Peru will get a chance to test their prowess against one of the best teams in the World Cup field when they take on France on Thursday June 21st at 11am Eastern time in Ekaterinburng, Russia. France is the favorite to win the group, according to the odds on skybook.ag, while Peru will be desperate after their loss to Denmark for the second spot to advance to the knockout rounds. These teams have only played each other once, a 1-0 win by Peru back in 1982. Check out our current World Cup betting odds.
France
France is just behind Germany, Brazil and Spain as favorites to win it all in Russia. Ranked #7 in the world by FIFA, they boast a roster of big-name talents such as Antoine Griezmann, Paul Pogba, Kylian Mbappe and N'Golo Kante. They were not convincing in their opening game against Australia, however, as they only were able to muster a 2-1 victory thanks to a late own goal. They went for a long stretch in the first half without a shot and often looked shaky on defense.
Peru
The Peruvian's excitement for being in the World Cup for the first time since 1982 has not diminished despite their close loss to Denmark last Saturday. They outshot the Danes 17-10 and edged them in possession by 8%. That loss puts a lot of pressure on Los Incas to get points in their final two games of the group stage, and Thursday's match against France will be the biggest test of the two. If they can match the passion and energy that they put into the game against Denmark and hope that France underperforms again, they have a shot. If not, a loss in this game almost certainly spells death for Peru. To date, they have not won a World Cup game in their last 7 tries.
Match Overview
While France should not have any problem winning this game, it will be interesting to see what kind of a fight the Peruvians put up. They will need all the points they can get in an effort to beat Denmark for the number two spot in Group C, so depending on how their game against Australia goes, the Peruvians may be fighting for their lives here. Made up of relatively younger players, they play a close-knit possession game, preferring to work the ball up field in short passes. Goaltender Pedro Gallese provides a reliable presence in net while Jefferson Farfan and Christian Cueva are the main factors on the attack. They will have the monumental task of trying to beat one of the most complete teams in Russia. France is heavy with talent up front and in the middle, boasting all-world talents such as Antoine Griezmann, Paul Pogba, and Kylian Mbappe. Matter of fact, depth may even work against this team, as manager Didier Deschamps has a lot of options at his disposal, and has shown a history of being reactive with his players instead of having patience in the talent he has in place. Still, there is no doubt that in the matchup vs Peru, France is the much better side and should have no trouble winning this match.
