Key match-ups in World Cup final between Argentina and France

DOHA : Argentina and France meet in Sunday's World Cup final at Lusail Stadium. Both countries are bidding for their third title with the French having the chance to become the first back-to-back champions since Brazil in 1962.

Here are three of the key match-ups that are likely to have a strong bearing on the result:

Kylian Mbappe v Nahuel Molina

Mbappe is a candidate for the World Cup's player of the tournament, having led France to their second consecutive final.

The jet-heeled 23-year-old forward has scored five times in six games, surpassing his tally from the 2018 tournament, and has now scored nine World Cup goals in 13 appearances across the two editions.

Mbappe's explosive pace and technique were a nightmare for Morocco's defenders Achraf Dari and Achraf Hakimi, who tried in vain to stop him getting down France's left channel in their semi-final.

Now Argentina right back Molina will be tasked with marking Mbappe.

Molina arrived at the World Cup having faced criticism after struggling in his first season with Atletico Madrid, but he has been solid during the tournament and started every match.

The potential match-up could lead coach Lionel Scaloni to deploy a three-man defence like he did in their quarter-final against the Netherlands, to provide Molina with support.

That would likely pit Tottenham Hotspur centre back Cristian Romero against Mbappe.

Lionel Messi v Aurelien Tchouameni

One of the most anticipated match-ups will be Argentina great Messi against France's rising star holding-midfielder Tchouameni.

They have faced each other once before, as Paris St Germain and Monaco played in the French league in the 2021-22 season.

Messi got the better of Tchouameni in that encounter, with PSG winning 2-0 and the Argentinian