England and Chelsea legend John Terry has made his prediction for the World Cup final between Argentina and Spain, backing Spain to lift the trophy. Spain secured their place in Sunday's final in New Jersey with a commanding 2-0 victory over tournament favourites France, while Argentina came from behind to beat England in the second semi-final.
Spain's Semi-Final Dominance
Spain outplayed France, who were widely expected to reach a third successive World Cup final. Mikel Oyarzabal opened the scoring from the penalty spot midway through the first half after a foul on 19-year-old Lamine Yamal. Pedro Porro doubled Spain's lead in the second half, effectively ending France's hopes of a comeback.
Spain's defence has been particularly impressive, conceding very few goals throughout the tournament. Terry highlighted this as a key factor in his prediction.
Argentina's Grit and Messi Factor
Argentina secured their spot in the final after a dramatic 2-1 win over England. Anthony Gordon gave England the lead after half-time, but Chelsea's Enzo Fernandez equalised with a strike from the edge of the box before Lautaro Martinez headed home an injury-time winner. Terry praised Argentina's resilience but still favours Spain.
Speaking on Sports Uncensored, Terry said: 'Being present at both semi-finals, I have to say, for me, I have Spain as the favourites. Both sides are very, very comfortable with the ball and in possession. But I just look at Argentina last night, everything went down their right with Lionel Messi. Any time they switched over to the left, it very quickly came back down the right. Marc Cucurella was man of the match the other night in the first semi-final and Spain look very strong down the left-hand side. Also, not conceding against France and barely conceding in the World Cup is incredible. They've got too much for Argentina in my opinion.'
Terry acknowledged the threat posed by Lionel Messi: 'Argentine are a big, big threat and as we've seen throughout this World Cup they find a way. When you've got that magician in Messi you will always have a chance and an opportunity. But I just think Spain will be too good for this Argentina side. Saying that I do think they showed a side last night which not many teams have, that grit and toughness. What I loved about them against England actually was after any tackle all the players would be over and causing a bit of a scuffle. They were so together, they've got grit about them, but I still think Spain will edge it.'
Graeme Souness Also Favours Spain
Scottish football icon Graeme Souness also views Spain as marginal favourites. 'I think it's a hard one to call,' he said. 'We've seen what Argentina are about. At the start of the game they try to niggle you into thinking about different things rather than concentration on your game. Spain, for me, are the favourites but I find it really hard to rule out Argentina because they can dig deep, you write them off at your peril. I put Spain as the slight favourites but having played against plenty of Argentinian players, I know how mentally tough they are. They are proper footballers from a tough nation. I think it's a nip and tuck game, a really hard one to call.'
World Cup Final Context
Argentina are aiming to win their fourth World Cup and would become only the third team to retain the trophy. Spain are looking to become two-time champions following their first World Cup victory in 2010. The two losing semi-finalists, England and France, will face each other in the third-place play-off on Saturday.
