World Cup 2018: France 2-1 Australia; 3 key battles that decided the game

In what many expected to be a mismatch of dizzying proportions, France struggled to pick up 3 points as it took a late winner from Paul Pogba (which might turn out to be a own goal) to beat Australia 2-1 in their Group C match.

The first half ended 0-0, and just when it looked like we would be seeing the first such result of this WC, VAR interfered to award France a penalty that was coolly converted by Griezmann. 3 minutes later, Umtiti's handball lead to the Aussie equaliser, before Pogba's lob grabbed all three points for the French.

As always, there were a few individual battles that went a long way in deciding the final outcome of the match. Here's a look at 3 of them:

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#1 Paul Pogba vs Aaron Mooy

Lucky goal or not, Pogba will be glad to get the critics off his back

In the battle of the playmakers, Pogba edged out by virtue of scoring the winner but until then it was Aaron Mooy who was the more involved of the lot. After a few misplaced passes that invited subdued jeers from the travelling French fans, Pogba scored a beauty to beat Ryan. Or at the very least, was responsible for it.

The ball bounced off the toe end of his boot, took a deflection and lobbed over a backward diving keeper, before grazing the underside of the cross-bar and bouncing out. But the whole of the ball had crossed the line, which was confirmed by VAR later.

Aaron Mooy, unlike Pogba who had Kante to do his dirty work, had to help out in defense as well as in offense. He dropped deep to make interceptions, collect balls and then let his runners chase after his long balls - which is impossible for one man to do over the entire 90 minutes.

Pogba vs Mooy - stats

This Paul Pogba goal might silence some of the fans who were asking that he be left on the bench and play Matuidi instead even if it gets awarded as an own goal because he was there at the right time.

#2 Antoine Griezmann vs Josh Risdon

Griezmann made use of his chemistry with Hernandez to wreak havoc on the left flank

It was fitting that Griezmann scored France's first goal of the WC, as he was their best player on the pitch when going forward, even more so than Mbappe and Dembele. Playing on the left, Griezmann often dropped back to allow Hernandez on the overlap and the two Atletico Madrid players replicated their club chemistry for the national team as well.

Until the penalty call, Risdon had done very well for Australia. Along with the rest of his defense and the two DMs, Australia had created a 6 man wall that looked like it would never come down. The foul in itself was very unlucky, as Risdon got the ball but caught Griezmann on the follow through - which he could not have avoided.

Griezmann vs Risdon - stats

Why Deschamps decided to take Griezmann out of the game is a mystery. He is not someone who gets tired often, and is fit enough to play the 90 minutes without needing protection. When Griezmann was taken off, France lost their most dynamic player and it was only by a stroke of luck that they won.

#3 N'golo Kante vs Mile Jedinak

Kante was as busy as always, fighting for the ball and giving it to the attackers

Before the game, there was a concern that Jedinak might be dropped from the starting XI, but he started anyway and those concerns were answered by a goal - even if it was only a penalty.

Along with Mooy, Jedinak was often helping out in defense and using his height and physique to get the French players off the ball. He might have almost a foot's reach over Kante, but today the Australian might have discovered why Kante is regarded as one of the best defensive midfielders in football right now.'

Kante vs Jedinak - stats

Kante, as usual, was everywhere. With Tolisso playing alongside him, he had even more of a license to go forward and was often seen loitering around in the Australian half. The Australian midfield might have outnumbered the French midfield, but it was thanks to Kante that Les Blues could find pockets of space to squeeze out through balls.