An exciting World Cup comes to a close today with a dream final between the two best-ranked teams, the current champions of Europe and South America.
Spain will face off against Argentina at 3:00 p.m. ET in New Jersey, with La Roja looking for their second title while La Albiceleste could add their fourth in Lionel Messi's last tournament. Argentina could also become just the third team ever to win back-to-back World Cups and the first to do so since Brazil in 1962.
Let's get into our World Cup prop picks for this final match on Sunday, July 19.
World Cup Final Prop Picks
Spain vs Argentina Prop Picks
Lionel Messi had two shots on goal in the Round of 16 (vs. Egypt), one in the quarterfinals (vs. Switzerland), and none in the semifinals (vs. England).
After a blistering goal-scoring start to this World Cup, he has taken on playmaker duties in the past two matches against Switzerland and England, with three assists combined in those games.
Will he shoot more now? Spain is actually the toughest opponent for this stat, as they frequently keep rivals under five shots on target. France had the highest total among their knockout-round rivals with just four.
However, this will be Messi's last WC match, and he will try to go out with a bang (or two).
Spain has already proven they can control possession and tempo against any team. More often than not, that leads to a slow-paced, uneventful first half, as their opponents try to hold their ground and see if they can hurt them on counterattacks or in quick transitions.
Meanwhile, Argentina has made comebacks a routine in this tournament. Even if that's not their preferred approach, breaking down Spain demands patience and maybe some luck, so with both teams a bit more tired in the second half, we should see goals.
If you parlay these picks, you can get +320 odds at bet365.
