Perhaps the extent of your knowledge about Croatia is Dubrovnik doubles as King’s Landing on “Game of Thrones.”And, sure, you’ve been to Paris, but you don’t quite kno…
Perhaps the extent of your knowledge about Croatia is Dubrovnik doubles as King’s Landing on “Game of Thrones.”
And, sure, you’ve been to Paris, but you don’t quite know why everyone is talking about Hanson’s “MMMBop” in regard to France’s chances in some soccer tournament.
Now you’re planning to tune into the Croatia-France World Cup final in Moscow on Sunday, July 15 – over brunch with Veuve Clicquot, strukli and caviar, of course – and you know you’re about to sound like an amateur compared to the friends/fans who actually watched some of the 63 other games over the past month. You could pout and start flopping around like Neymar or you can pay attention now to the things you need to know.
Don’t make us give you a yellow card.
Small chance: Croatia, with a population of 4.17 million, is the smallest nation since Uruguay in 1950 to play in the Cup final and was given only a 3-percent chance of winning before the tournament by fivethirtyeight.com. France, by the way, was the No. 4 pick at 8 percent.
That’s Mbappe: Yes, the French are crazy about the music being made on the field by a kid, but it’s 19-year-old Kylian Mbappe who has them shouting “Allez les Bleus!” Mbappe, who is blazing fast and tough, has been the youngest player in the World Cup since Australia and Daniel Arzani – 15 days younger than Mbappe – were eliminated in group play. American Christian Pulisic could have been in the young star discussion had he played for Croatia since his grandfather made him eligible or if the U. S. had, you know, qualified.
Luka Modric, right, celebrates with teammates after scoring Croatia’s second goal during A 3-0 group D victory over Argentina on Thursday at the 2018 World Cup in Nizhny Novgorod Stadium in Nizhny Novgorod, Russia. (Ricardo Mazalan/The Associated Press)
Pro tip: Sound like a true fan and warn that Real Madrid’s Luka Modric, Croatia’s star midfielder, should not be overlooked simply because he is 5-foot-8. That’s an inch taller than Argentina’s eliminated superstar Lionel Messi, after all.
At stake: Only the most prestigious championship in team sports – this happens only once every four years, after all – and a rather small but impressive trophy.
Tune in: The game kicks off at 8 a.m. PDT on Fox/11, but pregame coverage starts at 6 a.m. on Fox Sports 1.
