WHO WINS? The tie promises to be a mouth-watering one, with France considered a major threat after their tournament so far and Germany having been strongly fancied in the lead up to the Brazilian showpiece event. But of each sides Arsenal representatives, who has had the better World Cup so far - Mertesacker or Koscielny? Both centre-backs have had relatively strong tournaments and excelled in key areas. Frenchman Koscielny, who hasnt played every game due to the presence of Liverpools Mamadou Sakho, has conceded less goals while on the pitch, though both have kept two clean sheets. Mertesacker, however, is ahead on won tackles - with two - and has made one tackle as the last man. The 29-year-old has also won three more interceptions and made ten more clearances, though that could be attributed to his many more minutes on-field. Nevertheless, Koscielny has won more aerial duels, despite his reduced playing time - but can also be said to have had to defend less than his German counterpart, with France coming up against less opposition in the group stages. Koscielny and his team-mates had to produce resolute displays to see off Nigeria in the last-16 but faced little resistance from Ecuador, Honduras and Switzerland beforehand. Mertesacker was kept considerably busier against Ghana and Algeria, with Germanys high line leaving them in all sorts of trouble. The winner? Mertesacker just, although the stats leave it open to interpretation. But the duos similar stats do serve to show just why they work so well together at club level. One attacks the ball and one sweeps, one makes more tackles and one wins more headers. Sadly, though, one will have to leave this World Cup on Friday. Which Arsenal man will make it to the semi-finals?
Posted on: Tue, 01 Jul 2014 13:37:20 +0000
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