Let’s head out to the Arena Nationala in Bucurest where world champions France will go head to head with Switzerland. This is a fixture from the 1/8-finals of the Euro 2020 and we have a clear favorite here. These are our online soccer predictions that win for this game in the Romanian capital.
Despite winning just one of their matches in the group stage, France remain one of the biggest contenders for the gold medals. Les Bleus only won against Germany in their group while they made draws with Hungary and Portugal. This is some food for thought for the manager Didier Dechamps, but he can’t be too negative as well – France won their group after all.
So far Didier Deschamps didn’t make a lot of changes in his line-up. Players like Raphael Varane, Presnel Kimpembe, N’Golo Kante, Paul Pogba, Antoine Griezmann, Karim Benzema and Kylian Mbappe started every game so far. Meanwhile Benjamin Pavard, Jules Kounde, Adrien Rabiot, Corentin Tolisso, Lucas Hernandez and Lucas Digne were all rotated in their positions. The group stage is over now, so Deschamps must choose which players to start in the more decisive knockout phase of the Euro.
The good news for Deschamps is that Karim Benzema started scoring for the national team again. The Real Madrid star scored both goals during the 2-2 draw with Portugal in France’s last game. This would give him an even bigger confidence during the knockout stages and that’s some great boost for the French team. Benzema could be instrumental for another French triumph just three years after the World Cup. For a long time he had a personal feud with Deschamps, but now the coach decided to forgive him and call him again in the squad.
What’s happening with Kylian Mbappe, though? Some people predicted that he could be the leading goalscorer of the Euro, but so far the PSG striker have not scored a single goal in the competition. Goals are extremely important for strikers, so you can be sure Mbappe is more or less bothered by what’s happening. For France it would be very important to see this player performing at his usual levels – Mbappe is a game changer who can win games at his own. The French fans are worried, though – when is he going to start scoring?
One of Didier Deschamps’ main dilemmas right now is who to partner N’Golo Kante and Paul Pogba in midfield. Juventus’ Adrien Rabiot started in the first two matches against Germany and Hungary, but in the third one Deschamps picked Corentin Tolisso. Tottenham Hotspur’s Moussa Sissoko is another option for this position, but he’s clearly a third choice in Deschamps’ eyes right now.
Against Switzerland France must show that they are not bothered by the fact they didn’t win their last two matches. Obviously that’s not what the fans expected, especially against Hungary, but there’s no room for panic just yet. Against the Crusaders Les Bleus must find a way to show their best football. This would give them some bigger confidence for what’s ahead.
Switzerland are aware that they are complete underdogs against the current world champions. The Crusaders won just four points in Group A of the tournament, but this was enough for them to go through. The key event for their progression was the excellent 3-1 win against Turkey in the last phase of the group stage. That’s the game which allowed the Swiss side to reach the 1/8-finals.
Vladimir Petkovic was happy with the way his team played against Turkey. Xherdan Shaqiri shined with two goals against the Crescent Stars while Steven Zuber made something remarkable – he assisted for all three goals of his team. The left wingback was on fire against Turkey, so France must be really careful with him on Monday. Whoever starts on France’s right flank must keep Zuber on a short leash all of the time. He already showed how dangerous and effective he can be.
The other good news for Switzerland is that Haris Seferovic finally started scoring at the Euro 2020. Benfica’s striker didn’t do much in his team first two games, but in the third one he opened the score. Seferovic is a key player in Switzerland’s team, so his efforts will be very important in the knockout phase. He’s a player who perfectly knows how to score goals, so he’s going to be a huge threat for France in the penalty area. Most likely Switzerland won’t have too many chances against Les Bleus, so they must use every opportunity they got against this team.
Now the Swiss manager Vladimir Petkovic must find a way to stop France’s magnificent team. What he can do is look carefully at the game between France and Hungary in Budapest. The Hungarians did exactly what Switzerland have to do – they shut down the French stars and allowed him to score just one goal. You must be perfectly focused against such a team because each mistake you make could lead to a goal. You must also defend in the most compact way possible because France have players who know how to use the empty space on the pitch. Players like Griezmann, Benzema and Mbappe are extremely dangerous when they not marked. The central midfielders Granit Xhaka and Remo Freuler will be crucial for the Crusaders because they will have to help the defense deal with France’s attacking power.
That’s our online soccer predictions that win for the Euro 2020 1/8-finals game between France and Switzerland in Bucurest. Les Bleus are competing to win the trophy, but they should not overlook their next opponent – this could be very dangerous. What France should do is remember that they don’t win their last two games, and they need to raise their levels. If they don’t do it, winning Euro 2020 would be very difficult. Switzerland on the other hand are the underdogs here which is nothing, but a good thing for them – they don’t have nothing to lose here.