France already qualified before even playing Poland this Tuesday and without having scored a goal – Libération

Euro Football 2024dossierThanks to Albania’s defeat against Spain and the draw between Croatia and Italy on Monday evening, the French team is assured, even before its match this Tuesday, June 25 against Poland, of competing a round of 16.

The miraculous draw (1-1) snatched by Italy thanks to a splendid goal, at the end of added time on Monday against Croatia, combined with the defeat of Albania (1-0) against Spain allow the Blues to approach their last meeting with more serenity. In addition to offering qualification for the round of 16 of the Euro to the Azzurri, these results allowed the French team to ensure they are in the next round even before playing their match against Poland, this Tuesday June 25 at 6 p.m. A near miracle since Kylian Mbappé and his teammates have, since the start of the Euro, not scored a single goal (the one which allowed them to defeat Austria was scored by an opposing defender against his camp).

This domino game can be explained by a little mathematics. For this 24-team Euro, in addition to the first and second in each group, the four best third-placed teams (the teams among the third with the most points at the end of the group stage) are qualified for the round of 16 . France, which already has four points, is guaranteed to be part of it since, for the moment, none of the best third places has more than three points and only four groups, including that of the Blues, still have matches to play .

Avoid Spain, Germany and Portugal

In the worst scenario therefore, and a defeat this evening against Poland, Didier Deschamps’ men would still see the eighth. The same goes for England and the Netherlands, who also benefit from Monday evening’s results.

Still, the Blues would be well inspired to win this Tuesday evening and steal first place in the group from the Dutch, for the moment ahead of the France team on goal difference. By finishing first, France would move into a more favorable part of the table. In the event of second or third place, it could very early cross paths with Spain, Germany or Portugal, which are among the teams which have impressed the most since the start of this Euro 2024. The eighth will be played from June 29 to July 2.