Uruguay, with a minuscule population of just 3.4 million people, seems to consistently defy expectations on the world stage.
A two-time World Cup winner, La Celeste has only failed to progress past the tournament's opening round during three of its 13 appearances: 1962, 1974, and 2002. And despite being the second-least populous country at the 2018 World Cup (only Iceland's population of 334,000 minnow the South American country), Uruguay has already assured itself a spot in the quarter-finals.
But to advance further, Oscar Tabarez's side will need to unseat France, the footballing powerhouse that dispatched Argentina in a seven-goal thriller on Saturday.
Here are three ways Uruguay can upset the Euro 2016 finalist:
Defend deep cohesively
France had its most convincing game of the tournament thus far against Argentina, but it can be argued Les Bleus were buoyed by La Albiceleste's unbalanced set-up. Jorge Sampaoli curiously deployed a very high defensive line - presumably to contain France's attacking threats within its own half - and it backfired quickly once Kylian Mbappe realised neither Javier Mascherano or Marcos Rojo could keep up with him at full sprint.
While pushing defenders high can be a viable tactic, France has had difficulty adapting to teams that prefer to sit deeper, as demonstrated by narrow group-stage wins over Peru and Australia, and a 1-1 pre-tournament friendly against a United States reserve squad. Coincidentally, there's arguably no better side remaining in the World Cup to do that than Uruguay.
Boasting perhaps the best centre-back pairing of the tournament in Jose Gimenez and Diego Godin, La Celeste thrives on infuriating teams defensively, a skill that only improves when Tabarez opts for the small-but-relentless Lucas Torreira just in front of the back four. And though Godin and Gimenez may not be any quicker than Argentina's defenders, playing the team deeper allows Uruguay to cover for its sluggish shortcomings.
The added benefit of sitting deep is that Uruguay has also shown it doesn't need to bomb everyone forward to score. Edinson Cavani and Luis Suarez's long-ball give-and-go against Portugal was a perfect example of doing a lot with very little, and being efficient with chances against Les Bleus could propel Tabarez's side to another win over a European giant.
Don't waste set pieces
Uruguay scored five goals during the group stage, and all of them were the result of set pieces.
It's safe to say Tabarez's men know where their strengths lie.
Corner kicks have been a godsend for La Celeste, though Suarez, Cavani, and even Torreira all possess the ability to uncork an unstoppable free-kick. Suarez himself already has a free-kick goal at this World Cup after beating Russian 'keeper Igor Akinfeev at his near post with a fierce low drive.
Though Uruguay didn't need set pieces to roll past Cristiano Ronaldo and Portugal, it's tough to imagine the South Americans besting France entirely through open play, especially if Cavani's calf issue rules him out.
Les Bleus will be Uruguay's most well-rounded opponent so far, and clear goal-scoring opportunities might be hard to come by on Friday. They may not be the most aesthetically pleasing goals - unless someone curls a free-kick into the top corner - but wasting a dangerous set-piece chance could be the difference between making the semi-final and going home.
Isolate Pogba
Paul Pogba's individual performances seem to determine how well France fares. That makes sense, as the Manchester United man is the fulcrum for Didier Deschamps' side, transitioning the team from defence to attack in an instant with a galloping run or a precise through ball. When Pogba fails to get going, France lacks fluidity moving through the middle, which also hampers the involvement of Antoine Griezmann.
Though Torreira is arguably Uruguay's best midfield anchor, the Sampdoria player is better suited to track Griezmann, both tactically and physically. And since staying collectively deep is recommended, an alternative for Tabarez to consider is to man-mark Pogba out of the game with one of Suarez or Cavani (if he recovers from his injury). A similar tactic was used by Iran against Portugal when striker Sardar Azmoun was instructed to stick close to William Carvalho to disrupt Portugal's build-up play.
Of course, this is dependent on Deschamps sticking with his 4-2-3-1, pairing Pogba in front of the defence alongside N'Golo Kante. But if he does, Uruguay's path to quieting France is that much more apparent.
(Photos courtesy: Getty Images)
