Assessing the chances of reaching the pinnacle of glory of the 4 teams in the semi-finals
Before the 2018 World Cup took place, apart from the French team, not many people could have predicted that the last remaining teams in the top 4 would be Belgium, England and Croatia.
So far, apart from the only guarantee that the Golden Goddess Cup will stay in Europe, any of the remaining four teams has the potential to win the final. And here are the reasons for that:
France
As one of the most favorite teams before the tournament took place, they were also expected to lift the trophy again after 20 years of waiting (since the 1998 World Cup on home soil).
France started the group stage slowly, but that was not unusual, as they are used to at major tournaments. They came out of their group as group winners, then showed their superiority, beating Argentina in the round of 16 and Uruguay in the quarter-finals.
Coach Didier Deschamps is the luckiest man because he owns a squad of quality, even and deep players. He also has in hand the star who is considered the brightest in this tournament, Kylian Mbappe. The PSG striker ran tirelessly in the match against Uruguay and there are many comments that Mbappe will soon reach the heights of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
In all of France's matches so far, fans have the feeling that they have not shown all their cards and there are still many interesting things waiting for their opponents.
However, in the confrontation with the Belgian team, it seems that France does not have much advantage. Statistics show that in 73 encounters between the two teams, France only won 24 times while Belgium won 30 matches and drew 19 times.
Belgium
Perhaps, this is the last chance for the "golden generation" of the Belgian team to win a major tournament and neutral fans are hoping that coach Martinez's students can do it.
Belgium have stars in every position, and under Roberto Martinez and Thierry Henry they have shown tremendous attacking potential. Romelu Lukaku has four goals to his name, while Belgium are the top scorers at the World Cup so far, with 14.
The Belgian players' confidence has grown with each match. And their strength was proven after a convincing 2-0 victory over South American team Brazil.
However, throughout its history, Belgium has only reached the World Cup semi-finals once (in 1986) and despite possessing a squad of quality players, the results the Red Devils have achieved in recent years have not been very impressive.
Apart from Thomas Meunier being suspended (due to receiving 2 yellow cards), coach Martinez has all his important players and he hopes to repeat his performance against Brazil in the upcoming Semi-final. It can be affirmed that the Belgian team will be a significant challenge for France's championship ambition.
Older brother
"Football is coming home." There are no words stronger enough to describe the long-awaited hope of England fans.
Not since their first - and only - World Cup victory (1966, on home soil) have the Three Lions come this close to the final.
So far, all eyes are on England. The calculated defeat to Belgium in the final group stage match has “helped” the Three Lions to get into the draw more easily.
Coach Southgate's students were relieved of the burden on their backs when they defeated Colombia in the penalty shootout (1-1 draw after 120 minutes of play), then defeated Sweden (2-0) in the Quarterfinals.
Harry Kane is leading the race for the Golden Boot with 6 goals so far. He still has the chance to add to his tally with 2 games left.
Coach Gareth Southgate and his players have made the home fans extremely happy with what they are showing. The opponent Croatia seems to be very tired after 2 consecutive matches having to play 120 minutes.
However, the road to glory is not easy. There is no sign that Croatia is an easy team to beat. The Balkan team is worthy of a "heavy" challenge for the Three Lions' desire to "bring football home".
Croatia
Ranked 20th in the FIFA rankings before the 2018 World Cup, Croatia has been one of the surprises of the tournament so far.
Zlatko Dalić's men impressed by overcoming Nigeria and Iceland and beating Argentina (3-0) in the group stage. Then, with a little more effort, they overcame Denmark and the hosts Russia in tense penalty shootouts.
Luka Modric has become a star - not only for Croatia but also for the tournament. The captain's performances have been astonishing. He was tireless in the match against Russia and if Croatia win the tournament this year, he will be the number one candidate for the Golden Ball award.
The key for Croatia will be defending well against England’s set pieces. Eight of the Three Lions’ 11 goals at this year’s tournament have come from dead-ball situations – the most of any team at a World Cup since Portugal in 1966.
In terms of head-to-head record, England seems to be superior to Croatia, having won 4/7 matches between the two teams.
However, at the World Cup, sometimes statistics and history are just dry numbers. We will have to wait for 2 more matches to know which team will have the honor of standing at the highest peak of world football./.
