Euro 2020: France vs. Switzerland match preview- team news, lineups

finished top of the Group F with five points while Switzerland secured a third-place finish in Group A after sealing a comfortable 3-1 win over Turkey.

France finished first in the group of death to seal progress into the knockout rounds, while Switzerland managed to qualify as one of the four best third-placed outfits.

Switzerland reached the quarter-finals as one of the best third-place finishers in the group stages. A confidence-boosting victory over Turkey last time out saw key players shine. Xherdan Shaqiri scored twice to keep their Euro 2020 round of 16 hopes alive.

Vladimir Petkovic’s squad has reached this stage of the competition for just the second time in their history, having taken four points from their three group games against Wales, Italy, and Turkey.

France vs. Switzerland match preview

World champions France will be looking to book their place in the quarter-finals of Euro 2020 on Monday evening when they take on

at Arena Nationala.

Switzerland aim at producing their best display of the tournament during their Euro 2020 last-16 clash on Monday, as they lock horns with the world champions, France in Bucharest.

France

Not even the World Cup holders could progress from the Euro 2020 group of death with nine points to their name, as Didier Deschamps's men could not replicate their opening-day performance against Germany during clashes with

or Portugal in Group F.

The resilient Hungarians, who won the hearts of the neutrals despite finishing bottom of the group, managed to take a point from their clash with France, while a record-equaling and record-breaking evening for

saw the five-time Ballon d'Or winner cancel out Karim Benzema's own brace during a 2-2 draw on the final matchday.

A clean sweep in Group F was always going to be a dream for France, but Deschamps nevertheless witnessed his side take top spot in the group to make the knockout stages for the third time in succession, although Hungary have proved that the world champions are far from the force they were in Russia three years ago.

With

still struggling to find his shooting boots amid persistent speculation surrounding his future, Deschamps would do well to get the best out of the Paris Saint-Germain attacker lest France risk an underwhelming finish at the Euros, although their last competitive defeat came over two years ago.

Les Bleus' 2-2 draw with Portugal on June 23 did mark their 10th game unbeaten across all competitions since their shock friendly defeat to Finland last year, and while their favorites tag is still present, Switzerland have every right to plan a shocking result on Monday.

Switzerland

Liverpool’s

needed no extra motivation for his excellent performance against Turkey, as the 29-year-old's brace set the Swiss on their way to a resounding 3-1 victory over an under-performing Turkey on matchday three.

Haris Seferovic's opener preceded Shaqiri's brace, while Steven Zuber also grabbed headlines after setting up all three of his country's goals on the day, as Switzerland recovered from their draw with Wales and defeat to Italy to progress in third place.

After being denied all three points against Wales and brushed aside by in-form Italy, Switzerland then roused themselves to produce an impressive 3-1 win over

in Baku and progressed through as one of the four best third-place group finishers.

As England made their presence felt in the English capital, Steve Clarke's men certainly made theirs. It was far from a vintage group-stage campaign for Vladimir Petkovic's side, but the spot in the last-16 is all that matters for the Swiss, who have now successfully advanced to the knockout stages of a major tournament four times in succession.

However, Switzerland have been sent packing at this stage three times in a row at a World Cup or Euros since 2014, and while France's somewhat underwhelming results in the group stage do make for positive reading, Petkovic will certainly sprinkle a dose of realism on his side's chances before facing the world champions.

Form analysis

Deschamps has to cope without

for the remainder of the tournament, while Lucas Digne, Marcus Thuram, and Jules Kounde will also miss out the last-16 clash.

Digne only lasted seven minutes as a substitute against Portugal before being forced off, so Deschamps will desperately hope to recover Lucas Hernandez in time, otherwise Leo Dubois or

may have to deputize as an emergency left-wing back.

The France coach is reportedly preparing to field a back three for the last-16 battle, which would see Corentin Tolisso's spot in midfield sacrificed as Clement Lenglet strengthens the defense.

Thomas Lemar also picked up a minor injury in training which he will attempt to shake off before Monday, but Deschamps is unlikely to consider changing his attacking tactics.

France possible starting lineup:

Lloris; Varane, Lenglet, Kimpembe; Pavard, Kante, Pogba, Hernandez; Griezmann; Mbappe, Benzema

In contrast, Switzerland are well-placed to name their strongest XI for the last-16 clash, as Petkovic has no injury or suspension concerns whatsoever for the trip to Bucharest.

Remo Freuler has kept

out of the team so far and should do so again here, and the only real dilemma for Petkovic is whether to start Kevin Mbabu or Silvan Widmer on the right-hand side.

Xherdan Shaqiri's brace against Turkey saw him become Switzerland's all-time top goalscorer at the Euros and World Cup combined, and a strike against Les Bleus would also see the

man overtake Hakan Yakin (three) to become his country's highest scorer at the Euros.

Switzerland possible starting lineup:

Sommer; Elvedi, Akanji, Rodriguez; Widmer, Xhaka, Freuler, Zuber; Shaqiri; Embolo, Seferovic

France vs. Switzerland - Head-to-head in all competitions

This will be the fifth meeting between France and Switzerland at a major competition (Euro 2004, 2006 World Cup, 2014 World Cup, Euro 2016), but the first in the knockout rounds. France are unbeaten in such matches (W2 D2), with the most recent game finishing goalless at Euro 2016.

France are unbeaten in their last seven meetings with Switzerland (W3 D4), their longest ever unbeaten run against the Swiss, although four of the last five meetings between the two sides have ended in a draw.

France and Switzerland played out a drab goalless stalemate at Euro 2016, two years after Les Bleus ran out 5-2 winners at the 2014 World Cup, and Switzerland are without victory in this fixture since a 1992 friendly.

Prediction

While many websites offer different predictions and betting tips, we state here that Switzerland can take advantage of Les Bleus' depleted left-hand side if Hernandez joins Digne on the sidelines for this match, but trying to keep Deschamps's side quiet at the other end of the pitch is where the real challenges lie.

While we think Vladimir Petkovic’s squad can trouble France's defense and find the back of the net, Didier Deschamps's men should still pull through over the course of 90 minutes, but it is likely to be a closer competition than everyone might think.

France vs. Switzerland Referees

UEFA has announced the name of the referee who will officiate in the round of 16 between France and Switzerland on Monday. He is Fernando Andrés Rapallini, a 43-year-old Argentinian who has already refereed Ukraine-North Macedonia (2-1) as well as Croatia-Scotland (3-1) since the start of the tournament.

Viewing information

• Date: Monday, 28 June, 2021

• Kick off Time: 20:00 BST

• Location: National Arena Bucharest, Bucharest

• Free live streams: ITV, ITV Hub

• Odds: France (-175) Draw (+280) Switzerland (+550)

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