France Vs Croatia: Modric & Co Looking To Avenge Their 1998 WC Heartbreak In Russia

By Jay Rustagi, MensXP Staff Writer

As the 2018 FIFA World Cup winds down to its final two teams, football fans will look at the line-up for the final in Moscow and have mixed feelings about the two nations. France, for many fans and pundits, were one of the strongest teams of the tournament and were expected to do well. On the other hand, not even the die-hard Croatian fans would’ve dreamt of seeing their team reach their first-ever World Cup final.

France arrived into this World Cup with what many claimed to be their ‘golden generation’ of dynamic footballers. A squad spoilt for talent with players like Kylian Mbappe, Antoine Griezmann, Paul Pogba, N’Golo Kante, and Hugo Lloris – was coming into the tournament with very high expectations from their countrymen. The Les Bleus last won a World Cup on their home soil in 1998, and this time they had to beat the likes of Argentina, Uruguay, and Belgium on their way to final.

© Reuters

On the other side of the draw, Croatia got off to a perfect start in their group stage which included a clinical demolition of Argentina. As the knockout stage approached, the draw opened kindly for them as they battled hard past Denmark and Russia on penalties, followed by a stunning comeback against England in the semis.

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