France vs Iraq: Group I Match Preview
France is expected to overcome Iraq in the Group I 2026 World Cup qualifier match at Philadelphia Stadium on Monday. This match could be a historic moment for Kylian Mbappé, who will make his 100th appearance for the French national team. After scoring two goals against Senegal in the opening match, Mbappé now has 14 World Cup goals, just two away from tying the legend Miroslav Klose's record. However, Lionel Messi also scored a hat-trick against Algeria, making the competition even more intense.
Opta Analysis: France Favored
According to the Opta supercomputer, which ran 25,000 simulations, France emerged as the winner in 88.8% of the simulations. A draw was only 7.9% likely, while an Iraqi win was only 3.4%. This shows a significant quality gap between the two teams.
France is now aiming to win their first two World Cup matches for the fourth consecutive time. Previously, they managed this only once in their 13 previous appearances, in 1998. However, coach Didier Deschamps may make some changes to the attacking line after the first match.
Tactics and Key Players
In the match against Senegal, Deschamps switched roles between Ousmane Dembélé and Michael Olise. Dembélé started as the No. 10 player, while Olise was on the right wing. However, this change had a big impact when Olise performed brilliantly behind the striker and provided an assist for Mbappé's winning goal.
Olise now has 10 goal involvements (7 goals, 3 assists) in 18 appearances for France, making him the second fastest player to reach that number after Mbappé in the 21st century. If he scores or assists against Iraq, it will be the first time he contributes in three consecutive matches for France.
Iraq's Challenges
Iraq, who lost 4-1 to Norway in their first match, has a poor record in World Cup history. They have lost all four previous matches and risk becoming the first Asian country to lose five consecutive opening matches. However, forward Aymen Hussein showed impressive performance with 12 goals in AFC qualifiers and scored one goal against Norway.
Despite this, Iraq will find it difficult to compete with France. This is the first meeting between the two teams. Iraq has won only two of their last four matches against European teams, but France lost their last two matches against Asian teams (China and Japan) without scoring a goal.
Predictions and Lineups
Opta predicts an easy win for France. Deschamps may field the same starting lineup, with some changes. The expected lineups are:
France: Maignan; Koundé, Upamecano, Saliba, T. Hernández; Tchouaméni, Kanté; Olise, Dembélé, Mbappé; Thuram.
Iraq: Hassan; Hussein Ali, Sulaka, Tahseen, Doski; Putros, Bayesh, Yakob; Amyn, A. Al Hamadi, Hussein.
Conclusion
All eyes will be on Mbappé as he tries to create history. However, with strong support from players like Olise and Dembélé, France is expected to secure a comfortable victory. Iraq will need a major surprise to change this prediction.
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*Original source: [theanalyst.com](https://theanalyst.com/articles/france-vs-iraq-prediction-world-cup-2026-match-preview)*