In their second match at the European Championship, the Netherlands and former champions France square off. In their previous eight matches, France had prevailed both at home and away during qualification.
Speculation around Kylian Mbappé, the standout player for France, and his ability to participate after fracturing his nose in the opening match against Austria has overshadowed this buildup. Kickoff occurs on Friday at 9:00 p.m. local (1900 GMT).
Here’s what to know about the match:
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• Mbappé broke his nose when his face collided with Austria defender Kevin Danso’s shoulder on Monday. Blood stained his white France jersey. He’ll need to wear a mask if he plays.
• If he does play, the France captain will hope to finally score at a European Championship at the sixth attempt. Mbappé has 47 goals in 80 games for France, including 12 in qualifying for the Euros, but he’s yet to score in five games at the tournament.
• France and the Netherlands are level on three points in Group D. The Dutch came from behind to beat Poland 2-1 and France needed an own goal to beat Austria 1-0.
• France defeated the Netherlands 4-0 at home and 2-1 away in qualifying. The Dutch were group runners-up.
• Dutch forward Xavi Simons will be back in Leipzig, where he played last season on loan from Paris Saint-Germain. The 21-year-old Xavi scored eight goals in 32 Bundesliga appearances to help Leipzig finish fourth. The German club hopes he’ll be back next season. He has already played 15 games for the Netherlands.
• The Netherlands won Euro ’88 with current coach Ronald Koeman in the team alongside the brilliant trio of Ruud Gullit, Marco van Basten and Frank Rijkaard, who played together for AC Milan.
• The Dutch won their three group games in the last edition, then lost to the Czech Republic in the round of 16.
• France won Euro ’84 as host, then – with Didier Deschamps as captain – Euro 2000 after he captained the team to the World Cup title as host in 1998. Deschamps took over as France coach in 2012 and led France to another World Cup title in 2018.
• Other group members Austria and Poland play earlier Friday in Berlin.
Team news
Deschamps sounded optimistic on Thursday that Mbappé will be available. The France captain trained with the rest of his teammates on the eve of the match while wearing a blue, white and red face-mask. “Everything is evolving in the right direction,” Deschamps said. “We’ll do all we can to ensure that he’ll be available tomorrow.”
• Netherlands midfielders Frenkie de Jong and Teun Koopmeiners were ruled out with injuries before the tournament.
By the numbers
Altogether, France has won 15 of the teams’ 30 previous meetings, with the Dutch winning 11. The Dutch have scored more goals in those games; 57 to 53.
• In the last four major tournaments – World Cups and European Championships – France has reached the final in three. The exception was at the pandemic-delayed Euros in 2021, where Deschamps’ team went out to Switzerland on penalties at the first knockout stage after squandering a two-goal lead with nine minutes remaining.
• France defeated Gibraltar 14-0 for a new European Championship qualifying record and the country’s biggest win.
What they say “It’s amazing and lovely to see everyone in orange strolling around the streets, and of course, this stadium. This has always been my dream, and thus far, it hasn’t let me down. – Bart Verbruggen, goalie for the Netherlands.
“Our most recent encounters with the Netherlands date back a while, but I recall our resilience and our capacity to win offensive points. We were able to operate efficiently, and on Friday we will have to do so once more. Above all, we must exert the same level of passion that we did in our opposition to Austria. It’s a necessary component to win this competition and advance as far as you can. Adrien Rabiot, a midfielder for France.
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