World Cup 2026: France Must Not Let Up Against Ukraine

France vs Ukraine

France and Ukraine are currently at the top of Group D of the World Cup 2026 qualifiers after accumulating 10 and seven points in the first four matchdays, and both nations are keen to add to their total to be one step closer to next year’s quadrennial showpiece.

Les Bleus are, of course, at the top because they’re undefeated thus far. However, Didier Deschamps’ men couldn’t see out Iceland (2-2) last time out, so they’ll be eager to return to winning ways and not allow the others to catch up.

On the other hand, the Zbirna are keen to exact revenge on France, who handed them their only defeat so far in the qualifiers. Serhiy Rebrov’s men are in the midst of a three-game undefeated run in Group D, and getting a point against France could potentially be enough to guarantee a play-off spot next spring.

Check out the SBOTOP preview of this contest by reading more below.

 

Talking Points

France will use their depth

France are playing without some of their eye-catching talents this week, as Ousmane Dembele, Desire Doue, Randal Kolo Muani, Aurelien Tchouameni, and Adrien Rabiot have withdrawn due to fitness concerns. However, their absences open the door for N’Golo Kante, Jean-Philippe Mateta, Maghnes Akliouche, and Rayan Cherki, among others.

Les Bleus’ backline remains stable with Dayot Upamecano, Ibrahima Konate, William Saliba, Jules Kounde, and the Hernandez siblings leading the way. Head coach Didier Deschamps also has the dilemma of choosing between Mike Maignan, Brice Samba, and Lucas Chevalier to be France’s starting No. 1. Besides Kante, France’s midfield is also stacked with Michael Olise, Eduardo Camavinga, Manu Kone, and Warren Zaire-Emery in tow.

However, at the end of the day, France could only go as far as Kylian Mbappe takes them. The Real Madrid striker has taken the captain’s armband, and he’s banging in form this term, having notched 18 goals in his opening 16 games across all competitions.

Olise is another guy on top of Ukraine’s scouting report because of his speed and creativity in the final third. The 23-year-old winger already has seven goals and six assists across all competitions for Bayern Munich so far this campaign.

 

Ukraine won’t have their bright youngsters

In stark contrast, Ukraine will be short in depth against France, as head coach Serhiy Rebrov will miss a handful of key players. AS Roma’s Artem Dovbyk is nursing a hip injury sustained last time out in Serie A, while Volodymyr Brazhko will sit out due to fitness concerns.

Their absence means more responsibility on Ruslan Malinovskyi’s broad shoulders. After scoring just three goals in 29 appearances for Genoa since moving there in January 2024, the 32-year-old midfielder has scored the same number of strikes in just two qualifying matches this year.

Fellow veterans Vitaliy Mykolenko, Viktor Tsygankov, and Roman Yaremchuk will also play pivotal roles. Illia Zabarnyi is also a man to watch for France, given his exploits at PSG.

 

History

France will be confident of returning to winning ways against Ukraine, having been unbeaten in their last five home matches (W4, D1). Meanwhile, Ukraine are planning to record three straight wins for the first time since 2019, when they went on a blistering run in the Euro 2020 qualifiers to reach the biennial tournament.

Overall, France and Ukraine have met 13 times, with the hosts notching seven wins and the latter recording only one win and five draws. Ukraine’s only win in this fixture was a 2-0 result during the 2014 World Cup qualifiers in November 2013.

Andriy Yarmolenko could achieve a major milestone soon. If the Dynamo Kyiv winger gets called up and plays against France and Iceland this week, he’ll tie Andriy Shevchenko’s record for having the most caps at 48.

 

Betting Tip

The World Cup 2026 odds unsurprisingly favour France to beat Ukraine again this Thursday night. Les Bleus are 1.18 favourites to win, whereas Zbirna are massive 11.00 underdogs, and a draw is valued at 6.00 in the 1X2 market. Any result other than a win would be considered disastrous for the hosts.

Both teams are capable of creating new World Cup 2026 highlights, and France will likely score enough goals to dispatch Ukraine. Besides our recommended bet, bettors may also consider adding Over 2.75 at 1.76 and Asian Handicap -1.75 @ 1.74 to the parlay. Moreover, a Correct Score of 2-0 in favour of Les Bleus – the outcome of their last encounter – is pegged at 5.30 your bet.

   

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