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Group stage games of the 2018 FIFA World Cup are done and dusted. Top two teams from each group have qualified for the next round, leaving us with 16 teams. The round of 16 will begin on Saturday and every game from here on is going to be a do or die battle for the teams.
Most of the usual suspects have qualified for the round of 16, except the defending Champions Germany. There are some mouthwatering contests in the round of 16 and none could better the clash between the two previous World Cup winners, France and Argentina.
France will play Argentina in the first match of the round of 16 on Saturday. The two teams had contrasting fortunes in the group stage. France is having a quiet and an easy World Cup so far, whereas Argentina was at the center of all the drama and nail-biting games.
Without much ado, let’s take a look at the reasons why France will beat Argentina in the round of 16.
#1 French attack too good for Argentina’s feeble defense
One of the major problem areas of Argentina is their back-line, especially their center-backs. Nicolas Otamendi and Marcos Rojo have struggled a lot throughout the World Cup. Albiceleste has already conceded five goals in three games, and looked shambolic at the back.
Croatia brutally exposed their weakness at the back and Nigeria was very close to inflicting the same. Though Rojo was the star for Albiceleste on Tuesday with a thunderous goal, the defensive aspects of his game needs a lot of improvements.
The same goes for Nicolas Otamendi. The pair were too slow at the back and were often exposed by pace. France has a lot of pace in their squad, with the likes of Kylian Mbappe, Ousmane Dembele, and Thomas Lemar. The French attack looks too good compared to Argentina's defense at the moment.
#2 Sampaoli has a lot of issues on his hands at the moment
Didier Deschamps is the happiest of two managers right now. Though France has not been sublime in the tournament, they have a lot fewer issues to worry about right now. On the other hand, Sampaoli has a truckload of problems to address at the moment.
It was clearly evident in the three group games that Messi alone cannot take them home all the time. Going into the Saturday game, Sampaoli is unsure of whether to play Higuain or Aguero. Though Higuain had a decent game against Nigeria, he could be tempted to bring back Aguero.
Also, Sampaoli needs to find a way to bring Paulo Dybala into the team. Di Maria is not living up to his reputation and Dybala could be a good option. Mascherano as a defensive midfielder is not doing a great job at the moment. He was often caught up in two minds on whether to attack or defend.
Sampaoli has to do a lot of thinking in the next two days.
#3 Deschamps's settled unit has the pace, balance, and quality to overcome Argentina
The 1998 Champions are one of the unbeaten sides in the tournament. Though they were not at their very best in the group stage, they somehow got the job done. France rested some of their stars for the game against Denmark and everyone could return for the round of 16 game.
The centre-back pairing of Varane and Umtiti looked solid and conceded just one goal in their two games so far. Central midfielders - Pogba and Kante were hardly troubled during the group stage games.
Kylian Mbappe offers a lot of pace for the French side, and Griezmann's presence gives them a lot of quality in the attack. Dembele and Giroud could also be a force to reckon with. They have a balanced squad that looks well settled at the moment.
