World Cup Thursday Preview: Denmark and Australia Set For Battle; France Back In Action; Can Argentina Rebound?
SteemSports Presenter:@thesportsguy
SteemSports Editor:@scottybuckets
Thursday has an interesting lineup of matches for us to chew on and dissect as the group stage continues at World Cup 2018 from Russia. The first match of the day will pit Denmark and Australia out of Group C and be followed by the French taking on Peru in what will be an especially important match for the Peruvians. Closing out the day is a dandy of matchup between Croatia and South American giants Argentina. The Croatians find themselves a surprise atop the group after dispatching Nigeria 2-0 in their opening match. Argentina of course will be looking to rebound after being held to a point in a 1-1 draw with Iceland in their opening match.
Denmark got a hard-earned 1-0 win in their opener with Peru, leaving them with a much-needed 3 points. Their second match will be far more important for the Australians, as they will most likely need a victory to stay alive. A loss will not eliminate Denmark, but a point could put them in prime position to advance - especially if France can take care of Peru - as they are favored to do. It was a Yussuf Poulsen goal in the 59' that was the difference for Denmark in their first match. The goal came off of a beautiful break up the pitch by Eriksen as he broke right up the middle of the field and sliced open the Peru defense.
The Danes will be looking to Eriksen once again to provide a spark up front, and will most likely elect to approach this match similar to their first. They yielded advantages to Peru in both shots (17-10) and possession (54%-46%), but countered effectively and made the most of their possession. Look for that trend to continue against an Australia side that will have to be aggressive to try and get a result. The Socceroos are known for their strong "team mentality" and proactive brand of futbol based on effective possession with a cutting edge provided by creative individuals. Defensively they are known for their quick transition and collective pressing.
They gave France fits, and ultimately found themselves on the wrong end of some unfortunate luck when a chip from Aziz Behich managed to just catch the crossbar out of the keeper's reach and came down ever-so slightly on the opposite side of the line for the difference-making goal for France in the 80'. A somewhat questionable penalty also aided France in their first goal. While the Australians gave a great effort, they were left without any points. Ultimately it was a match that was devoid of a lot of shot opportunities as Australia managed just 6 in the match, while the French got off 12.
Look for a defensive match between Denmark and Australia with the Aussies a bit more willing to take chances in this one as they go for a much-needed 3 points to stay alive in the group. The Danes will be content to pressure when the opportunity arises, and will most likely look to slice the Australian defense as they did to Peru on occasion. It should be a very good match - any outcome would not be shocking in the least. Look for Australia to turn to 38-year old aging legend Tim Cahill at some point, possibly as a late substitution to try and provide some more magic for the Socceroos.
France and Peru will square off in the other match of Group C, with the Peruvians needing an outcome to stay alive for the knockout stage. Their 1-0 setback to Denmark was tough to stomach, as they had numerous quality chances turned away, and now they have a very talented French squad awaiting. Paul Pogba and co. are riding the wave of an exciting 2-1 opening match victory over Australia. Peru is quick and talented up front, and France plays with a more aggressive approach then do Denmark, which should make for a thrilling match. Look for there to be plenty of shots on goal as Peru will have to play open and not be content to lay back and just turn away France's offensive attempts. A 2-1 scoreline in either direction would not be surprising at all. Prediction: France 2 Peru 2.
The last match slated for Thursday, gives us our second look at Argentina legend Lionel Messi. The little magician failed to deliver what would have most likely been the winner against Iceland in the opening match, when his penalty was deflected away by Iceland keeper Halldorsson in the 64'. Iceland played to their strengths of sitting back in defense, playing gritty and firm in their back third, happy to turn away Argentine effort after effort at the expense of possession, waiting for their opportunities to pounce with a quick counter-attack.
Argentina gave themselves plenty of chances (27-8 shot advantage), but only 7 were on target. They unsurprisingly completely-dominated time of possession (78%-22%), but yet were held to just Sergio Aguero's superb goal in the 19'. It will be a completely different beast on Thursday however, as Croatia did their part in a 2-0 opening match victory over Nigeria. While the Nigerians didn't look their best at times, they were still able to muster a shot advantage (14-11) over Croatia. Only 2 shots for each side were on target for the entire match as both sides looked a bit underwhelming at times. Croatia were able to take advantage of Nigeria's perceived weakness heading into the tournament, which was vulnerability on set pieces. Both goals came off of set-pieces, and while they sit atop the group, don't look for Croatia to necessarily be too aggressive on the attack in this one. Argentina are very talented and will be hungry following the draw with Iceland. Croatia won't cede the overwhelming amount of possession that Iceland did, meaning Argentina will still get their opportunities - but it's not going to be anywhere near their first match.
All eyes will be on Messi of course once again, especially after Ronaldo provided the heroics once more for Portugal today. Argentina knows that a point keeps them alive but that a victory is most likely needed to feel safe about their prospects of advancing to the knockout round. In the end, Argentina will once again hold the advantage in possession, but will find themselves in a bit of a tough, defensive scrum. Prediction: None-the-less La Albiceleste gets one through and hangs on for a hard-fought victory - Argentina 1 Croatia 0.
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I think Denmark and France will win, not easily but I think they should both take the three points. Argentina is the team that is in trouble, they are under a lot of pressure and Croatia is in a very good mental shape apart from having great players. Normally I would bet on Argentina but it depends if they are mentally prepared for the game.
You were def right about Argentina - they were downright awful today. That was a bad performance there's just no other way to say it. Hats off to Croatia, they are looking the part - like you said are in very good mental shape and all of their talent is coming out. Argentina are in dire straights now, will be interesting to see if they can somehow get through, not looking likely though at the moment.