winning goal against Australia, and ended it by starting, and finishing the move for France’s third goal, that realistically put the game to bed. Jose Mourinho will be hoping he can get the same from Pogba in a red shirt as well.
#2 The luck was with them
Every country ever to win the World Cup has had luck on their side. There have been some famous examples. When France won their first World Cup in 1998, they benefitted the from uncertainty in Brazil’s camp surrounding Ronaldo’s fitness. In 1986, Argentina had Diego Maradona’s Hand of God, and as for 1966, there is still debate as to whether Geoff Hurst’s second goal crossed the line or not.
Things were no different for France in this tournament. They benefitted massively from refereeing decisions in the final. The free kick they scored their first goal from came from what looked like quite a soft foul on Antoine Griezmann, and then there was the penalty. VAR has been a big cause for discussion in this tournament, and it was under scrutiny once again in the final. It was used to overturn a handball given against Ivan Perisic, which seemed incredibly harsh, as it was impossible to say that was deliberate.
#3 They had a superstar in their ranks
Kylian Mbappe burst onto the scene in the 2016/17 season with Monaco, particularly in the Champions League. That saw him move to PSG, with that move becoming a permanent one this summer in a deal worth £166 million, making him the second most expensive player in football history. He showed why at this World Cup, and in a team boasting the likes of Paul Pogba and Antoine Griezmann, he was the undoubted star.
He became the youngest Frenchman to score in a major tournament when he netted the winner against Peru, but he really came to the fore in the round of 16 game against Argentina. He drew the foul for the penalty from which France scored their opener with a brilliant run from inside his own half, before coming up with two clinical finishes to secure victory. His pace and directness caused defences troubles throughout the tournament, and he crowned his performances off by scoring France’s fourth in the final, in the process becoming the first teenager to score in a World Cup final since Pele.
#4 The full-backs grew as the tournament went on
There aren’t many areas where this France side looked weak going into the tournament, but one place they did look short was at full-back. Didier Deschamps selected both Benjamin Mendy and Djibril Sidibe in their squad, despite both suffering injuries last season, meaning it was difficult to know if they were fully fit. This meant that they went into the first game with Lucas Hernandez, who hadn’t been a regular at Atletico Madrid, at left back, and Benjamin Pavard, who had spent the entirety of last season playing at centre back for Stuttgart, at right back.
Both looked a bit uncomfortable in the opening match with Australia, and there was a belief that teams could have success in wide areas against France. However, by the time the final came about, they were two of Deschamps’ most reliable performers. They didn’t always offer too much in attacking areas, but they did the job that they needed to do in their defensive third. Having said that, one of the moments of the tournament came in their round of 16 match with Argentina, when Hernandez’s over hit cross came all the way to Pavard on the far side, and he hit a sensational half volley, which was right up there with the best goals of the tournament.
#5 The usual suspects weren’t at it
Coming into the tournament, France weren’t the favourites to come away with the trophy. That was Brazil, closely followed by Germany and Spain. The Germans didn’t even make it past the group stages, as they were dumped out following defeats to Mexico and South Korea. Spain fell at the round of 16 after a penalty shootout loss to hosts Russia, while Brazil were beaten by a rampant Belgium side in the quarter finals.
Obviously, they say you can only beat what’s in front of you, and that’s exactly what they did, but there is no doubt that they benefitted from not facing any of those three. They still had to beat some big teams, but that included a Uruguay side without Edinson Cavani, and a below-average Argentina side. We will never know if they would have been good enough to beat any of the big three sides, but their run to the trophy was certainly simpler without their presence.
