In the World Cup round of 16, France and Poland, the previous champions, met each other in a tight battle. Although France's overall strength is slightly better, in the knockout stage, a game is a matter of life and death, and this traditional powerhouse of color will not take risks easily. Meanwhile, Poland has scored only two goals in three matches in this tournament, and striker Robert Lewandowski's form is in the doldrums, making it more difficult for him to score against his powerful opponent. (Now 618 and 616 Sunday night at 11:00pm)
France locked up a spot in the round of 16 early by winning their first two group matches. As a result, in their last group game, France sent in a substitute team and were unlucky to lose 0-1 to Tunisia. It is expected that coach Dignan will send out a strong lineup led by "new generation king" Kilian McBarbee for this match, and the possibility of a victory is still high.
Steadiness is key in knockout stage
Despite France's superiority in terms of squad, it doesn't mean they will beat their opponents easily. In the knockout stage, solidity is the most important thing, and avoiding mistakes is the key to victory. It is expected that once France scores the first goal, they may resort to "delaying tactics" and slow down the pace of the game in order to keep the lead until the end.
Poland, on the other hand, relies heavily on Robert Lewandowski's goals, but the 34-year-old striker has not been in good form in this tournament, missing a penalty against Mexico and going the whole game without a shot on goal in the last match against Argentina. In fact, Poland's overall strength is nowhere near that of Bayern Munich or Barcelona, and Robert Lewandowski lacks adequate support, so naturally it is difficult for him to play at the level he should.
Looking back at Poland's performance in the group stage, they only beat Saudi Arabia 2-0 in three matches, and failed to score in the remaining two matches, making it difficult for them to pose a threat to the French defense. The only thing Poland can do is to tighten up their defense and hope for a penalty shootout to decide the winner. Considering that the total number of goals scored in the last five matches between the two sides is only 2 or less, it is expected that there will not be too many goals scored in this match, and the underdog bet may be more attractive.
