France vs Denmark: Who will snatch top spot in Group C?

France will take on fellow European side Denmark in a battle for top spot in Group C at the Luzhniki Stadium on Tuesday.

So far, Les Bleus have picked up six points from their first two games, whilst Denmark has earned four. It’s not been the most convincing performance from Didier Deschamps’s side, who labored more than expected against Australia and Peru, and fans will be hoping to see a more improved showing from France this time around.

With a strike force including Antoine Griezmann, Ousmane Dembele, Thomas Lemar, Kylian Mbappe, and Olivier Giroud, as well as star midfielder Paul Pogba being in their ranks, expectations are very high regarding this France side. Yet, so far, they have managed to score just three goals. One, Mbappe’s tap-in, helped the PSG starlet make history as the youngest-ever goal-scorer for France at a World Cup, and ultimately gave Deschamps’s troops all three points against a determined Peru side.

This failure to launch has seen many of their key players, notably Griezmann and Pogba receive quite a bit of criticism, including from Denmark’s coach Åge Hareide, who noted that Pogba is “more concerned about his hairstyle than his football”, but the Norwegian tactician has since rapidly dialed back on his comments. That being said, Pogba has received his fair share of criticism and will be looking to prove his doubters wrong with a strong performance at this summer’s World Cup.

As for Denmark, they also have found goals to be in short supply. So far, the Danish Dynamite has netted just twice, and to complicate matters, they will be missing two key players. Reliable midfielder William Kvist is out after suffering two fractured ribs and a punctured lung during the team’s clash with Peru, and the man who grabbed the only goal from that game, Yussuf Poulsen, will miss out due to a ban.

Whoever finishes first in this group could face Nigeria, although Iceland and even struggling Argentina could pip the Super Eagles to the runners-up spot. Meanwhile, the runners-up will take on surprise Group D leaders Croatia, and given how the Vatreni have started off well, it will hardly be a walk in the park.

The Scandinavian outfit right now looks set to finish as runners-up, unless if they beat France. Should they lose, however, they could miss out entirely if Australia crushes Peru – as the two teams played to a 1-1 draw on matchday two, meaning that Cristian Eriksen and his colleagues have it all to play for in what should be an interesting showdown between the two European sides.