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Who: France vs Iraq
What: FIFA World Cup 2026 Group I match
Where: Philadelphia Stadium, Pennsylvania, US
When: Monday, 5pm (21:00 GMT)
How to follow: We’ll have all the build-up on Al Jazeera Sport from 18:00 GMT in advance of our live text commentary stream.
France are one win away from safely navigating the World Cup “group of death,” with Les Bleus looking to take all three points to secure Round of 32 qualification against Iraq in Boston.
Two goals from Kylian Mbappe helped France recover from a shaky first half in their opening match against Senegal in New Jersey, with Didier Deschamps’ side eventually running out 3-1 winners.
Iraq, featuring at the World Cup for the first time since 1986, are looking to bounce back from a heavy 4-1 defeat in their opening group game against Norway.
All you need to know before France vs Iraq:
It’s hard to avoid reaching for the “game of two halves” cliche to describe France’s win over Senegal on Tuesday.
Les Bleus were a shadow of themselves in the first half, with a number of star players failing to perform up to expectations on the pitch.
But the Qatar 2022 finalists were in another league in the second half, with Real Madrid’s Mbappe scoring two brilliant goals as he became France’s all-time top scorer.
Substitute Bradley Barcola made an instant impact off the bench, scoring his first-ever World Cup goal just two minutes after coming on, highlighting the depth of star talent available to Deschamps.
Deschamps has often favoured stability at major tournaments and is unlikely to deviate from that approach, despite an enviable range of options in his playing squad.
The most likely changes are expected on the left flank, with Barcola set to replace Desire Doue in attack and Lucas Digne in line to come in for Theo Hernandez at left back.
Another adjustment could come in midfield.
Deschamps has held lengthy discussions with Manu Kone in recent days and the 25-year-old was paired with Adrien Rabiot during training this week, suggesting he could be handed a starting role.
The Lions of Mesopotamia were the final team to book their place at the 2026 World Cup, following a gruelling campaign which saw them play a record number of qualifiers.
Their reward was a spot in Group I, which many experts believe is the most difficult of the 12 at the tournament.
After a 4-1 humbling against Norway, Iraq now face Qatar 2022 runners-up France before their final group game against African Cup of Nations (AFCON) finalists Senegal.
To avoid elimination, Graham Arnold’s side face a monumental task: a draw or a win against a French side that has reached the last two World Cup finals.
Les Bleus are the overwhelming favourites, according to Stats provider Opta’s supercomputer.
France have an 88.5 percent chance of victory, compared to Iraq who have just a three percent chance of pulling off a stunning win, according to Opta.
Their supercomputer sees just an 8.5 percent chance of a draw at Boston Stadium on Monday.
Opta now predicts that France has the best chance of winning the World Cup, moving them ahead of Spain who were the pre-tournament favourites.
Norway sit top of Group I on goal difference after hammering Iraq 4-1 in Boston.
France are second, also on three points, with Senegal and Iraq both with no points and sitting third and fourth respectively.
The top two teams from each of the 12 groups – along with the eight best third-placed teams – proceed to the next phase, the round of 32, which has been introduced at the World Cup for the first time.
(Last five games, latest result first)
France: W-W-L-W-W
Iraq: L-L-D-W-W
The French have won five of their last six matches, with their only slip-up coming against Ivory Coast in a shock defeat in a World Cup warm-up.
Iraq, meanwhile, have no wins in their last three matches after suffering back-to-back defeats to Norway and Venezuela.
Their last win came in a pre-World Cup friendly against Andorra in May.
This is the first time that the two sides have ever met in an international match.
Deschamps is set to make a few small tweaks for this game, with Barcola set to start after coming off the bench against Senegal.
Digne and Kone are also tipped to start for France on Monday.
Ali Jasim is available to start for Iraq after coming off against Norway with a knock.
Ahmed Basil could start in goal in place of Jalal Hassan.
Mike Maignan (goalkeeper); Jules Kounde, William Saliba, Dayot Upamecano, Lucas Digne; Adrien Rabiot, Manu Kone; Ousmane Dembele, Michael Olise, Bradley Barcola; Kylian Mbappe.
Ahmed Basil (goalkeeper); Hussein Ali, Zaid Tahseen, Akam Hashem, Merchas Doski; Ibrahim Bayesh, Amir Al-Ammari, Zidane Iqbal, Ali Jasim; Aymen Hussein, Ali Al-Hamadi.
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