How will France line up at UEFA Euro 2020?

As the time is fast approaching when the teams start UEFA EURO 2020, having the final squads been already submitted to UEFA, there comes speculation about how would the teams line up at UEFA Euro 2020, and France is not an exception.

After they hosted the inaugural tournament in 1960, France was not qualified for the Euros again until Euro 84, as they won the championship.

But as unlikely as it may seem, they didn't qualify for the 1988 iteration of the tournament, and just could reach the group stages in 1992. After spotting a third-place finish in Euro 96 they won in the tournament at Euro 2000 by beating Italy 2-1.

They also finished in the quarter-finals at both Euro 2004 and 2012, while much to the squad chagrin in 2008 they once again did not progress from the group stages.

Hosting Euro 2016, Les Bleus deemed it due time to win their third European Championships. Hence, when they reached the final, they were clear favourites against a weakened Portugal team after that

underwent injury. Be that as it may, they eventually lost the final in extra time, letting down all the home fans.

But as they continued to gather momentum with winning the 2018 World Cup, they are most likely to rectify their mistake and compensate it for UEFA Euro 2020 in the most decent way.

How will France line up at UEFA Euro 2020?

The Blues have been drawn in Group F at Euro 2020 and will encounter Germany, Hungary and Portugal while the start of their campaign would be on June 15 against Germany.

France manager Didier Deschamps has announced his 26-man squad for Euro 2021 while he surprisingly recalled Karim Benzema following his six-year absence from the national team.

In this regard, we have come up to simply prognostication of the starting eleven of the squad. But all the players included in the squad are as following:

• Goalkeepers

  : Hugo Lloris, Steve Mandanda, Mike Maignan

• Defenders

  : Benjamin Pavard, Leo Dubois, Raphael Varane, Presnel Kimpembe, Hernandez, Lucas Digne, Clement Lenglet, Kurt Zouma

• Midfielders

  : N'golo Kante, Paul Pogba, Adrien Rabiot, Corentin Tolisso, Moussa Sissoko

• Forwards

  : Karim Benzema, Olivier Giroud, Kylian Mbappe, Marcus Thuram, Kingsley Coman, Antoine Griezmann, Thomas Lemar, Ousmane Dembele.

If France Euro 2020 squad take a 4-2-3-1 formation, with the emphasis on a brilliant attacking power like Benzema, who would be flanked by Mbappe, Coman and Griezman, they would certainly strike fear into opposition defences, making an unstoppable formation at least on paper.

While at the same time 4-2-3-1 formation of France Euro 2020 squad, boasts of a rather impressive defensive stability, taking advantage of six world-class players consisting of Pogba, Kante, Pavard, Hernandez, Kimpembe and Varane which would dedicate themselves to defence as they possess great passing range, decent athleticism, and good footballing brains.

Therefore when it comes to the

 France Euro 2020 squad

, on one hand, with the highlight of attacking power, The Blues would have a numerical advantage in counterattacking situation.

While on the other hand, they would benefit from impressive ease of transition that might be conducive to less susceptibility to the threat of a counterattack, just if they are not to seethe with their previous teeth-grinding frustration.

Hugo Lloris (Goalkeeper)

As a three-time winner of the National Union of Professional Footballers (UNFP) Ligue 1 Goalkeeper of the Year award,

is revered as one of the best goalkeepers in the world in light of his quick reflexes and his stature of being a formidable opponent in one-on-one occasions.

Before the arrival of his ninth season at the club Tottenham Hotspur in the 2020/21 campaign, he underwent his 3 months absence in the cope of his elbow injury.

Yet in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, he returned to his brilliant best, as he finished the campaign with his stellar performances by taking his tally to 27 appearances in that season to the end of helping the Spurs to be qualified for the Europa League.

Most amazingly, in leading his team out at Crystal Palace on the final day in July 2020, he was ranked above Ian Walker into third on the list of the most all-time goalkeeping appearances in the league, behind only Ted Ditchburn and Pat Jennings.

But what would make him utterly qualified for the

France Euro 2020 squad

is the fact that he is a long-serving French international, who not only played at the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa but also took the responsibility of captaining his country for the first time in November 2010, against England at Wembley.

Likewise, he often wears the armband, leading Les Bleus out at Euro 2012, the 2014 FIFA World Cup, at Euro 2016, and the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia, as they finally won the competition for the first time since 1998.

Raphael Varane (Center Back)

Being currently ranked as the 9th best players of

, he has won 98 aerial duels and 52 tackles in season 2020/2021. It goes without saying that he made a total of 19 blocks being regarded as the number 912 in La Liga.

