Giant-killers Iceland face their toughest match yet against hosts France. How the Icelanders have made it this far is just mind-blogging but they fully deserve to be there. They have been brilliant in all their matches so far, more so in their last match against England which they outplayed and outgunned. Arguably, this was the poorest display of the English national team in years, but credit the Icelanders for suffocating the minds and legs out of the Lions.
That Iceland team can boast players in their 40's, yet their running rate is impressive; they are very fit and are willing to make the running on each blade of grass out there. France have all the pressure on them as unimaginable will be the reaction should they fall at home at this stage to the minnows. They escaped the trap set by the Irish and showed much courage to come back a goal down at half-time. They will definitely have to show up at a higher physical and mental level to overcome these resilient opponents. The pace of Martial and Griezman on the flanks and up front could be put to good effect here as the Icelanders are always very compact in the middle.
This is bound to be another tough match and neutral minds would want Iceland's fairy tale to continue their run. Realistically, the French have enough talent in them to make the breakthrough. But with the way the results have been going from the start of the tournament, no one could take the hosts as a sure-fire banker to go through.
To qualify: France
That Iceland team can boast players in their 40's, yet their running rate is impressive; they are very fit and are willing to make the running on each blade of grass out there. France have all the pressure on them as unimaginable will be the reaction should they fall at home at this stage to the minnows. They escaped the trap set by the Irish and showed much courage to come back a goal down at half-time. They will definitely have to show up at a higher physical and mental level to overcome these resilient opponents. The pace of Martial and Griezman on the flanks and up front could be put to good effect here as the Icelanders are always very compact in the middle.
This is bound to be another tough match and neutral minds would want Iceland's fairy tale to continue their run. Realistically, the French have enough talent in them to make the breakthrough. But with the way the results have been going from the start of the tournament, no one could take the hosts as a sure-fire banker to go through.
To qualify: France
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