EM Form Barometer
France without Mpappé toothless – and nobody has impressed as much as Spain
Status: 00:31 | Reading time: 4 minutes
That has to be 1-0 – Griezmann misses double chance
Despite several great chances, the French were unable to score against the Netherlands. In the 14th minute, for example, Griezmann had two huge opportunities in quick succession, but the ball just wouldn’t go into the net. The scene is in the video.
The match between France and the Netherlands ends quite calmly without one of the biggest stars of the European Championship. Other teams like Spain, on the other hand, are absolutely ready to win the title.
Everything around St. Nicholas Church was already covered in orange on Friday afternoon. Thousands of fans of the Dutch national team populated the pedestrian zone near Leipzig’s oldest landmark and got ready for the evening’s highlight in the bars and cafés: the match against France.
Some fans wore jerseys of old heroes like Frank de Boer or Wesley Sneijder, but most wore the current sweatshirts with Virgil van Dijk or Memphis Depay printed on the back. All dressed together in the signal color orange.
If there were a fan trophy to be handed out after two-thirds of the preliminary round matches at the European Football Championship had been completed, the enthusiastic and peaceful supporters of our neighboring country on the North Sea would have more than earned it. What had already been shown in the opening match in Hamburg against Poland (2:1) in impressive choreographies and funny fan marches was now continued in Saxony.
Griezmann with slapstick performance
A few hours later, a large part of the arena was also firmly in the hands of the Dutch. And not just in the stands, but also on the pitch, at least at the start of the game. Leverkusen’s Jeremie Frimpong could have sent his own Dutch spectators into ecstasy in the first minute, but when he attempted to score from the right wing, he was unable to put enough pressure on the ball, meaning Mike Maignan was able to parry it without any problems.
also read
On the other side, Antoine Griezmann tested goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen with a long-range shot (4th minute). Ten minutes later, the French captain should have made it 1-0 – sorry, forgive me – when he only had to push in a short pass from Adrien Rabiot with his right. Instead, Griezmann missed the ball.
Captain Antoine Griezmann (r.) fails to beat Bart Verbruggen in the Dutch goal
Those: AP/Hassan Ammar
At least in this scene, it seemed as if the French were only half as good in attack without the injured Kylian Mbappé (broken nose). And after the substitution, it was Griezmann who failed miserably again when he missed the second great chance of the game when he was free in front of Verbruggen and only hit the goalkeeper, who was able to deflect the ball for a corner (65′).
Still condemned to inaction: Kylian Mbappé is speechless on the French substitutes’ bench
What: REUTERS
And then it briefly looked as if Griezmann’s proliferation of chances would actually take its toll. RB Leipzig’s Xavi Simons scored brilliantly into the bottom right corner of the French goal, but after what felt like an incredibly long interruption, the goal was disallowed by the video referee because Denzel Dumfries was offside (68′).
also read
After that, the game hardly lived up to what fans of both camps had expected: one of the best preliminary round encounters of the European Championship. Both title candidates finished the goalless draw without any major upsets. With four points after two games, both teams have the best chance of reaching the eighth finals in Group D.
Furious Spaniards
With the match in Leipzig, 21 of the 51 European Championship matches had been played. Reason enough to take stock and examine the teams with the best prospects of winning the title on July 14th in Berlin’s Olympic Stadium.
The nation that has impressed the most so far in the 17th continental championships is Spain. Whereas the Tikitaka, introduced by Pep Guardiola at FC Barcelona, with endless (and sometimes irritating) ball relays, was once part of the DNA of the “Furia Rocha”, there is now a complete departure from this style of play. For Luis de la Fuente’s team, there seems to be only one direction on the field: forward.
Juvenile wingers: Lamine Yamal (l.) and Nico Williams
What: AFP/KENZO TRIBOUILLARD
Driven by the two midfield strategists Rodri and Fabian, it is above all the wing combination that has so far been unrivalled at this European Championship. Lamine Yamal, who is only 16 years old, drives down the right wing, his counterpart on the left is Nico Williams (21). Together with a defense that was almost never in danger against the two co-favorites from Croatia (3-0) and Italy (1-0), this team seems extremely ready to win the title.
This also applies to the German selection, although the same playing power as the Spanish team is not evident. Nevertheless, both performances of the team coached by Julian Nagelsmann against Scotland (5:1) and Hungary (2:0) give cause for optimism.
Germany’s hopes for a European Championship triumph are mainly carried by Florian Wirtz (l.) and Jamal Musiala
Source: dpa/Sven Hoppe
After disgraceful performances, including two World Cup group stage exits and a defeat in the round of 16 against England at the European Championships three years ago, there is once again a real team on the field that, with the home advantage behind them after Spain, has the very best prospects of triumphing at the European Championships. However, the paths of the two most impressive nations so far could cross in the quarter-finals.
also read
While the equally highly rated teams from England, Belgium and Portugal are still puzzling at the European Championship and have not yet been able to reach their limits, Turkey is one of the positive surprises of the European Championship.
The 3-1 win against Georgia in the water battle in Dortmund offered everything that we love about football: consistent forward play, dream goals and a lot of passion. Although this will not ultimately lead to a title win, it is a quite remarkable explosion of performance given the embarrassing performance at the 2021 European Championship with three defeats in three games.
