Amongst 32 teams in the knockout stage, we finally arrive at the semifinals with just four teams left. There were plenty of good matches, drama, and chaos all alike. Big named teams like Brazil and Germany fell during the first two rounds of the knockout stage. USA, Mexico, and Canada all lost as host teams in the Round of 16. The little guys like Cape Verde, Ivory Coast, and South Africa got to experience the knockout stage like never before and could’ve made their way best the gauntlet opponents. Upsets and stories surrounding the knockout stage has truly made this year’s World Cup worth a watch and an experience. Now, we have France, Spain, England, and Argentina left to battle for the illustrious World Cup trophy. All have plenty of stars and talent alike, but they also have plenty of history and expectations alike. The semifinals winner may have one heck of a time against their World Cup final opponent. This is where I preview and make my prediction of that World Cup final matchup.

TEAMS THAT MADE IT THUS FAR

FRANCE (GROUP I)

From Game 1 of their group matchup to the end of the quarterfinals, France looked dominant. They haven’t wavered or lamented and kept compressing their opponent one kick at a time. They defended exceptionally well during their knockout stage while Mbappe torched his defenders with his size, speed, and kicking power. France could be on their way to their third straight finals with legendary status and potentially one of the faces of the FIFA World Cup with Ronaldo retiring and Messi on the way out too. However, does his ankle injury hinder France’s championship opportunity?

SPAIN (GROUP H)

Spain was a wall that no one could break…until Belgium finally did with 1 goal. However, 1 goal’s not enough when opponents are faced with a dangerous group of Spanish players surrounding young gun Lamine Yamal. Spain had a surprisingly slow start on the pitch against pesky Cape Verde, who made the knockout stage as a World Cup debutant. Afterwards, Spain looked like an immovable object for the entire run until last Friday. Now, the future 2030 hosts return to the semifinals for the first time since 2010 when they won their first World Cup championship.

ARGENTINA (GROUP J)

Argentina went from running through easy Group opponents to being tested in every knockout match. They were pressed by a severely underrated Cape Verde squad and Mo Salah’s Egypt squad, and both could’ve upset the Argentine players. The Swiss even pressed them into extra time before Argentina put the final nail in their coffin with back-to-back goals. Argentina finds ways to win as long as they have Lionel Messi on the pitch, and that will continue as they clash with a tough England squad. Despite being 2-3 in all-time matches against England, Argentina has yet to lose a semifinals game in their World Cup history (5-0).

ENGLAND (GROUP L)

England was questioned after the second match, and we weren’t sure how far they would go. But the main players from the 2018 squad advance to the semifinals for the 2nd time in the last 3 World Cup appearances. This is truly the best England squad that’s been on that type of consistency. They made it through showing toughness, persistence, and balance on both sides with Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham leading the way in hopes of ending their 60-year World Cup title drought. If they’re able to lunge past a tough Argentina team that’s undefeated in semifinals matches, we could be witnessing a 60-year drought being no more.

MATCHUPS

FRANCE VS. SPAIN

This is the second time both squads meet, but it’s their first semifinals matchup. France is looking for their third straight World Cup finals appearance while Spain’s in their third all-time semifinals and is looking for their second ever World Cup finals appearance. France hasn’t allowed a point since the start of their knockout stage. They dismantled Sweden’s defense without resistance and wore down Paraguay and Morocco’s tenacious defense, but Spain’s defense seems nearly unbreakable. Despite allowing one goal against Belgium, they made life heck for them and any opponent trying everything against Spain’s defense. Kylian Mbappe played like the best player all tournament long, but his ankle sprain might be something to monitor. Otherwise, it could go either way for both sides. Can France break through Spain’s defense or will Spain end France’s virtually dominant tournament run?

ENGLAND VS. ARGENTINA

If no one’s familiar with the England vs. Argentina history, they faced each other on multiple occasions. This will be their 6th World Cup meeting in 24 years. The two meetings in 1966 and 1986 resulted in each eventually winning the whole thing. While England holds a 3-2 lead over Argentina all-time, Argentina is the current defending champs. England players that debuted in 2018 are everything that England as a whole hoped for a long while, and this squad could be that golden generation that could find their way to New Jersey to hoist the trophy. Getting there is an insurmountable task as they face Lionel Messi and his squad that gained experience and confidence with each match played. They’ve been tested across the board of the knockout stage and overcame it every time. England’s World Cup title aspirations could literally come down to this matchup.

WHO ADVANCES

Unless Mbappe’s less than 100% with his ankle injury, France breaks through Spain’s defense to play for their third straight World Cup title. Spain has the horses to go multiple rounds with anyone thanks to their strong defense, but it’s difficult to go against Mbappe and France when they have little to no flaws and loves to compress and attack defenses without fear.

England got the jump in 1962 and 1966 (World Cup champs that year) before Argentina responded 1986 (World Cup champs that year) and 1998. England ended that matchup skid with a victory in 2002 that gave them the 3-2 lead all time. England are capable scorers with the rise of Jude Bellingham backing up scoring machine Harry Kane. They have that attacking strength when pressured, but Argentina proved to find a way since starting the knockout stage and it’s likely they do it again with an unblemished semifinal match record to play for back-to-back World Cup championships.