France, under by Didier Deschamps, will start UEFA Euro 2024 as the clear favourites to win the championship on Monday when they play Austria. Les Bleus reached the final on home turf in 2016 but were unsuccessful in 2020. With superstar Kylian Mbappe now leading the way as captain, the French will try again this time. However, Ralf Rangnick and his Austrian team stand in the way, and their first encounter in Düsseldorf may indicate just how difficult Group D may really be for France.
As of right now, Deschamps’ team is mostly healthy and has not suffered injuries to the same extent as any of his opponents. David Alaba is no longer available for Rangnick, Robert Lewandowski will be missing for at least one or two games for Poland, and Teun Koopmeiners and Frenkie de Jong are the most recent absences for the Netherlands. To be honest, Les Bleus is the one team in international football that you would think would be able to manage any kind of injury problem really effectively.
The French can’t afford to make a mistake here, as they have a crucial match against Oranje in Leipzig in game two and the Polish Eagles in Dortmund to finish Group D. Although Poland is predicted to compete for third place in the pre-tournament, Austria might prove to be challenging opponents. It may be up to them who performs worse in the second game if they can start strong and maybe escape losing.
These are our plots, along with information on how to watch the game:
How to observe and the odds
•Monday, June 17 at 3 p.m. Eastern Time
•Düsseldorf Arena, Düsseldorf, Germany is the location.
•TV: FOX | Stream: Fubo (free trial available)
•Austria +500; Draw +350; France -200 are the odds.
Division D
France and the Netherlands, two of the biggest football nations in Europe, are part of one of this year’s most appealing groups. With Ligue 1 emerging victorious from the Eredivisie this past season, two of the finest talent-producing football teams in the world have been fighting for a spot in the top five in the UEFA coefficient for the previous several years. Despite their usual failure to convert that appearance on paper into results on the pitch, the French and the Dutch are up against two difficult sides: Ralf Rangnick’s Austria and a Poland team with a few excellent players. Les Bleus and Oranje are expected to progress as the top two teams, but it is unclear in what sequence they will do so. Both teams know that they cannot afford to lose to the Poles or the Austrians before playing each other in the second round of matches.
Team updates
Austria: Rangnick hasn’t exactly surprised anybody with his tournament squad choices, except for the German duo of Stefan Lainer (who is left out despite having 39 caps) and Xaver Schlager (43). Although David Alaba is a major loss, it was to be anticipated since the Real Madrid star is still far from being healthy. The remaining seven members of the team work in Austria, and Marcel Sabitzer and Marko Arnautovic, two seasoned vital players, are there together with the Borussia Dortmund captain.
Lindner; Lienhart, Daniliuc, Trauner, Mwene; Seiwald, Laimer; Baumgartner, Kainz, Schmidt; Gregoritsch are possible candidates for Austria XI.
France: N’Golo Kante’s unexpected comeback has occurred during Deschamps’ mostly unhindered selection process, which has only resulted in one forced injury-related absence (Lucas Hernandez). This is Olivier Giroud’s last call; he will retire after the competition. Antoine Greizmann is this group’s second-most experienced player. Mbappe, who is now captain, will start again after missing much of the Canada tie due to rest, although Deschamps may be concerned about his lack of experience. While William Saliba aims to establish himself early in the competition and become a regular with Les Bleus, Mike Maignan is making his tournament debut as the unchallenged No. 1.
Maignan, Kounde, Upamecano, Saliba, Hernandez, Camavinga, Rabiot, Dembele, Griezmann, Mbappe, Giroud are possible members of the France XI.
Forecast
France should have too much for Austria and should win easily, even if a close one-goal victory would not be shocking. Mbappe could score a goal or two right away as the French get off to a strong start. Select: France 2, Austria 0.
More in Sports: https://buzzing.today/sports/
Photo Credits: https://commons.wikimedia.org/
Location of the France vs. Austria: Euro 2024 live stream, TV channel, forecast, kickoff time, and odds
by