France vs Australia, 2022 FIFA World Cup Qatar – Preview, Prediction, Head to Head, Lineups, and More

France and Australia play their first Group D match at the Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup at Al Janoub Stadium. France will face Australia in their World Cup defense to try to become the first nation since 1962 to win the trophy and become only the third nation to do so.

The use of video assistant refereeing (VAR) for the first time at a World Cup resulted in France winning a penalty kick, which Antoine Griezmann converted to earn the eventual champions a 2-1 victory. Since 2010, Australia hasn’t lost a World Cup game. In Russia, they didn’t win a single game.

At the Al Janoub Stadium in the FIFA World Cup, France and Australia begin their Group D campaigns. The defending champions enter this match after a disastrous Nations League campaign in which they only won one of their six games and narrowly avoided relegation. After winning the inter-confederation playoffs with a 2-1 victory over the United Arab Emirates and a penalty shootout victory over Peru, Australia advanced to the finals. At 6 p.m. U.K. time, the match begins.

The world champions will start their title defence in Group D of the greatest stage of all. The first match of the FIFA World Cup 2022 pits Australia against the defending world champions. This could be the biggest match between the “Continent Down Under” in a long time. In addition to being the best team in the world right now, France currently holds the Nations League title after defeating Spain in the final in October 20201.

However, their Australian counterparts did more than just make it to World Cup qualification. Prior to reaching this enormous stage, the Australians were unbeaten in seven of their ten qualifying matches. Australia’s resilience and France’s depth will be put to the ultimate test in this match.

Even though Karim Benzema was sidelined with a quad injury, Didier Deschamps’ team still won the 2018 World Cup. Therefore, it is time for players like Kylian Mbappe, Antoine Griezmann, and Olivier Giroud to shine. France will attempt to join Italy and Brazil as the only teams in history to win the World Cup twice.

Australia will be a big underdog against the French squad because it had a lot of trouble qualifying for the Qatar 2022 World Cup. After triumphing over Peru in a thrilling penalty shootout, the Socceroos were able to secure a last-minute ticket to the tournament by winning the inter-confederation playoffs.

The World Cup champions France will attempt to begin their title defense with a victory in this match. However, France is playing this game with a lot of injuries, and they will need young players to step up. Despite the ups and downs of the past year, the hope is that they will be prepared when the going gets tough.

On September 25, France played Denmark, and they lost 2-0. They didn’t look good. This team’s star player, Karim Benzema, has been forced to withdraw due to a thigh injury. Presnel Kimpembe and Christopher Nkunku have additionally must be pulled from the team subsequent to suffering an injury. Players like Kylian Mbappé will have to take on more responsibility as a result of all of these injuries.

Australia, on the other side of this matchup, has a lot of questions heading into the tournament, but they’ve been playing great soccer up until this one. Australia has defeated New Zealand in two consecutive matches, winning both of them. They were successful in securing a 2-0 victory on September 24. Jason Cummings scored in the 84th minute and Mitchell Duke scored in the 54th minute, respectively.

Martin Boyle hasn’t been able to train ahead of this game because he has a knee injury. There is as yet an opportunity that he could play in the World Cup, yet it’s difficult to envision that he will have the option to go in this game. Despite recovering from ACL surgery, Harry Souttar will be ready for this first game.

France vs Australia Team News

France Team News

Reigning world champions France will face Australia in their first match, but they have a lot to prove after an underwhelming performance at the most recent UEFA European Championship. They will be looking to start the defense of their title with a strong performance.

In the weeks leading up to the tournament, Les Bleus have been plagued by a number of injuries, but the most significant setback for Didier Deschamps’ team is the absence of Ballon d’Or winner Karim Benzema, who injured himself during training last week.

Kylian Mbappe, Karim Benzema, and Christopher Nkunku are all set to slay Qatar with their talent and speed, making France’s front three the best ever to compete in a FIFA tournament. Aurelien Tchouameni of Real Madrid and Jules Kounde of Barcelona are two other important players to keep an eye out for in addition to this fantastic trio.

Starting with Tchouameni, the 21-year-old holding midfielder who has recently completed a multimillion-dollar transfer to the Champions League champions and is widely regarded as the best player in his age group worldwide. On the other hand, Kounde is still a defender who can play in any back-three or back-four position. Because of this, Chelsea FC were willing to spend a lot of money to sign him. In addition to the magnificent front three, our players to watch include Tchouameni and Kounde.

In his first training session since arriving in Qatar, Karim Benzema suffered what is believed to be a torn thigh muscle and will likely miss the entire tournament.

Following the late injuries to RB Leipzig’s Christopher Nkunku and PSG’s center-back Presnel Kimpembe, Didier Deschamps had already been forced into a couple of sharp roster reshuffles. The duo has been replaced by Axel Disasi and Randal Kolo Muani.

After naming only 25 players at first, Marcus Thuram was another player who was added later. Before the first game, the son of a World Cup winner has been sick.

When it came to Raphael Varane’s rehabilitation from an October knee injury, Deschamps made it clear that France “are not going to cut corners.” However, it is anticipated that the Manchester United center-back will be available against Australia.

