Familiar Rivals Meet Again
France and England renew acquaintances on Saturday as they battle for third place. Neither nation expected to be involved in the bronze-medal match before the tournament began, but both now have one final opportunity to finish their campaign with a victory.
Match Analysis
France’s tournament journey looked destined for another final until they ran into a superb Spanish side in Dallas.
Les Bleus struggled to create chances against the European champions and never truly recovered after falling behind. The defeat prompted criticism of Deschamps’s approach and ended his hopes of leaving the national team with another appearance in football’s biggest match.
Even so, France remain one of the strongest teams at the tournament. Mbappe, Dembele and Olise have spearheaded one of the competition’s most dangerous attacks and Les Bleus have scored 16 goals in seven matches despite their semi-final frustrations.
England’s defeat to Argentina generated equally fierce debate. The Three Lions made an excellent start in Atlanta and looked capable of reaching a first final in the tournament since 1966, only for Messi to once again prove decisive as Argentina turned the match around.
Tuchel has overseen progress in attacking areas during the tournament, particularly through Kane and Bellingham, but defensive issues have repeatedly resurfaced whenever England have faced elite opposition.
That trend has become difficult to ignore. England have now lost each of their last seven knockout matches against top 10 ranked nations in the tournament and will need to improve significantly if they are to avoid another fourth-place finish.
Recent history also favours France, who have won eight of the last nine meetings between the nations and eliminated England from the 2022 edition of the tournament.
Team News
France are likely to be without Saliba after the Arsenal defender aggravated his long-standing back issue against Spain. Lacroix is expected to replace him, while Konate could also come back into contention if Deschamps decides to rotate his defence.
England’s main concern surrounds James after the right-back suffered another injury setback in the semi-final. Quansah is available again following suspension, while Henderson remains sidelined with a wrist injury. Bellingham is also awaiting clarification over a possible disciplinary issue following Wednesday’s match.
Odds and Tips
England’s attacking players are capable of causing problems, but France should benefit from the extra recovery time and may also be better placed psychologically to respond to their semi-final disappointment.
Les Bleus have the stronger recent record in this fixture and are slight favourites to finish on the podium.
Tip: France to win at 1.95.
Don’t forget that we also have Early Payout on this match, which you can read more about here.
Please note that the odds might have changed since the writing and/or publication of this article.
Last updated: 17.07.26
