There was a rush of excitement once it was confirmed defending champions New Zealand would face France in the quarterfinals of the World Cup. This is a fixture that has caused the All Blacks genuine trouble in recent years; Les Bleus knocked them out of both the 1999 and 2007 World Cups, with the latter occurring at Saturday's venue in Cardiff. France also enjoyed their first ever victory on their opponents' home turf in 2009 and pushed New Zealand all the way in the dramatic final four years' ago. They head to the Millennium Stadium this weekend knowing another knockout blow is entirely achievable.

Team news

Steve Hansen has made four changes to the New Zealand side that beat Tonga in their final pool match. With Tony Woodcock ruled out of the tournament, Wyatt Crockett starts at loose-head with Joe Moody poised to make his first appearance of the campaign from the bench. Elsewhere Julian Savea takes Waisele Naholo's place on the wing while Richie McCaw and Brodie Retallick return in the pack. With 988 caps on display, this is New Zealand's most experienced starting XV for a Rugby World Cup knockout match and their second ever for any World Cup match.

France head coach Philippe Saint-Andre has made three changes to the side that lost to Ireland, with Bernard Le Roux, Morgan Parra and Alexandre Dumoulin replacing Damien Chouly, Sebastien Tillous-Borde and Mathieu Bastareaud. Captain Thierry Dusautoir is the only player in the matchday 23 who started in the 20-18 victory in Cardiff in 2007. With 553 caps in the starting line-up, it is France's most experienced XV started by Saint-Andre at the 2015 World Cup.

New Zealand perform the Haka after winning the 2011 Rugby World Cup© FRANCK FIFE/AFP/Getty Images

New Zealand

Ben Smith, Nehe Milner-Skudder, Conrad Smith, Ma'a Nonu, Julian Savea, Dan Carter, Aaron Smith; Wyatt Crockett, Dane Coles, Owen Franks, Brodie Retallick, Sam Whitelock, Jerome Kaino, Richie McCaw (captain), Kieran Read.

Replacements: Keven Mealamu, Joe Moody, Charlie Faumuina, Victor Vito, Sam Cane, Tawera Kerr-Barlow, Beauden Barrett, Sonny Bill Williams.

France

S Spedding, B Dulin, W Fofana, A Dumoulin, N Nakaitaci, F Michalak, M Parra; B Le Roux, L Picamoles, T Dusautoir, Y Maestri, P Pape, R Slimani, G Guirado, E Ben Arous.

Replacements: D Szarzewski, V Debaty, N Mas, D Chouly, Y Nyanga, R Kockott, R Tales, M Bastareaud.

Key head-to-head:

The clash of the captains. Dusautoir will become only the third Frenchman to score a record three tries against New Zealand, after current coach Saint-Andre and vice president of the France federation Serge Blanco, should he score in Cardiff. However, standing in his way will be none other than opposite skipper Richie McCaw, who was also captain when his side suffered defeat at the same stadium eight years' ago. If France are to summon the spirit of 2007, Dusautoir must be at his commanding best -- and silence McCaw from the first whistle to the last.

Key stats

* Richie McCaw is the only player in rugby history to captain his side for over 100 Tests.

* New Zealand and France have played a World Cup quarterfinal in Cardiff once before -- Les Bleus knocked the favourites out of the 2007 tournament with a 20-18 victory at the Millennium Stadium.

* Thierry Dusautoir famously made a world record 38 tackles in that 2007 quarterfinal against the All Blacks. It was only his eighth cap for France.

Odds

Unsurprisingly, Unibet has New Zealand as 1/7 favourites to gain their revenge and put the ghosts of 2007 to bed. However, there appears to be some value with France priced at 9/2 for another upset.

Weather

While the weather around the Millennium Stadium is expected to be cold with a slight chance of rain on Saturday evening, conditions under the roof will no doubt be heated. Expect a few fireworks in Cardiff.

Prediction

While neither side has showcased their tantalising best so far in England, this has potential to be match of the tournament. There is so much at stake and, with the recent history between the two sides still fresh in the memory, emotions are likely to be running high. Expect a tense, charged and highly-strung affair with the All Blacks to edge it between five and 10 points.