France vs Senegal Predictions

• France have won five of their last six games
• Les Bleus have gone five games without a clean sheet
• Senegal have scored in 10 of their last 12 games

France open bid to go one better

France claimed the World Cup in 2018 and fell agonisingly short in their bid for back-to-back titles with defeat in the final in Qatar.

Les Bleus are among the favourites to lift the trophy this year and they open their bid for glory against a Senegal side who are also seeking redemption.

The African powerhouses won the AFCON title earlier this year but were then stripped of the trophy after their players walked off the pitch in protest at a stoppage-time penalty awarded to Morocco, but they come into this tournament in good form regardless and will feel capable of giving the French a real test.

France may concede in victory

France lost one of their warm-up matches to Ivory Coast but we probably shouldn’t read too much into that, similarly Senegal’s goalless draw with Saudi Arabia probably doesn’t give much of an indication of how this one will play out.

Aside from that slip-up against Les Elephants, France have been in impressive form with nine wins in their last 11 games – and they’ve scored at least twice in 10 of those fixtures.

Backing France to cover a -1 handicap is one option as they have a strong enough squad to win with some room to spare but the bigger price on offer for the two-time champions to win and concede looks the better angle.

France have gone five games without keeping a clean sheet and Senegal carry a serious threat in attack, having scored seven goals in their last four games and only failing to score in two of their last 12.

The Lions of Teranga can get on the scoresheet but one goal may be as good as it gets for Senegal and a 3-1 win for France is the correct score pick. The French have scored at least three goals in four of their last six games and that run has included a trio of 3-1 wins.

Mbappe kickstart Golden Boot bid

Kylian Mbappe has a chance to become the first man to win two Golden Boot awards after topping the scoring charts in Qatar four years ago. He’s also one international goal shy of joining matching all-time to France goalscorer Olivier Giroud on 57 goals and he is the standout bet for an anytime effort.

Mbappe scored 25 goals in La Liga for Real Madrid last season and he’s scored in each of his last four competitive international appearances, hitting five goals in total. He can at least match Giroud’s record when France open their bid for a third World Cup crown.