Despite spirited showing by Ukraine against Sweden in the first match, France
are favourites to see off the co-hosts who are making their Euro debut.
Or we have an upset on our hands? France, though, themselves were held
1-1 by England.
Venue: Donbass Arena, Donetsk, Ukraine
Capacity: 52,518
Date: 15th June
Kick Off: 21:00 PST
Referee: B. Kuipers
Injuries: France: Striker Loïc Rémy and Tottenham Hotspur defender Younès Kaboul are out of the tournament due to injury.
Two-times champions France were good but not brilliant in their first match against England. Les Bleus, however, are still considered favourites to top the group. Laurent Blanc’s team is capable of winning its 3rd Euro title if they play to their potential.
They were at the rock bottom in 2010 when they crashed out of the world Cup in the first round and internal disputes led to the sacking of the manager Raymond Domenech and resignation of their federation president. Laurent Blanc has managed to wipe out the bitterness and with players like Benzema, veteran Frank Ribéry and highly-talented Samir Nasri in his ranks, he succeeded to build a well-knit unit.
According to Blokhin, it was good for Ukraine that they were not regarded as favourites as there would be less pressure. He has not been satisfied with his team of late but he knows his team can sit back and defend well and if that strategy works out they can counter-attack to surprise the much-fancied opponents.
Their surprise win against Sweden must have lifted them as they battle for the spot in the next round. Interestingly, their last match at the venue was against France which they lost by a big margin, 4-1, in June 11.
Players to watch:
France: Karim Benzema has been instrumental in lifting French National Team in the last couple of years. But Samir Nasri would be the man to watch out for, once again.
Ukraine: Andriy Shevchenko, the captain and the striker, has vast experience at the international level to worry France on his day. He showed what he is capable of by striking home twice in the previous match. Keep note it’s his farewell tournament!
Starting Elevens:
France:
Manager: Laurent Blanc
Hugo Lloris GK (captain), Franck Ribéry, Patrice Evra, Adil Rami, Karim Benzema, Hatem Ben Arfa, Samir Nasri, Philippe Mexès, Mathieu Debuchy, Florent Malouda, Alou Diarra
Ukraine:
Manager: Oleg Blokhin
Andriy Shevchenko (Captain), Andriy Pyatov (GK), Anatoliy Tymoschuk, Yevgen Selin, Andriy Voronin, Yevhen Khacheridi, Taras Mikhalik, Oleg Gusev, Serhiy Nazarenko, Andriy Yarmolenko, Marko Devic
Prediction:
France 3 – 1 Ukraine
Venue: Donbass Arena, Donetsk, Ukraine
Capacity: 52,518
Date: 15th June
Kick Off: 21:00 PST
Referee: B. Kuipers
Injuries: France: Striker Loïc Rémy and Tottenham Hotspur defender Younès Kaboul are out of the tournament due to injury.
Two-times champions France were good but not brilliant in their first match against England. Les Bleus, however, are still considered favourites to top the group. Laurent Blanc’s team is capable of winning its 3rd Euro title if they play to their potential.
They were at the rock bottom in 2010 when they crashed out of the world Cup in the first round and internal disputes led to the sacking of the manager Raymond Domenech and resignation of their federation president. Laurent Blanc has managed to wipe out the bitterness and with players like Benzema, veteran Frank Ribéry and highly-talented Samir Nasri in his ranks, he succeeded to build a well-knit unit.
According to Blokhin, it was good for Ukraine that they were not regarded as favourites as there would be less pressure. He has not been satisfied with his team of late but he knows his team can sit back and defend well and if that strategy works out they can counter-attack to surprise the much-fancied opponents.
Their surprise win against Sweden must have lifted them as they battle for the spot in the next round. Interestingly, their last match at the venue was against France which they lost by a big margin, 4-1, in June 11.
Players to watch:
France: Karim Benzema has been instrumental in lifting French National Team in the last couple of years. But Samir Nasri would be the man to watch out for, once again.
Ukraine: Andriy Shevchenko, the captain and the striker, has vast experience at the international level to worry France on his day. He showed what he is capable of by striking home twice in the previous match. Keep note it’s his farewell tournament!
Starting Elevens:
France:
Manager: Laurent Blanc
Hugo Lloris GK (captain), Franck Ribéry, Patrice Evra, Adil Rami, Karim Benzema, Hatem Ben Arfa, Samir Nasri, Philippe Mexès, Mathieu Debuchy, Florent Malouda, Alou Diarra
Ukraine:
Manager: Oleg Blokhin
Andriy Shevchenko (Captain), Andriy Pyatov (GK), Anatoliy Tymoschuk, Yevgen Selin, Andriy Voronin, Yevhen Khacheridi, Taras Mikhalik, Oleg Gusev, Serhiy Nazarenko, Andriy Yarmolenko, Marko Devic
Prediction:
France 3 – 1 Ukraine
Published in sportpulse.net on 14 Jun 2012
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