reunions with the Netherlands and Austria, and an unknown… Who are the opponents of the Blues?

The Blues’ third opponent will be the winner of Path A of the play-offs, which sees Wales, Poland, Finland and Estonia compete.

A reunion in anticipation. Destiny was teasing with the France team, during the draw for Euro 2024, Saturday December 2 in Hamburg (Germany). Despite their top seed status, the Blues inherited the scarecrow in hat 3: the Netherlands. A major nation that they have already faced during qualifying for this competition, and which they therefore know well. This is also the case for the other known adversary, Austria, encountered during the last League of Nations. To discover the name of the third opponent, however, you will have to wait until March.

The Netherlands: a well-oiled orange machine

Sixth in the Fifa rankings, the Netherlands are – logically – one of the serious contenders for final victory in this Euro 2024. During the last World Cup, the Dutch came close to the feat in the quarter-final against Argentina, while They were trailing 2-0 in the 82nd minute of play (final score: 2-2, 4 shots on goal to 3 for the Argentines). Beyond this meeting, the Netherlands showed itself to be solid and consistent in this World Cup, having notably beaten Senegal and Qatar in their group, then the United States in the round of 16.

Often placed, titled only in 1988, the Batavians are one of the great European nations, which should not be forgotten by the last two meetings between France and the Oranje. Winners of these two confrontations during the qualifying campaign for Euro 2024 (4-0 at the Stade de France, 2-1 in Amsterdam), the Blues have a psychological ascendancy, which Didier Deschamps quickly put into perspective at the microphone of TMC: “Both times they had important players who were absent. HASu complete, they are among the best European nations”.

“I was dreading falling against them, they are never easy to play”, extended Olivier Giroud, at the microphone of TMC. After a 2010 decade of failures, the Netherlands are in fact in full reconstruction, around a generation which is making the heyday of the big European clubs, like Virgil van Dijk and Cody Gakpo at Liverpool, by Frenkie De Jong at FC Barcelona, ​​or Matthijs de Ligt at Bayern Munich.

Austria: a bad memory

Coming out second in Group F of the qualifiers for Euro 2024, Austria finished only one point behind Belgium. The Austrians have only lost one game during this campaign (against the Belgians), for one draw and six victories. Which allowed David Alaba’s teammates to finish ahead of Sweden, in particular. “Austria, in my opinion, is underrated, with a lot of good players”, estimated Guy Stéphan, Didier Deschamps’ deputy, at the microphone of TMC. The Blues know this well, having crossed paths with the Austrians during the 2022 Nations League.

“We had a lot of trouble there, we got shaken up”, recalled Guy Stéphan. Held to a one-goal draw in Vienna in June 2022, the Blues suffered against a selection more experienced than it seems. In addition to captain David Alaba, captain of Real Madrid after having been at Bayern Munich, Austria relies on several names well known to Bundesliga fans such as Marcel Sabitzer (Borussia Dortmund), Konrad Laimer (Bayern Munich) or Xaver Schlager (RB Leipzig). Without forgetting the defender of RC Lens, Kevin Danso, or the striker of Inter Milan, Marko Arnautovic.

The barrage: Poland, like at the World Cup?

To find out the name of the Blues’ third opponent at Euro 2024, who will also be the last on the menu for France on June 25 in Dortmund, you will have to wait until March 26. Date on which the winners of Poland-Estonia and Wales-Finland, played five days earlier, will face each other in a decisive match to obtain this ticket for Euro 2024. On paper, it is a safe bet that It will be Wales or Poland.

“If it’s Poland or Wales, it will make a nice little group. On paper, they are stronger than Finland and Estonia. It’s a more lenient draw than at the last Euro”, estimated Olivier Giroud, at the microphone of TMC. If Robert Lewandowski’s Poland, beaten by the Blues in the round of 16 of the last World Cup, were invited into the group, it would take on a different look, even if France would remain favorites.