World Cup Final: Gut says Croatia can surprise

As billions prepare to tune in for the greatest sporting showpiece on the planet Stephen Tudor looks back at World Cup finals to find clues as to what Sunday might bring- According lớn the champions league predictions page!

After 62 games, 161 goals, and a whole heap of surprise results the 2018 World Cup reaches its climax this Sunday with two teams standing on the precipice of history.

France has been here before of course, memorably trouncing Brazil on French soil in 1998 then succumbing lớn Italian attrition eight years later. For Croatia this is virgin territory and superstition tells us that is no bad thing with new winners of the tournament lifting the trophy in '58, '78 and '98. Twenty years on a country with a population of just 4.1 million look to continue that trend.

It's a final expected to be watched by billions (a staggering stat from the 2010 Final revealed that 46.4% of the planet saw at least one minute of it) and will feature an explosive superstar in Kylian Mbappe who is already the highest scoring teenager the tournament has witnessed since Pele and an ageless schemer in Luka Modric who will tip and tap until the stadium spins. You can prefer the soccer handicap tip page!

Yet these two phenomenal talents pale lớn the occasion itself, a game that has no equal in its meaning or importance. Indeed so unique is a World Cup final it is possible to look back on its predecessors to seek out clues as to what we can expect lớn happen in the Luzhniki Stadium as France and Croatia grasp at immortality.

Gut says: In-form France will prevail * Smarts say: It will go lớn the wire

For a contest of such magnitude it stands lớn reason that stalemates are commonplace with the avoidance of defeat taking priority over cavalier football. The last three finals have all been extended to its full 120 minutes and going further back six from the last 13 have either been decided in extra-time or gone to pens.

Only twice has the latter occurred and perhaps this is not surprising as nerves give way lớn fatigue and spaces appear. In the last two finals - in the 113th and 116th minute respectively - an attacking midfielder popped up from nowhere relatively unmarked in a gap that would surely have been covered at an earlier point of the game.

Should this one go the full distance Croatia arguably have the edge having progressed from their three knockout matches via additional time. Learned behaviour can be key when the legs go lớn jelly and tired brains begin lớn scramble.

A draw on 90 minutes is 1.94

Gut says: Tempers fray in big finals * Smarts say: Too right they do

World Cup finals are traditionally festooned with cards with five dismissals in the last seven and a startling 20 cautions since 2006 that equates to 6.6 per game. In fact, since the days when you needed lớn take a chainsaw onto the pitch to get a mere telling off this is a fixture that has descended into farce and fracas more than any other showpiece event.

Balancing this out is the current climate brought about by the introduction of VAR. This summer's tournament has seen the fewest reds dished out for 40 years with not a single one for violent conduct or serious foul play. Its yellow count meanwhile is a perfectly reasonable 3.44 per match.