Probably the two most important games of the last 16 – France versus Argentina and Uruguay versus Portugal – will be played today. Although France seems less stormy than Argentina, who performed poorly in the group stages, the French are actually not the favorites. The gap between the two teams is not as wide as many might think – it is all square. The same also goes for Uruguay and Portugal, two similar teams with similar strategies. Although it is tough picking a favorite, it is pretty obvious that how the games will be played.
First, the only thing clear about France is that they do not tend to dominate the game. In all three games they played against Australia, Peru and Denmark, they could not prove their superiority over their opponents. Yes, they got seven out of nine points, but that does not mean that they have a game that can easily outperform Argentina.
Didier Deschamps' team defends well, but they waste a good amount of manpower and energy to do so. N'golo Kante and Paul Pogba create a great defensive midfield, but their presence in front of their defense leaves only four men for France to attack. Thus, when accompanied with Blaise Matuidi, France become an extremely dull team which relies on counterattacks.
On the other hand, Argentina is the exact opposite. They pose a great offensive threat, but they are extremely imbalanced and unstable on defense. Coach Jorge Sampaoli turned to a four-man defense after their disastrous defeat against Croatia, but that was not enough. He also put Javier Mascherano and Ever Banega in front of the defensive line to provide extra-cover, which resembles France's formation. Nevertheless, unlike France's rather fast but limited forward line, they have a richer attacking arsenal with a super-weapon called Messi. My readers would know that I do not usually compare teams over individual talents, but when it's all square, it is these individual details that will determine the result.
Next up is Uruguay versus Portugal, and these teams are so similar that they can be analyzed together. They both try to defend well before they try to attack, and their only weapon is swift counter attacks. However, the little detail that makes all the difference is that Uruguay are much better in defending than Portugal. Of course, Uruguay finished a rather easy group in first and did not face an opponent like Spain. But still, they did not let Russia, a team that scored eight goals in two games, get an opportunity against them. Although it is still a very close call and Portugal have a super-weapon like Ronaldo, Uruguay have the slight upper hand due to their defensive mastery.
