Semi-Finals Predictions > Dec 13th & 14th

[StevieDay1983]

OK, so this World Cup is tearing a new one in quite a few of us! Croatia knocking out Brazil was a shock in its own right but Morocco eliminating Portugal was arguably one of the biggest shocks in the history of the competition. Two semi-final matches coming up now. Argentina and France are the clear favourites to progress and what a final that would be but who will go through? Anything has happened and anything could happen in this tournament! Give us your predictions! 

[Gamblor13]

We've seen in tournaments past that surprise outfits eventually run out of gas at the semi final hurdle: Bulgaria '94, Croatia '98, South Korea '02, Uruguay '10. The only real surprise package to win a major tournament was really Greece in 2004. They should have lost their semi to the Czechs who were really all over them early on.

 

I can't see past France here. They're experienced and offer more of an ability to breakdown this type of opposition than the Spaniards or Portuguese. Though I was in shock Portugal couldn't find a way past. To be fair they had some misfortune. With Giroud on form, the threat of Mbappe, the quality that Griezemann is offering, they should surely breach this Moroccan fortress. France's backline did look vulnerable at times vs England which is a worry but can Morocco put that kind of pressure on them aside from the odd counter. Also Roman Saiss the key central defender for Morocco suffered an injury vs Portugal. 

France to win to nil @2.10 

 

[george44]

31 minutes ago, Gamblor13 said:

We've seen in tournaments past that surprise outfits eventually run out of gas at the semi final hurdle: Bulgaria '94, Croatia '98, South Korea '02, Uruguay '10. The only real surprise package to win a major tournament was really Greece in 2004. They should have lost their semi to the Czechs who were really all over them early on.

 

I can't see past France here. They're experienced and offer more of an ability to breakdown this type of opposition than the Spaniards or Portuguese. Though I was in shock Portugal couldn't find a way past. To be fair they had some misfortune. With Giroud on form, the threat of Mbappe, the quality that Griezemann is offering, they should surely breach this Moroccan fortress. France's backline did look vulnerable at times vs England which is a worry but can Morocco put that kind of pressure on them aside from the odd counter. Also Roman Saiss the key central defender for Morocco suffered an injury vs Portugal. 

France to win to nil @2.10 

 

Exactly that !!!! If welook at the past competiotion, we 'll see that there was never any surprise in the final. We had surprices at Euro cup (Greece, Denmark ) but never during a world cup. I strongly believe that the opponents in the final, will be Argentina and  France. Its better for football if Argentina wins. 

[ALEXXXXXXXX]

France vs Morocco

The two sides play in very different ways, so this Wednesday's matchup promises to be a tight tie in 90 minutes because of France's excellent attacking and Morocco's outstanding defensive.

Pick: X

[StefanBB]

Argentina vs Croatia

Argentina looked to have their quarter-final match all tied up as the game entered its final stages. A goal from Molina and a Messi penalty had put the favorites 2-0 up with just 17 minutes left on the clock, but van Gaal sent on his secret weapon, Weghorst, who first headed home to make it 2-1 in the 83rd-minute and then finished neatly with virtually the last touch in stoppage-time to take the game into extra-time. Argentina looked stunned but managed to hold on through the 30 minutes of extra time to see the game decided by a penalty shout-out. Van Dijk and Berghuis both missed for the Dutch, and although Fernandez fired his spot-kick wide for Argentina, Lautaro Martinez scored his to take Argentina into the semi-finals. Leo Messi and the lads should be more confident in this clash to secure their place in the finals.

Croatia knew they were going to have to frustrate Brazil if they were going to get through the toughest of quarter-final draws. The Europeans took the game to Neymar and co, who struggled to get into the game. The match ended up goalless after 90 minutes, but it looked like Brazil had done enough to win the game when Neymar fired the ball home in the 105th minute. However, Croatia never gave up, and in the 117th minute, Petkovic scored his first international goal in over two years, with the aid of a deflection, to take the game into a penalty shoot-out. Croatia scored each of their opening four penalties, and Brazil saw Rodrygo and Marquinhos miss, which meant that the Europeans had succeeded in their mission to upset the odds, leaving the South Americans feeling stupid for not putting Neymar higher up the order of takers. Another challenging task is ahead of them, but they will try to secure another final for their country.

Full-Time Winner Odds & Prediction                                                                            

It is going to be a close game since Croatia is very disciplined in the backline. However, Argentina shouldn't miss this opportunity to fight for the title, and we believe they will win the game in regulation time.

Goals Market Prediction

Both teams have been involved in low-scoring games throughout the tournament, and this one shouldn't be much different. The stake in this game is huge, and we don't expect to see more than two goals in total.

Argentina to Win @ 1.85

Under 2.5 FT @ 1.55

Correct score 1:0 @ 5.50

[Gedkip]

15 hours ago, Gamblor13 said:

We've seen in tournaments past that surprise outfits eventually run out of gas at the semi final hurdle: Bulgaria '94, Croatia '98, South Korea '02, Uruguay '10. The only real surprise package to win a major tournament was really Greece in 2004. They should have lost their semi to the Czechs who were really all over them early on.

