The semi-final posters for this Euro 2024 are now known. The French team will face Spain and England will meet the Netherlands, recently qualified against Turkey this Saturday, July 6 in the evening. A quartet of European football heavyweights to make up this last four. Only a smart person can predict the lucky finalists.
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In this Euro 2024, the favorites deliver lackluster, sometimes even boring, performances, and yet here they are. In any case, three of the five that we had designated as such, the other two having been eliminated by these same big favorites. Indeed, theGermany was eliminated in front of its home crowdwho did not hold it against him as the Mannschaft came back from the law, and Portugal succumbed to a sad match against the Blues. To complete the last four, the Netherlands, among the big European nations, but not necessarily the most expected, obtained their ticket after defeating a valiant Turkey.
Read also Euro 2024: Calendar and results
Spain – France: the Blues face a very good Roja
Let’s admit it, no one expected Spain to perform so well and France to be so gloomy. A real tactical question will arise on Tuesday, July 9 in this clash of the semi-finals. Between a Roja that has almost never been as attractive in recent years as by denying its nature and not hesitating to let its opponents have a little more of the ball and the Blues who seem not to know what to do with the ball when they have it between their feet… Which team will take charge of the game?
The weight of the absentees will also be important. Pedri went off after just 10 minutes of play, victim of a knee sprain. It remains to be made official, but he should not see the field again in Germany. As for the suspended players, Robin Le Normand received a yellow card against Germany, after a first against Italy a few days earlier, and will not appear on the team sheet for the semi-final. The same goes for Carvajal, who was sanctioned with a red card in the last minutes of the quarter-final.
Although the Blues will be at full strength, the forces present are far from being at 100%. Kylian Mbappé is absent. “I haven’t found all my legs,” he confessed after the victory against Portugal. Before adding another layer : “We spoke with the coach at the end of regular time, and we said that we would try, and at half-time (of extra time), I told him that I didn’t feel any more, I was too tired.” Up front, neither Kolo Muani nor Marcus Thuram are giving satisfaction and Antoine Griezmann seems to be losing his bearings.. Spain cannot count on all its players, but can at least rely on some technical certainties.
Netherlands – England: Oranje more threatening, but more fragile
England have a similar track record to Les Bleus. A starting line-up with tons of talent, an inability to put on a show and qualifying snatched thanks to a goal from somewhere in extra time or a penalty shootout. Enough against Slovakia, enough against Switzerland, what will happen against the Oranje on Wednesday 10 July?
Because Cody Gakpo’s teammates, who are among the top scorers with three goals, will probably be able to bring more danger to Jordan Pickford’s goal than their last opponents did. On the other hand, against Turkey in the quarter-finals, Luis van Gaal’s men showed some serious defensive fragility. They relied on their goalkeeper’s gloves and a defender’s save on his line to maintain a 2-1 lead that meant qualification, after conceding the opener in the first half.
It’s been 20 years since the Netherlands last reached the semi-finals of the Euro. An eternity for a giant of continental football. The Three Lions, for their part, still hope that football is coming homeafter the disappointment of the 2020 final against Italy. Two nations chasing their own reputation for a single place in the final.