By Seyi Babalola
Netherlands and France will play their second UEFA Euro 2024 game in Group D on Friday, June 21, by 8 pm.
The last time these two teams played was in the Euro qualifications in October 2023, when France defeated Netherlands 2-1.
Both Netherlands and France have made promising, if not fully convincing, beginnings to Euro 2024. On Friday, they will square off in a heavyweight match that may determine who tops Group D.
France enters the clash of the Group D heavyweights with recent history on their side, having won seven of the sides’ past eight meetings, including both in qualification.
Given Ronald Koeman’s men’s injury concerns throughout the European Qualifiers, the Oranje had an excuse.
They faced similar troubles in Germany, with midfielders Frenkie de Jong and Teun Koopmeiners withdrawing from the squad on the day of the finals.
They did, however, get off to a good start, defeating a Robert Lewandowski-less Poland 2-1 in their first game, even though they could have scored more. France, meanwhile, is concerned about Kylian Mbappé, who injured his nose during their 1-0 victory over Austria.
N’Golo Kanté, the midfield factotum, was a standout in that game, garnering praise and a Player of the Match for his performance.
The Netherlands have excellent forwards but the problem may be ensuring that they see enough of the ball to generate opportunities.
Speaking ahead of the match: Ronald Koeman, Netherlands coach said: “If you win the first match, it brings calm and trust. And we will need all that against a strong France side, who we have played a lot in recent years. We know what to expect.
“We will have to be very good to get the result we want. In the first match, there were a lot of good things, and there were also a number of moments when we should have done better. We have to play with courage. That will be the key. We have to take initiative.”
In the same regard, Didier Deschamps, France’s coach said: “[When we beat the Netherlands in qualifying, they] were missing five or six key players. It’s not the same team, and that has been proved by the results they’ve been able to get since.
“It will be a much stronger team than the one we faced in qualifying. We achieved our objective of winning the first game, but now, as is also the case for the Dutch, the next target is winning this game and qualifying. It’s about ensuring we perform as well as we can and being as dangerous as we can be for the opposition.”
The match will be broadcast on GOtv and DStv. On GOtv channel 61, and DStv channels 222 and 225, respectively.
Possible line-ups
Netherlands: Verbruggen; Dumfries, De Vrij, Van Dijk, Aké; Reijnders, Schouten, Veerman; Simons, Depay, Gakpo
France: Maignan; Koundé, Saliba, Upamecano, Hernández; Dembélé, Kanté, Tchouaméni, Rabiot; Griezmann, Thuram.
