Euro 2020 Preview - France

[Dave]

France

Despite being in arguably the most difficult group, the current world champions will still favour their chances of going one better than five years ago.

 

Road to Euro 2020
France finished top of Group H in qualifying with eight wins, one draw and one loss. They were one of the top scoring teams in the qualifiers after they scored two or more goals in eight of their qualifying games. They also kept clean sheets in 60% of their games whilst conceding just six goals in total. Overall it was a dominant display from a well-established impressive team.

 

What to Expect
France’s squad depth must be the envy of every manager at international level. Despite this, Didier Deschamps appears to not have changed much since the World Cup as France have been fluent and merciless in attack with predominantly the same players. Olivier Giroud scored an impressive six goals in qualifying whilst Antoine Griezmann netted four goals himself.

 

Possible Lineup
Everything seemingly clicked together once Didier Deschamps switched to a 4-3-3 at half time against Austrailia in the World Cup with Olivier Giroud playing the target man role linking in Kylian Mbappe and Antonio Griezmann. Unsurprisingly not much has changed since then. N'golo Kante still helps get the best performances out of Paul Pogba and Didier Deschamps appears to prefer Adrian Rabiot in a midfield three alongside them.

The defence is still marshalled by the immense Raphael Varane whilst Lucas Hernandez and Benjamin Pavard are still the preferred full backs. The most notable change since the World Cup is that Pascal Kimpembe is now a regular in the starting lineup alongside Raphael Varane. The vastly experienced Hugo Lloris remains the team captain in goal.

 

Key Player
Once timed running at 37 kph (23 mph) during a game against Argentina, it’s telling that Deschamps built his World Cup winning squad around ensuring that a 19-year old prodigy started every game. Kylian Mbappe now has three years more experience and will be determined to show that he is is the clear heir to Messi and Ronaldo’s throne.

 

Prediction
Facing organised teams such as Germany will be a difficult challenge for Didier Deschamp’s side, however it is worth mentioning that France are undefeated in their last four meetings with the Germans, winning two and drawing two since 2016.

France last faced Portugal in the final Euro 2016. The next meeting between these sides will be extremely interesting given that France are now entering this fixture as the defending World Champions. The should be wary of any late strikes from players similar to Eder this time!

Any fan of flair and attacking football will surely look no further than the reigning world champions to win the tournament. If they can maintain their strong form and keep their best players fit, France will be the force to beat for this tournament.

[Azeem]

Use to like France as a kid but they aren't as passionate about football as other top teams.