Christophe Dugarry, a stalwart in France’s 1998 World Cup and Euro 2000 triumphs, finds no justification for Les Bleus to dread Belgium.
Dugarry opines that France should stride into the match against Belgium with confidence. Competing at Euro 2024, France landed second to Austria in Group D despite some lackluster showings.
The squad, earmarked as one of the favorites before the showdown in Germany, edged through with goals that included a Maximilian Wober misfire and a Kylian Mbappe penalty. This places France among heavy hitters like Spain, Portugal, the host nation Germany, and their next opponent Belgium for a Monday game in Dusseldorf.
Opta’s wizardry, via its supercomputer, drops France’s trophy lift probability to 13%, yet Dugarry, surveying the terrain, sees no shadows cast ahead. Set to comment as a pundit on RMC’s Rothen s’ignee, he waved off concerns about Belgium’s threat.
Dugarry chides, “If we can’t dispatch these Belgians, we might as well pack up our Euro dream.” He further critiques Belgium’s line-up, pointing out their porous defense exacerbated by aging and non-defensive mid-fielders, describing the team odd and lacking vigor.
Conversely, William Saliba from France’s camp acknowledges the need for sharpened attacks, especially from set pieces, promising a turnaround starting from the round of 16.
Belgium’s striking woes mirror France, as both nations struggled with a meager 4.2% shot-to-goal success rate in their respective groups.
While eyeballs often follow French ace Kylian Mbappe, who is nearing a scoring milestone, Belgium’s hopes might rest on Kevin De Bruyne’s shoulders, celebrated for his incisive passes that cleave through defenses.
Historically, France holds a robust record over Belgium in major tournaments, chasing their fifth successive victory with a muscular 13-3 goal differential from past meets. Their most notorious clash, a 1984 Euro group game, ended with France pulverizing Belgium 5-0, a rout featuring a Platini hat-trick.
A duel deep-rooted in history, this will be their 76th confrontation, with France historically clashing with Belgium more frequently than any other nation except for Italy and Switzerland.
As per Opta, the odds favor France at 58.4%, against Belgium’s 20.8%, with a draw also pegged at 20.8%.
