After England were beaten in the World Cup semi-finals by Argentina on Wednesday, they next face off against France in the third-place play-off on Saturday.
That is the highlight of the footballing schedule, which also contains Scottish League Cup and Scandinavian action. Here we pick out the best bets for the day.
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Saturday 18 July football tips
Bet of the day – France to beat England @ 20/23
England led until the 85th minute of their World Cup semi-final against Argentina but their decision to sit back against the defending champions, combined with fatigue, cost them dearly as the South Americans came back late on to win 2-1.
The Three Lions looked out on their feet at the end of that game and that doesn’t bode well for this third-place play-off. France played the day before and had a less gruelling run through the tournament.
Didier Deschamps’ men have been the best attacking unit at the tournament and England have looked increasingly shaky at the back.
France also have the head-to-head advantage, having won six of the last nine meetings between the two, and Les Bleus look in a better position to add to that tally than a tired England side who just suffered a crushing defeat.
Bet builder – France to win, Kylian Mbappe to score at any time and Desire Doue to have three or more shots @ 21/4
France should be too strong for an England team who may struggle to bounce back from their defeat to Argentina in the semi-finals. The Three Lions lost the third-place play-off the last time that they played in it in 2018 and look set for more misery, while they were beaten 3-1 by Italy in their first such clash in 1990.
Kylian Mbappe is still battling it out with Lionel Messi for the Golden Boot and with the Real Madrid star having netted eight times already in this tournament, he is fancied to add to that number.
Desire Doue has averaged 3.31 shots per 90 minutes at this World Cup and could rack up the attempts at goal against an English defence who may still be suffering the effects of their loss to Argentina.
Acca – Tromso to beat HamKam, Lillestrom to beat KFUM, Viking to beat Sandefjord and France to beat England @ 7/1
Tromso are top of the Norwegian Eliteserien after winning eight of their 14 league games and they should be able to stay there thanks to a victory over HamKam, who are 10 points adrift of their hosts down in sixth.
Lillestrom have won seven of their 12 league matches this term and are fancied for another success against KFUM, who have yet to win away, having conceded 13 goals in five games on the road.
Viking have won nine of their 11 league games and may not need to get out of second gear against Sandefjord, who have lost four of their six games on the road.
France have only lost one of their last nine meetings against England and can come out on top in the World Cup third-place play-off.
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Odds correct at time of publish and subject to change.
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