Australia Team News

Australia is in good shape heading into the 2022 FIFA World Cup, having won their last five games, including a penalty shootout victory over Peru in June. However, their first match will be against the world champions, France.

The Socceroos have been dealt a blow when winger Martin Boyle was ruled out on the eve of the tournament. However, this may allow highly regarded 18-year-old Garang Kuol to play a bigger role in the team. The Socceroos will be hoping to surprise in Qatar.

Mitchell Duke and Harry Souttar will be absolutely essential for Australians. In the World Cup Qualification (AFC) earlier this year, the two forwards scored a combined 11 goals. With only a goal to spare France, Souttar and Duke will be eager to board the plane to Qatar.

Jackson Irvine is one of the players who almost immediately comes to mind when discussing the players who will attempt to limit France’s advantage. Irvine, the highest-rated Australian player in the playoffs, averages 5 successful tackles per game and 2 key passes to his teammates per 90. Our three players to keep an eye on during this game are Souttar, Duke, and Irvine.

The central worry for Australia’s coach Graham Arnold is obviously Hibernian winger Martin Boyle. The Scottish-born forward has been unable to participate in practice due to a knee injury. Marco Tilio of Melbourne City is considered to be fit enough to join the group in Doha as a backup in the event that Boyle fails to finish his race against time.

France vs Australia Head to Head (h2h)

These two teams have met twice, with France winning 2-1 at the 2018 World Cup and Australia winning 1-0 at the 2001 Confederations Cup.

On the first day of the World Cup, France defeated Australia 2-1 in the previous league matchup between the two teams.

On that particular day, France had 55% possession and 13 shots at goal, six of which were successful. Their only player to score was Antoine Griezmann (58′).

Australia had six attempts on goal, but only one of them was successful. Aziz Behich scored an own goal (81′) and Mile Jedinak (62′) scored.

Andrés Cunha was the referee for the match.

What time does France vs Australia match begin?

The matchup between France and Australia will take place on November 22, 2022, at 19:00 (UK time).

France vs Australia: Time by State in the US

ET: 2 PM
CT: 1 PM
MT: 12 PM
PT: 11 AM

Where is France vs Australia game happening?

France vs Australia will happen at Al Janoub Stadium in Al Wakrah, Qatar.

In the UK, which channel broadcasts France vs Australia?

The live broadcasts of France vs Australia on ITV and the live broadcast of France vs Australia on BBC will be shown. FuboTV (with a 7-day free trial) and PeacockTV (for the US) will both offer live-streaming options for the game.

Other options: Telemundo, Telemundo Deportes, FOX Network, Foxsports.com, SiriusXM FC, UFORIA App, and FOX Sports App are all available in the United States if you don’t want to miss the match.

Where can I stream online France vs Australia in the UK?

France vs Australia can be streamed live on BBC iPlayer and the BBC Sport website & app. France versus Australia can be streamed live on the ITV Hub.

France vs Australia Match Prediction

France have suffered a number of setbacks before a single ball has been kicked in Qatar, but because of the depth of their talent pool, they still have a very strong squad trying to defend the World Cup they won in Russia in 2018. Although the French have only won one of their last six matches, they are optimistic about their chances of winning this one against Australia.

Les Bleus, who should be able to put their recent run of poor form behind them by winning this by at least two clear goals, are the underdogs in Group D. While the Socceroos will believe they can compete, they are unlikely to be able to do so.

With injuries and the persistent issue of squad harmony bubbling in the background, France’s tournament preparations have not been the most tranquil. However, the majority of XIs that Deschamps fields will dwarf the quality of Arnold’s Socceroos, at least theoretically, given the rich resources of talent that Les Bleus boast.

Only three of the previous 12 World Cup champions have started their title defense with a victory. By the time France famously lost to Senegal in the opener in 2002, Deschamps had retired from playing. He might, but it’s unlikely that management will find out about his embarrassment.

Throughout the tournament, Australia will struggle to score goals, and this game will be the beginning of that struggle. Despite France’s problems with injuries, this team has so much depth that they should still be able to score a few goals. At least two goals will be scored by France in this game, and they will prevail.

Four years ago, these two teams met in Russia, also in the group stage, and France won 2-1. Given that Australia has relatively few options in the final third, we anticipate that Les Bleus will have an easier time this time around.

France vs Australia Predicted Lineups

France predicted lineup vs Australia

France Starting 11 (4-3-1-2): Lloris; Pavard, Varane, Konate, L Hernandez; Tchouameni, Y Fofana, Rabiot; Griezmann; Giroud, Mbappe.
Bench: Mandanda, Areola, Disasi, Kounde, Saliba, Upamecano, T Hernandez, Guendouzi, Veretout, Camavinga, Dembele, Kolo Muani, Coman, Thuram.

Australia predicted lineup vs France

Australia Starting 11 (4-2-3-1): Ryan; Atkinson, Souttar, Rowles, Behich; Mooy, Irvine; Leckie, Hrustic, Mabil; Maclaren.
Bench: Redmayne, Vukovic, Degenek, Karacic, Wright, Deng, King, McGree, Devlin, Baccus, Duke, Kuol, Goodwin, Cummings.