Just eight teams remain and on Friday and Saturday the World Cup quarter finals will take place. After those games we will be down to the final four, and every team at that stage will believe that this is their year. The four quarter finals look very good matchups, and here is a brief look at each one and what you can expect from the games.

World Cup Quarter Finals

Uruguay vs France

The best two games at this stage are both scheduled on Friday, and this one should be a cracker. Both Uruguay and France have improved throughout the tournament, and recently we have seen them playing their best football. Uruguay got the better of Portugal in the last 16 round, and that coupled with their great 3-0 victory over Russia to end the group stage showed that they are more than capable of winning this. France played out a dramatic 4-3 victory on Saturday against Argentina, and looked very dangerous going forward.

This game should be very good to watch, with France looking like they have the slight edge, but there is little to separate the teams.

Brazil vs Belgium

This game could be one of the best World Cup quarter finals we have had for a very long time. Both teams love nothing more than playing open, attacking football and that should set us up for a great game for the neutrals. Belgium have played very well in all of their World Cup games so far, although they were lucky to fight back and beat Japan with the last kick of the game at the last 16 stage. Brazil haven’t done that, but they have grown throughout the tournament, and looked better with each game.

That is a sign of a very good team, and one that is comfortable playing tournament football, which gives them the slight edge in what should be a fantastic game to watch.

Sweden vs England

England reach the quarter finals of the World Cup, and their favourable draw has given them a tie against Sweden. England are the better team here, and if they can defend well, they can win this. Sweden don’t create many chances when they play, whereas England look threatening in every single game. The English front line has the pace and quality to trouble Sweden, and should have enough to get by them and make the semi finals.

England have a golden opportunity to get take advantage of their favourable draw when they take on Sweden this Saturday, and they should win this game.

Russia vs Croatia

The hosts Russia are in the World Cup quarter finals, something few believed would happen. They haven’t been the best team in the competition, but have shown a good character and togetherness. They face another tough task here against Croatia, who have performed well so far. However, the worst we have seen Croatia was in their most recent game, where they won a penalty shootout against Denmark. They will have to be better than that to beat the hosts, but they are more than capable of being so.

This will be tight, the nation will be behind Russia, but Croatia have more quality and big game experience, and that can see them through.

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