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France
4
Match Complete
Australia
1
| 94' |  | A. Mooy | ||
| 80' | | J. Irvine | ||
| O. Giroud |  | 71' | ||
| K. Mbapp?(C) | | 68' | ||
| 55' | | M. Duke | ||
| O. Giroud | | 32' | ||
| A. Rabiot | | 27' | ||
| 9' | | C. Goodwin |
| 23 | Shots | 4 | ||
| 6 | On Target | 1 | ||
| 5 | Fouls | 11 | ||
| 8 | Corners | 1 | ||
| 0 | Offsides | 0 | ||
| 0 | Red Cards | 0 | ||
| 0 | Yellow Cards | 3 |
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The Socceroos begin their 2022 World Cup tilt against France in Al-Wakrah. Join The Roar for live scores and commentary from 6am (AEDT).
In a clash that reminds all Australian football fans of the Socceroos’ opening match of the 2018 World Cup in Russia, a well-prepared and determined team will do battle with the reigning World Cup champions, in the hope of pinching points against one of the favoured teams in Qatar.
Despite the immense quality on the French team, injuries have disrupted their preparations, with Paul Pogba, N’Golo Kante and Karim Benzema all out of the tournament and a real weakness created in midfield, where some younger talent will be required to step in and fill the void.
Elsewhere, France look strong, with Kylian Mbappe and Antoine Griezmann certain to be more than a handful for the Socceroo defenders, who had best be on form should they hope to be able to hold back the French onslaught.
Traditionally a team that starts a little slowly in major tournaments, France will be there for the Australians to capitalise on, should coach Graham Arnold send them out in the right mindset and with the right tactics to capitalise on any opposition weaknesses.
The lead-up to the tournament has been smooth for the Socceroos and Arnold will be hopeful that his trusted defence and midfield depth in the form of Aaron Mooy, Riley McGree, Ajdin Hrustic, Jackson Irvine and Cameron Devlin are up to the task of challenging one of the best teams in the world through the centre of the pitch.
Should that occur, Jamie Maclaren, Awer Mabil, Mathew Leckie and Mitchell Duke will be the men Arnold hopes could profit from the hard work, with the genius that is Garang Kuol almost certain to be the ace up his sleeve and used late, in an attempt to either claw back a deficit or challenge for the win.
Prediction
France has the quality across the pitch and the reputation to put the Aussies to the sword, yet football is a far more complex game than looking at the odds and expecting the favourites to conquer in all circumstances.
With a high press, familiarity of conditions and the French a little unsettled after their less than smooth lead-in to the tournament, the Socceroos will be hopeful of pulling off a stunning upset to open their campaign, with anything bar a loss setting them up well for the following matches against Tunisia and Denmark.
France 2 Australia 2
Venue: Al Janoub Stadium, Al-Wakrah, Qatar
Kick-off: Wednesday 23rd November 2022, 6am (AEDT)
TV: SBS
Streaming: SBS On Demand
Betting: France $1.25 Draw $5.75 Australia $12 – odds via PlayUp
Squads
France
Goalkeepers: Alphonse Areola, Hugo Lloris, Steve Mandanda.
Defenders: Axel Disasi, Lucas Hernandez, Theo Hernandez, Ibrahima Konate, Jules Kounde, Benjamin Pavard, William Saliba, Dayot Upamecano, Raphael Varane.
Midfielders: Eduardo Camavinga, Youssouf Fofana, Matteo Guendouzi, Adrien Rabiot, Aurelien Tchouameni, Jordan Veretout.
Forwards: Kingsley Coman, Ousmane Dembele, Olivier Giroud, Antoine Griezmann, Kylian Mbappe, Marcus Thuram, Randal Kolo Muani.
Australia
Goalkeepers: Mat Ryan, Andrew Redmayne, Danny Vukovic
Defenders: Milos Degenek, Aziz Behich, Joel King, Nathaniel Atkinson, Fran Karacic, Harry Souttar, Kye Rowles, Bailey Wright, Thomas Deng
Midfielders: Aaron Mooy, Jackson Irvine, Ajdin Hrustic, Keanu Baccus, Cameron Devlin, Riley McGree
Forwards: Awer Mabil, Mathew Leckie, Jamie Maclaren, Jason Cummings, Mitchell Duke, Garang Kuol, Craig Goodwin, Marco Tilio
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