Two sides who enjoyed winning starts to their respective Euro 2024 campaigns clash on matchday two in Group D, as the Netherlands face a potentially Kyian Mbappé-less France.
By Nathan Evans
Out of the two, it was arguably Ronald Koeman’s side who produced the stronger performance in the opening round of fixtures, as they fought back from a goal down to beat Poland 2-1 in Hamburg.
Adam Buksa gave their matchday one opposition the lead against the run of play from a corner, but Cody Gakpo responded before half time before Wout Weghorst came off the bench to once again score a huge goal and in this case, winner, for the Dutch.
That leaves the 1988 European Championship victors in a strong position to reach the knockout rounds of this competition for the ninth time in 12 attempts, even if obtaining another win here seems a tough ask on the face of it.
That’s partly due to their opposition’s phenomenally deep squad in terms of talent, but also because France have come out on top in seven of the last eight meetings between these two great footballing nations, across all competitions.
That being said, Didier Deschamps’ side were far from their best against plucky Austria on matchday one, but in the end, they still found a way to win 1-0 via a Max Wöber own goal in the first half. From there, the French looked unusually flat, and most who watched would argue that Ralk Rangnick’s outfit were deserving of at least a point.
As expected, all eyes were on Mbappé, who spurned a huge chance midweek through the first half, but he was later forced to leave the field with a broken nose – an injury that has dominated the headlines ever since. Thankfully for him, surgery was not required, according to the French FA, and he should be able to continue to play a part in the tournament t, though this match could come too soon for him in terms of his recovery – something which would be a huge blow for his side.
Undoubtedly in their opener however, it was midfielder N’Golo Kanté who stole the show as he looked back to his very best in the centre of the park. He claimed the FotMob player-of-the-match award with his 7.9 rated performance which comprised of 73 touches, seven defensive actions, six ball recoveries and two chances created and, in the process, he just about covered every blade of grass at Merkur Spiel-Arena.
He’ll be the focal point again in this clash, as Deschamp continues his own charge towards becoming the first ever person to win both the World Cup and European Championships as both a player and manager.
(Cover image from IMAGO)
You can follow every game from Euro 2024 live with FotMob — featuring deep stats coverage, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.