The France vs Switzerland World Cup match will be played this Friday, June 20 (12:00 PM Pacific), at the Itaipava Arena Fonte Nova, in Salvador, Bahia.
Both teams are coming to this match after a win in the first round, so the eventual winner would claim their spot in the knockout round.
Switzerland came back from trailing 1-0 against Ecuador, and scored a late, and a rather lucky victory in a stoppage time. France didn’t have any problems in dispatching Honduras, but an early penalty and a red card for Wilson Palacios really eased their job.
These teams played against each other a lot of times in their history. France won 15 matches, Switzerland 12, and 9 times their matches ended as a draw. At FIFA World Cup they had one encounter, which ended with a goalless draw.
The last three matches between these two teams were draws, and Switzerland hasn’t won a game against France from 1992 when they beat them 2-1 in an international friendly match. After that they played five times, and France won two matches.
Considering this game, France will probably dominate in ball possession and have more goal opportunities. On the other hand, Switzerland proved in the match against Ecuador that they have a winner’s mindset; after trailing they managed to fight back and earn a valuable victory against the very strong South American side.
Ottmar Hitzfeld is a fairly experienced coach, who managed to get past qualifications with Switzerland for the second consecutive time, and the Swiss, of course, aren’t considered a top European team. He has won a Champions League title with Bayern Munich, and he is probably biggest strength of Switzerland in this match.
Hitzfeld will probably let France dictate game and have a bigger ball possession, but he will press, especially down the flanks, so his team could get a chance for a good counter attack. With that tactic Switzerland won the first game, with Rodriguez storming down the left side of the field, and Seferovic sealed the day with a great header.
France vs Switzerland Prediction
France will have to be careful, but they are strong favorites in this game. Paul Pogba proved to be one of the top midfielders in this competition, and his domination in the midfield could prove crucial for France.
Teams will be careful in their strivings not to lose this match, France will be more aggressive, and Swiss would probably settle for a draw here, considering they have a match against Honduras, admittedly outsiders, in the last round.
Considering all the facts, the prediction is that France will win this game 2:1.
France vs Switzerland Television
The France vs Switzerland match will be televised on ESPN, Univision and ESPN 3 (stream).
