The penultimate stop on the road to the 2024 UEFA European Championship sees two of the continent’s heavyweights collide in friendly action, as France host Germany in Lyon. Didier Deschamps’ men were almost faultless in qualification for this summer’s finals (seven wins, one draw) and have lost just once since falling at the final hurdle in the 2022 FIFA World Cup (eight wins, one draw), though that sole defeat did come in a friendly against none other than Germany.Les Bleus will be without Antoine Griezmann for the first time in over seven years in this clash, as an ankle injury brings to an end a world-record 84 consecutive game run for his country. The home faithful likely won’t be too worried though, as France have won six consecutive home matches, while they’ve lost just one of their last 13 friendlies on their own turf (ten wins, two draws).##NAJAVA_MECA_7975763##For Euro 2024 hosts Germany, this pair of friendlies against rivals France and the Netherlands presents an opportunity to get their house in order after a tumultuous 18 months. Julian Nagelsmann is the latest man tasked with resurrecting their fortunes, but since winning his first game against the USA, he’s overseen a three-match winless run (one draw, two losses).The former Bayern Munich boss has been bold in his squad selection, leaving out Leon Goretzka and Serge Gnabry while also selecting just one Borussia Dortmund player. Perhaps his raft of changes are justified when you consider that Germany have won just three of their 11 outings since the last World Cup (two draws, six losses), leaving the three-time European champions in limbo ahead of this summer’s finals.🚨🔔 Expected lineups XI of France and Germany #FRAGER pic.twitter.com/c2hcMLDChP— Olt Sports (@oltsport_) March 23, 2024 Also, the Panzers have kept just one clean sheet across their last 14 matches – which could be fertile ground for Kylian Mbappe. France captain has entered another stratosphere on the international stage, directly contributing to 20 goals across his last ten caps (13 goals, seven assists). Germany’s man in form may well be the versatile Kai Havertz as the Arsenal man has netted four times in his last six club appearances, while he also assisted the decisive goal in Germany’s 2-1 head-to-head victory in September.That friendly Villa connection – Luiz warns his teammates: Watch out for Ollie
