Netherlands vs France

Friday's Euro 2024 matches feature a matchup of the titans of Group D: France and the Netherlands will square off intellectually at the Red Bull Arena in an attempt to secure a spot in the round of sixteen.

In their first match, Ronald Koeman's team overcame a goal down to defeat Poland 2-1, while Les Bleus also narrowly defeated Austria, albeit their main man was injured during the game.

With only 16 minutes remaining, Poland's competent deputy, Adam Buksa, flicked a fantastic header into the far corner, keeping alive their hopes of pulling off a surprise victory against the Netherlands despite the absence of the fantastic marksman Robert Lewandowski.

But the Netherlands rallied in only 13 minutes, thanks to a deflected attempt by Cody Gakpo that fooled Wojciech Szczesny. With just seven minutes left in regular time, Wout Weghorst completed the Dutch reversal by writing his own hero arc with a smashing low finish.

More than anything, Koeman was relieved to see his audacious tactical choice pay off. The former Barcelona manager acknowledged that he thought about starting Memphis Depay behind Weghorst but ultimately replaced the latter with another Manchester United disaster, whose winner sent Oranje to the top of Group D.

The Netherlands, who are now leading France because to their higher goals scored total, can secure a top-two finish if they win this Friday's game. It would also be their fourth straight win following their 4-0 thumping of Canada and Iceland in friendly matches.

In addition, the Netherlands has only lost once in its past 17 games at major competitions when penalty shootouts are eliminated, and that was in the postponed Euro 2020 campaign when they were defeated 2-0 by the Czech Republic.

Although Koeman's team has only lost once in their past eight games—a 2-1 friendly loss to Germany in March—it is clear that they are a serious contender for Euro 2024 triumph. However, their next opponents in qualifying were undoubtedly stronger than them.

This week, Didier Deschamps's team had history on their side as they easily defeated Oranje 4-0 at home and also managed a 2-1 triumph in the preliminary section. However, they were soon reunited with their Dutch opponents in the same finals section.

Les Bleus, like the Netherlands, had to work hard for their first tournament win, a 1-0 triumph over an impressive Austria thanks to an own goal from Maximilian Wober. However, if Kylian Mbappe hadn't spurned a fantastic one-on-one, Les Bleus could have overtaken Oranje in the top spot.

Even though the Real Madrid rookie was unable to score that time, he caused major alarm when he struck Kevin Danso in the shoulder with his face, breaking his nose and earning a yellow card in the process. He then returned to the field without authorization during a farcical substitute.

But second-placed France will also advance to the round of 16 if they win on Friday thanks to Mbappe's assist on Wober's own goal. Deschamps's team has shown resilience on defense when it matters most, keeping three straight clean sheets.

Les Bleus have only triumphed in both of their first Euros matches in a single tournament four times, when they triumph on Friday night. Their previous three final appearances were in 1984, 2000, and 2016.

France continued the long-standing trend between the two countries by defeating the Netherlands twice in the qualifying round. France has now defeated the Netherlands seven times in eight meetings, though the Oranje have won their last two meetings in the Euro finals, including a 4-1 thumping in the group stage in 2008.