FIFA 2018 World Cup Semifinals Preview

Over the weekend, the 2018 World Cup quarterfinals saw four UEFA teams advance to the semifinals. Croatia needed penalty kicks to defeat Russia after a breathtaking equalizer from the host nation in the 115th minute still advanced. England roused themselves from a normally defensive state to deliver two goals on set-pieces to knockout Sweden. Belgium shocked five-time World Cup champs Brazil with an early onslaught and then held on for the 2-1 win, and then France defeated Uruguay. Now with semifinal matches set for Tuesday and Wednesday, it’s time to take a look at World Cup semifinals betting previews for the penultimate round of what has been a shocking tournament, as two of the semifinalist (Croatia and Belgium) have never won a World Cup, and for France it’s been a drought of twenty years — while for England, they have not made a semifinal since 1990 and have not won the whole thing since they hosted it in 1966.

FIFA 2018 World Cup Semifinals Preview

And then, there was four… TUE: #FRABEL WED: #CROENG #WorldCup pic.twitter.com/a9q9bNx9oe

— FIFA World Cup 🏆 (@FIFAWorldCup) July 7, 2018

Tuesday, July 10, 2:00pm Eastern time

France vs Belgium, St. Petersburg Stadium, St. Petersburg (FOX/fuboTV)

Youth have finally been served in Belgium, as a group of players including Eden Hazard, Romelu Lukaku and Kevin de Bruyne have made their way all the way to the semifinals. They got knocked out in the quarterfinals in Brazil, and they have had disappointing performances at each of the last two European champions, but that signature win over Brazil in the quarters this year was a sign that they have arrived. One could say much the same thing for France, who only managed three goals in all of group play, against Australia, Denmark and Peru, but then they got a brace from Kylian Mbappe in a rout of Argentina in the round of 16. Mbappe has a terrific young core around him, including Paul Pogba, Antoine Griezmann, Samuel Umtiti and Ousmane Dembele. Also France has more of a tradition in the World Cup, with that win on French soil in 1998 and then returning to the finals in 2006. Belgium was able to keep Neymar off the scoreboard without Vincent Kompany, but now he returns to lead the defense against France, which is one reason why the Belgians are favorites here. The real question is where the players termed Belgium’s “golden generation” have the mental strength to hold it together under the klieg lights of the semifinals. They have shown nothing but confidence so far, and as long as they can avoid the defensive nonsense that saw them slip into a 2-0 hole against Japan, they should beat France and advance to the final.

Wednesday, July 11, 2:00pm Eastern time

Croatia vs England, Luzhniki Stadium, Moscow (FOX/fuboTV)

Croatia romped through group play, taking all nine possible points, but they have seen their offense slip a bit in the knockout rounds, needing penalty kicks to eliminate Denmark and Russia. Having to play 120 minutes and then go to penalties in two consecutive matches make for a draining experience, but England has had to do that once, against Colombia in the round of 16. The biggest question for Croatia is the health of goalkeeper Daniel Subasic, who looked like he injured his hamstring in the game against Russia. He did stay on to win the shootout, but he looked shaky especially in the late rounds, simply sliding to his left, and benefiting from a miss in the third kick. The teams have met seven times since Croatia became an independent nation about 25 years ago, but the only meeting at a major tournament led to a 4-2 win for the Three Lions at Euro 2004. In November 2007, Croatia beat England at Wembley Stadium, keeping the Brits out of Euro 2008. England has won the last two meetings by a combined score of 9-2. If England can keep things together in the midfield, which held Sweden at bay, they have the offensive players to get to the final.