When Real Madrid won the La Liga title, although he was a regular starter in the 2019–20 league season, in the second leg of the Champions League, Varane considered being at fault for both goals of their 2–1 losing against

.

Notwithstanding his mistakes which were on the ground of imposing high pressure by Gabriel Jesus that was conducive to losing his possession of the ball, he truly deserves to be included in the

France Euro 2020

. You don't have to look very far to find out the reason behind his inclusion in the France squad for Euro 2021.

That is simply because of his nomination for the Best Young Player award while he represented France at the 2014 FIFA World Cup. Not to mention the fact that he played every minute of every game of the 2018 FIFA World Cup.

Presnel Kimpembe (Center Back)

Being ranked the 6th best player of Paris Saint-Germain, Kimpembe has appeared 40 times and made a total of 10 blocks in season 2020/2021 as he has won 53 aerial duels and 87 tackles.

So far he has managed to establish himself as the first-choice centre-back accompanying Brazilian defender

at the heart of the team's defensive setup.

With PSG he has the titles of two domestic trebles of Ligue 1, Coupe de France and Coupe de a Ligue in 2015/16 and 2017/18 anchored to his name.

Most probably he would make up one of the centre backs of the 

France Euro 2020 squad

, in as much as he was part of the 23-man France squad that won the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. While in the tournament he managed to play a total of 90 minutes, against Denmark in the group stage.

Likewise, with having great strength and acceleration, he enjoys physical attributes that are vital for surviving in the modern game, therefore he is not the kind of defenders that strikers should take lightly with attributes that he has.

Benjamin Pavard (Right Back)

Benjamin Pavard is currently ranked 13th best players of

who has won 54 aerial duels and 70 tackles as he managed to make a total of 5 blocks in season 2020/2021.

Fascinatingly on 11 February 2021, he succeeded to put away Bayern's only goal in a 1–0 win against Tigres UANL in the 2020 FIFA Club World Cup Final.

 In 2020, he flourishingly completed a historic sextuple as he won the Bundesliga, DFB-Pokal, Champions League, DFL-Supercup, UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup. 

In the 2018 FIFA World Cup, he netted his first international goal, which was a half-volley from outside the penalty area, in a 4–3 victory over Argentina in the World Cup's round of 16. 

Later the goal was voted the goal of the tournament and nominated for goal of the year as well, so you might have thoroughly understood the reason why he would be deployed in the

France squad for Euro 2021

.

He even appeared to be the first French defender to put away a goal in the World Cup since Lilian Thuram scored against Croatia in the 1998 semi-final.

Lucas Hernandez (Left Back)

While

is currently ranked the 8th best player of Bayern Munich, he has managed to win 54 aerial duels and 77 tackles as he made a total of 5 blocks in season 2020/2021.

On 23 August 2020, he accompanied his Bayern Munich teammates, in winning the Champions League. While in the 2020–21 UEFA Champions League, he put away his first goal for Bayern Munich in a 6–2 away victory over Red Bull Salzburg.

In France Euro 2020, he would most likely appear as left-back on the ground of his previous experiences with the under-18 and under-19 sides at the International side. As he was also selected for the 2015 UEFA European Under-19 Championship Team of the Tournament for his stellar performances.

On top of this, he was part of the winning squad at the 2018 World Cup as in his debut in the competition he played the entire 2–1 group stage in wining against Australia and most notably he featured in all of the matches for the eventual champions, as six of them were complete.

N'Golo Kante (Central Midfielder)

N'Golo Kanté is widely revered as one of the world's best midfielders specifically for his work rate and defensive contribution. He managed to make his 200th appearance in all competitions with

on 23 February 2021 as they defeated Atlético Madrid 1–0 in the Champions League round of 16.

It suffices to mention that in the 2021 UEFA Champions League Final in Porto he was called the man of the match in winning his first UEFA Champions League in Chelsea  1–0 victory over Manchester City, to convince you to agree with us in our preference to include him in France Euro 2020 squad.

Moreover, his unbelievable performance in the Champions League put him in contention for the Ballon d’Or award. But let's take a look at his international honours.

In 2017 he was named the French Player of the Year, which was unprecedented for a player from the Premier League for about seven years, and just 12 months later he became an indispensable member of the 2018 FIFA World Cup-winning squad.

He managed to appear in all 7 matches for France in the tournament as he was also awarded man-of-the-match in a 0–0 draw against Denmark in the final match of the group stage on 26 June.

