Preview: Colombia vs France - prediction, team news, lineups

Completing their brief US tour on Sunday evening, France will face Colombia in an international friendly at Northwest Stadium.

Both nations are warming up for this summer's World Cup, and after Les Bleus beat Brazil last time out, preparations will continue in Washington DC.

Match preview

Once again, France strolled through UEFA qualifying last autumn - finishing off their Group D campaign with a 4-0 defeat of Ukraine and a 3-1 victory over Azerbaijan - before thoughts quickly turned to the summer.

Officially billed as a friendly, Les Bleus stepped up their preparations for this year's global finals with a highly competitive clash against Brazil on Thursday evening.

Two teams ultimately aiming to lift the World Cup met in Massachusetts, where Kylian Mbappe's neat lofted finish put the European side in front and moved him within one goal of Olivier Giroud's all-time national record.

Although Dayot Upamecano was then sent off, Hugo Ekitike clinically struck before the Selecao pulled one back late on, as France continued their fine run of form.

After beating Brazil in Boston, their unbeaten streak stands at eight games, having posted seven wins since a chaotic Nations League semi-final loss to Spain.

Already one of just three men to win the World Cup as both a player and manager, Didier Deschamps will soon lead Les Bleus back to North America for his final tournament in charge.

Selecting from such a huge pool of players will be one of his toughest tasks, but Sunday's game should help refine an incredibly long list of candidates.

While their French counterparts are formidable, perennial Wold Cup dark horses Colombia had not tasted defeat for a year before finally slipping up on Thursday.

An early Jhon Arias strike put them ahead against Croatia in Orlando, but the South American side then conceded twice before half time and proved unable to respond.

Still, Los Cafeteros can reflect on that impressive 12-month unbeaten streak since losing to Brazil last March, and goals have continued to flow freely.

Colombia finished third in CONMEBOL qualifying for the World Cup - where they will kick off the group phase against tournament debutants Uzbekistan - and momentum is still on their side.

Ranked 14th by FIFA, Nestor Lorenzo's squad now meet third-placed France in a high-profile friendly, which should provide a stern test of their credentials.

To date, the pair have posted two wins apiece from four previous meetings; most notably, Les Bleus legend Thierry Henry scored the winner in a Confederations Cup clash back in June 2003.

Colombia form (all competitions):

W W D W W L

France form (all competitions):

W W D W W W

Team News

While blessed with a deep reservoir of talent, France are currently missing several potential starters, with Roma midfielder Manu Kone, Barcelona's Jules Kounde and Paris Saint-Germain winger Bradley Barcola among them.

Ekitike replaced the latter to good effect against Brazil, while Maxence Lacroix is standing in for another London-based centre-back, William Saliba.

Deschamps may be tempted to rotate his resources after fielding a strong team on Thursday, so minutes could be handed to fringe players such as Pierre Kalulu, Rayan Cherki and veteran vice-captain N'Golo Kante.

Meanwhile, Colombia captain James Rodriguez is in line for his 124th international cap, drawing within five of David Ospina's all-time record.

Amid an injury-hit campaign with Cagliari, experienced defender Yerry Mina is a notable absentee on this US tour, alongside itinerant striker Jhon Duran.

Even without Duran, Los Cafeteros can call upon Bayern Munich winger Luis Diaz and Sporting Lisbon's Luis Suarez to lead a potent attack: the latter scored four goals against Venezuela in their final World Cup qualifier and has since fired Sporting to the Champions League quarter-finals.

Colombia possible starting lineup:

Vargas; Munoz, Sanchez, Lucumi, Cabal; Lerma, Rios; J. Arias, Rodriguez, Diaz; Suarez

France possible starting lineup:

Maignan; Kalulu, Konate, Lacroix, Digne; Kante, Rabiot; Olise, Cherki, Ekitike; Mbappe

We say: Colombia 1-2 France

Having gone a whole year without losing - quite a feat given the competitive nature of CONMEBOL qualifying - Colombia are now set to suffer back-to-back defeats.

France may make changes for the second game of their Stateside trip, but there should be little drop-off in standards - particularly with World Cup squad selection still on the line.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.