Three months after losing the FIFA World Cup final, France kick off their UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying campaign against the Netherlands in Paris on Friday night.
France and the Netherlands are joined by the Republic of Ireland, Greece and Gibraltar in Group B, so they are both expected to qualify for next summer’s tournament without any real problems.
Can Les Bleus bounce back from December’s penalty shootout defeat to Argentina in Qatar? Or will the Dutch upset the odds at the Stade de France?
It’s safe to say that France will still be hurting after losing the World Cup final on penalties, but Didier Deschamps’ men will also be confident of bouncing straight back.
After all, the French came from behind on two occasions to force extra-time and penalties in the final, with star man Kylian Mbappe netting a hat-trick on the night.
It is worth noting that France have only lost two of their last nine matches across all competitions, picking up six wins in the process.
Having lost just seven of their previous 71 encounters, Les Bleus are more than capable of returning to winning ways following the disappointment in Qatar.
As for the Netherlands, they were knocked out by eventual champions Argentina in the quarter-finals of the World Cup, also losing on penalties.
Following the departure of Louis van Gaal after the tournament, Ronald Koeman returned for his second spell as Netherlands manager, having previously led his country between 2018 and 2020.
The Dutch went 12 games unbeaten in 2022 before losing to Argentina in the quarter-finals, picking up nine wins and three draws along the way.
Having avoided defeat in 90 minutes in each of their previous 18 matches across all competitions, the Netherlands will fancy their chances of frustrating France.
Head-to-head: France and the Netherlands last met during the 2018-19 Nations League campaign, with both sides claiming home wins that season.
Across the past six meetings between France and the Dutch, both nations have claimed three wins, so Friday’s clash is expected to be a close-fought battle.
Team news: Brice Samba, Jean-Clair Todibo and Khephren Thuram have all earned maiden France call-ups, joining regulars such as Kylian Mbappe, Antoine Griezmann and Olivier Giroud.
The Netherlands could hand debuts to Bart Verbruggen, Sven Botman, Lutsharel Geertruida, Mats Wieffer and Brian Brobbey on Friday.
Although France reached the World Cup final three months ago, the Netherlands will be eager to kick-start to Ronald Koeman era on a high note.
Forebet predicts that France and the Netherlands will play out a low-scoring draw in Paris, with both teams netting under 1.5 goals.
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