 

I can't see past France here. They're experienced and offer more of an ability to breakdown this type of opposition than the Spaniards or Portuguese. Though I was in shock Portugal couldn't find a way past. To be fair they had some misfortune. With Giroud on form, the threat of Mbappe, the quality that Griezemann is offering, they should surely breach this Moroccan fortress. France's backline did look vulnerable at times vs England which is a worry but can Morocco put that kind of pressure on them aside from the odd counter. Also Roman Saiss the key central defender for Morocco suffered an injury vs Portugal. 

France to win to nil @2.10 

 

Croatia are not a surprise because they are 2018 World cup Finalists

[888888]

Outright to win the WC Croatia was @51 , France around @6 or 7 and Argentina @10  , Morocco @250 , so for the bookies Croatia and Morocco reaching the semis is unexpected

[StevieDay1983]

Argentina vs Croatia (Tuesday, 7pm GMT)

The first semi-final of the 2022 World Cup is coming up at 7pm GMT on Tuesday evening and it will put the reigning Copa America champions Argentina against the 2018 World Cup runners-up Croatia at the Lusail Stadium in Qatar. It's being labelled as a surprise semi-final with many stating they were expecting pre-tournament favourites Brazil to be competing but that's the beauty of this competition. It doesn't appear to stop stunning us.

Argentina might have started the tournament off in the worst way possible with that shock 2-1 defeat to group minnows Saudi Arabia but Lionel Scaloni's team have bounced back effectively since. Back-to-back 2-0 wins over Mexico and Poland saw them cruise through Group C as group winners with Lionel Messi playing a key role in both victories. The 2-1 win over Australia in the last 16 was probably more nerve-wracking than it should have been and the Quarter-Final win over Netherlands on penalties was a drama-filled chaotic affair. It was probably a fair winner after Netherlands have snatched extra-time from the jaws of defeat having been 2-0 down with less than 10 minutes remaining and the equalising goal coming in the 11th minute of injury-time. La Albiceleste had appeared to be in solid shape defensively heading into this tournament but they have conceded 5 goals in 5 matches so far. Will their attacking qualities be enough to see them through?

Croatia come into this game as the underdogs but they are a very competent team in their own right. Zlatko Dalic's men are now undefeated in 11 games across all competitions. It wasn't a straightforward navigation through Group F. A laborious 0-0 draw with Morocco in the opening group game had seemed like a poor result at the time but has actually aged quite well. A dominant 4-1 victory against Canada meant they only required a draw against Belgium to progress. They did that with a nail-biting yet far from convincing 0-0 draw where Belgium really squandered a number of key chances. The win over Japan on penalties after a 1-1 draw in the last 16 was a tense affair where Croatia once again rode their luck at times. It was that very luck that saw them suckerpunch pre-tournament favourites Brazil in the Quarter-Finals. An equaliser in the 117th minute from Bruno Petkovic was one of Croatia's only shots on goal during that game but was enough to trigger penalties where they won 4-2. 

Interestingly, 3 of the previous 8 semi-finals at World Cup tournaments have gone to penalties with 4 of the other 5 matches being decided by a single goal. So we can expect a close affair. I'm anticipating Croatia to try and play this one exactly as they dealt with the Brazil game. They will sit back, rely on their solid defence, and counter attack. If they can take it to penalties then they'll have a massive psychological advantage knowing they have 4 wins from 4 penalty shootouts at World Cup tournaments. I wouldn't be surprised if this ended in a draw but I think Croatia's luck could finally run out. Maybe even on penalties.

Draw @ 12/5 with Sporting Index

Total Goals Scored Under 2.5 @ 3/5 with VBet

[tschurchy]

@El Messy Lion you're right this has been a poor World Cup and another knockout round makes no sense. However, the beauty of knockout football is who has the minerals on the night and Croatia, France, and Morocco have shown that, while the likes of Brazil and England bottled it.

If we moved to a league style then the sense of jeopardy - and mind games - would be lost. 

Let's just vote for Morocco to be champions and forget this sorry mess ever happened ? 

[888888]

I strongly think Morocco's unexpected run will end and they will lose by 2 or 3 goals against France, I took France AH -1,5.

[george44]

14 hours ago, 888888 said:

I strongly think Morocco's unexpected run will end and they will lose by 2 or 3 goals against France, I took France AH -1,5.

Its a little bit risky I think. Don't forget that Morocco has no against goals except an own goal at this tournament. In addition to that Morocco hadn't any against goal during the qualification round of Africa. Their defense is perfect. France has a lot of choices in hteir offense but If we look at the match against England we 'll see that English managed to limit French 's  offendive momentum.  That's the point also for Morocco. I think it will be a very closed match. If I had to bet to a match like this, I would like to have all the stats by the best. 

