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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Sport
Andros Townsend

Andros Townsend refuses to budge from pre-World Cup prediction in final forecast

We've loved and lost some fantastic teams at this World Cup - but France facing Argentina is 100percent the dream final.

In the dark blue corner you have defending champions France - spearheaded by Kylian Mbappe - who, when they are not leaving teams in pieces, have the ability to find a way to win without playing well.

In the lighter blue corner you have the magnificent Lionel Messi - one of the two best players of his generation who, at 35, is still capable of the moments of magic that have the world at his feet.

Both of them have scored five goals so far to get their teams to this stage of the competition. Both of them are capable of landing the Golden Boot.

In terms of the Messi v Ronaldo debate I must say, I’m a Ronaldo man but I would never begrudge Messi winning a World Cup. He’s been doing what he's doing now since he was 16 years of age.

But France have been my pick since the start of the tournament. They’ve been the best team overall and they are the favourites going into the game with some justification.

I’d go so far as to say that Mbappe, at 23, is so young and throughout the squad there is so much depth, they could win it a third time in 2026. Randal Kolo Muani, the Eintracht Frankfurt forward who came off the bench to finish off Morocco, is 24.

Aurelian Tchouameni, who scored against England, is still only 22. Jules Kounde at the back is 24, the versatile Eduardo Camavinga is 20.

France are aiming to retain the World Cup trophy (Getty Images)

Didier Deschamps and the team around him have done a superb job of continuing that conveyor belt and the quality on the pitch is outstanding. So is their cutting edge. They are ruthless in front of goal and if Argentina make the slightest mistake in defence, France can - and will - punish them.

I think it will be in both defences where the game is won and lost. We can talk all we want about Messi, Mbappe, Alvarez and Griezmann - but both the French and the Argentina defences will need to be at the top of their game. They will need concentration, focus, protection from the midfield in front of them and the willingness to work for each other.

Again. Argentina do have that. Their system means Messi doesn’t focus on defense duties with the other players around him doing his running for him.

But Antoine Griezmann dropping into midfield for me has been another of the most consistent performers of this tournament. Some people say that France haven’t played well in the last couple of games. So what? They are in the final. In any case, When you have a team with the leadership and the mentality they possess, you can get away with that.

In Mbappe, France have a speed freak capable of a moment of genius in the blink of an eye. Playing off the left means Argentina also have to cope with Olivier Giroud down the middle and Ousmane Dembele down the right - and I don’t fancy Argentina to keep them out.

Listen, a win for either side would be a wonderful story. The final piece in the trophy jigsaw for Messi or Messi spearheading the first team to retain the world title since Brazil in 1962. It’s the kind of match-up to get thirty-something men like me excited. I bet you are too.

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