Paul Pogba (Central Midfielder)

As a deep-lying playmaker, an effective free-kick and a penalty taker,

netted his first goal of the 2020–21 season against Brighton & Hove Albion in the fourth round of the EFL Cup.

Then on 30 September 2020, he scored from a deflected free-kick to give United a 3–0 win. Fascinatingly on 18 March 2021, he put away the winning goal in a 1–0 away win over Milan in the UEFA Europa League round of 16, so as to lead his team to win 2–1 on aggregate and reach the quarter-finals.

In all probability, he would be deployed at France Euro 2020 squad in so far as he had the responsibility of captaining France and led them to victory at the 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup as he took home the award for the Best Player for his performances during the tournament.

Likewise, he featured noticeably at the 2014 FIFA World Cup, while he was granted the Best Young Player Award for his spectacular performances.

Then he represented France at UEFA Euro 2016 on home soil, finishing as a runner-up, before he won the 2018 FIFA World Cup, as he scored in the final.

Antoine Griezman (Central Attacking Midfielder)

As a quick, modern, and versatile left-footed player with an eye for goal

, put away his first goal of the 2020–21 season in a 1–1 away draw against Alavés.

On 17 January 2021, he managed to score a brace in a 3–2 loss against Athletic Bilbao in the 2021 Supercopa de España Final.

Incredibly in the 2021 Copa del Rey Final, he netted the first goal in a 4–0 victory over Athletic Bilbao and won his first trophy with Barcelona.

On the international stage, he won the 2010 UEFA European Under-19 Championship, and in his senior debut for France in 2014, he featured in four major tournaments as he turned out to be the top goalscorer.

Therefore he was voted as Player of the Tournament as they finished runner-up at UEFA Euro 2016. That is exactly why he would most possibly make up France Euro 2020 squad.

Needless to say that he won the Silver Boot as the second-highest goalscorer at the 2018 FIFA World Cup when France won the tournament.

Most amazingly he also won the Bronze Ball as the third-best player and was called Man of the Match after that he scored a penalty in the final.

Kylian Mbappe (Left Winger)

As the third-highest goalscorer in Paris Saint-Germain history,

has made 2020/21 his most prolific season to date as he hit around fifty goals for the club.

Right from the beginning, it is self-evident why there is a desperate need of having him in France Euro 2020. While he also ended the season with the Ligue 1 Player of The Year Award and appeared in the Ligue 1 Team of The Season.

Moreover, at the 2018 FIFA World Cup, he became the youngest French player to net at a World Cup, and also even became the second teenager, after Pelé, to score in a World Cup Final.

Eventually, he ended up as the joint second-highest goalscorer when France won the tournament and received the Best Young Player and French Player of the Year awards for his scintillating performances.

Kingsley Coman (Right Winger)

As a talented and technically gifted winger of Borussia Dortmund,

managed to score a brace and provide one assist in a 4–0 win against Atlético Madrid in the first match of the 2020–21 UEFA Champions League.

He also won his 10th league title of his professional career on 8 May 2021, as the closest challengers RB Leipzig were not able to win their match against them.

Reasonably he would appear in France Euro 2020 squad while in 2015, he was named as one of the 101 best young players in the world by Don Balón.

On the international stage, his debut for the senior team took place in November 2015 as he represented the nation at UEFA Euro 2016, in which they reached the final. But he was not called up for the 2018 World Cup in the face of his injury.

Karim Benzema (Striker)

Benzema is enjoying a prolific campaign in Real Madrid, racking up 23 goals and 9 assists in 34 league matches as on 27 October 2020, he scored a goal against Borussia Mönchengladbach in the Champions League and became the second player in history following

to score in 16 consecutive Champions League seasons.

Likewise, on 21 April, he scored a brace and assisted another in a 3–0 away win at Cádiz, meaning that he succeeded to score against all 35 teams he has played against in La Liga. Therefore he would be an indispensable component of the France Euro 2020 squad.

At the international level, he had not been selected since 2016 by Deschamps on the ground of his alleged involvement in a plot to blackmail one of his former international teammates.

Although he was not selected at the 2018 World Cup, he has a reasonable scoring record with 27 goals in 81 appearances in three major tournaments: the 2008 and 2012 editions of the UEFA European Championship and the 2014 FIFA World Cup that is an average of a goal every three matches.

Finally, France Group fixtures in Euro 2020 are as following: (All times CEST)

Tuesday 15 June (21:00):

France

vs

Germany

- Munich

Saturday 19 June (15:00):

Hungary

vs

France

- Budapest

Wednesday 23 June (21:00):

Portugal

vs 

France

- Budapest

 Read More:

Follow

for the