[StefanBB]

France vs Morocco

France secured a 2-1 victory against England to progress to the semi-finals. Tchmouameni fired in a long-range effort that beat Pickford in the 17th minute, though there was a foul in the build-up, which the referee and VAR failed to award, so the goal stood. Kane got England back onto level terms in the 54th minute via a penalty, but Giroud had a header deflected past Pickford in the 78th minute to restore France's one-goal advantage. England should have equalized when Kane stepped up to take another spot-kick, but this time the Tottenham forward blazed his spot-kick over the bar, and England was out. Therefore, Les Bleus are on the way to their second consecutive finals, and they want to meet expectations.

Morocco played just the way everyone expected them to from the very first whistle against Portugal, defending the edge of their box and launching fast counter-attacks. As was as if the Portuguese hadn't done their homework and just assumed that they were going to win the game by turning up, but once En-Nesyri headed Morocco in front, they feared the worst for Ronaldo and co. Speaking of which, Ronaldo was introduced early in the second half but could carve out an equalizer for the favorites. The match ended in tears for the former Man Utd star despite getting substitute Cheddira sent off in stoppage time, and Morocco held firm to claim a famous 1-0 victory.

Full-Time Winner Odds & Prediction                                                                            

Morocco has been the biggest sensation in the tournament so far, and they will produce another miracle if they eliminate France. However, we think Les Bleus are closer to victory, and they shouldn't repeat Portugal's mistake.

Goals Market Prediction

On the other hand, it's not going to be easy for Kylian Mbappe and the lads. Nobody has managed to crack Morocco's defense yet, and this game should stay under a 2.5 margin. 

France to Win @ 1.55

Under 2.5 FT @ 1.65

Correct score 2:0 @ 6.20

[888888]

27 minutes ago, george44 said:

Its a little bit risky I think. Don't forget that Morocco has no against goals except an own goal at this tournament. In addition to that Morocco hadn't any against goal during the qualification round of Africa. Their defense is perfect. France has a lot of choices in hteir offense but If we look at the match against England we 'll see that English managed to limit French 's  offendive momentum.  That's the point also for Morocco. I think it will be a very closed match. If I had to bet to a match like this, I would like to have all the stats by the best. 

yes I see what you mean, my bet is mostly based on "probability" , Morocco having over-achieved in comparaison to their actual level and strength for me means that they are due for a loss with at least two goals especially with Mbappe's speed.

Like in tennis if a player ranked 60th beats a guy ranked in the 30th then a guy ranked in the 20th and then again an other guy ranked in the 20th after all this for me his fourth match the likelihood that he gets blown out by a guy ranked 15th is very high, just like the odds suggest, but then of course on the other hand surprises happen all the time.

[StevieDay1983]

France vs Morocco

The second semi-final in the 2022 World Cup is coming up at 7pm on Wednesday night with France taking on Morocco. The winners will play Argentina in the final. It may well be the French who come into this game as the firm favourites but we've seen enough shocks in this tournament to not want to rule anything out.

France continue to surprise me with how effective they have been with a weakened midfield and head coach who has his tactical flaws. Les Blues were far from impressive in their group with a 4-1 win over an under-cooked Australia followed by a narrow 2-1 win over an under-performing Denmark, and then a surprising 1-0 loss against Tunisia after resting key players. Kylian Mbappe has been doing the business in front of goal with Olivier Giroud also breaking records up front. The 3-1 victory over Poland in the last 16 was probably Didier Deschamps' side's best display and the 2-1 win over England in the Quarter-Finals could've gone a different way on another day. Deschamps has set his team up to manage without possession. It's a dangerous game and it'll be interesting to see how they fare here against a team that also seem happy to sit back.

Morocco have been the darlings of this World Cup by stunning the football community with their performances. It's not been pretty. It's not been glorious. It's been damn effective though. Head coach Walid Regragui boasts this phenomenal defensive record with the team that saw them progress as group winners ahead of Croatia, Belgium, and Canada without suffering a loss in those matches and only conceding 1 goal. The 0-0 draw with Spain before a 3-0 win on penalties in the last 16 shook the world and the 1-0 win against all the odds over Portugal in the Quarter-Finals suggested maybe the impossible could happen.

I said before the semi-final yesterday that it felt like Croatia's luck was going to run out and it did. I have a feeling that maybe this is one step too far for Morocco. They have been a credit to the tournament so far and they have done the continent of Africa proud. It would be wonderful to see them reach the final but I feel they will come up short. I think the attacking power France possess will breach the Moroccan back-line and if France score one then I think they could get 2 or 3. France have conceded a goal in every game so far this tournament but I think it'll be a case of Morocco holding on for a large percentage of this game but not quite lasting the distance.

France to Win to Nil @ 13/10 with BetVictor

First Goalscorer: Kylian Mbappe @ 18/5 with SpreadEx

[harry_rag]

37 minutes ago, StevieDay1983 said:

Anytime Scorer: Kylian Mbappe @ 18/5 with SpreadEx

I assume that's his price for 1st goalscorer? I managed to get 2.56 on BF v a standout best price of 6/4 with SBK.

[StevieDay1983]

15 hours ago, harry_rag said:

I assume that's his price for 1st goalscorer? I managed to get 2.56 on BF v a standout best price of 6/4 with SBK.

Yes, apologies. Got my information mixed up! I have edited now for clarity. Not that it matters!