A mouth-watering potential preview of a late-stage Euro clash comes by way of an international friendly as this summer's hosts Germany travel to meet France in Lyon on Saturday.
Die Mannschaft head coach Julian Nagelsmann has brought veteran midfielder Toni Kroos back into the fold for the first time in nearly four years, with the Real Madrid legend hoping to add to his 106 caps with a first international appearance since being cast out following early Euro 2020 elimination.
France, meanwhile, will have to learn to play without ever-present veteran Antoine Griezmann, whose ankle injury forced his withdrawal from the squad, ending an impressive 84 consecutive game streak for the Atletico Madrid playmaker.
As both sides deal with squad upheaval of various types, these two European giants know they have precious few chances to test their title chances before the start of the classic summer showcase.
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France vs Germany prediction, odds Moneyline lean: Germany (+290) Score prediction: France 1-2 GermanyIt's been nearly two years since France lost at home, when they were beaten 1-0 by Croatia in UEFA Nations League group stage action. Yet Les Bleus are hardly infallible, and facing the prospect of playing without Antoine Griezmann is something they haven't needed to deal with in quite some time.
Germany, meanwhile, look revived under Julian Nagelsmann, showing a response to adversity they haven't displayed for some time. It seemed for a while that the Germany squad was bleeding talent and failing to replace the prime skill sets it had lost, but one look at this current roster shows they are stacked at every position.
The problem still remains that Germany play up, or down, to their competition, but they took down France at home last September, and having the world's best goalkeeping trio in Marc-Andre ter Stegen, Bernd Leno, and Manuel Neuer can help paper over a lot of their other issues. A positive result here will go a long way towards giving fans optimism for a return to grace this summer.
BetMGM(USA) France win -125 Draw +275 Germany win +290 Both teams
to score Y/N -145 / +105 Over / Under
2.5 goals -145 / +100 France
-0.5 goals -135 Germany
+0.5 goals -110 France vs Germany match facts Date: Saturday, Mar. 23, 2024 Kickoff time: 9 p.m. local (4 p.m. ET / 1 p.m. PT) Location: Groupama Stadium (Lyon, France) Last meeting: Germany 2-1 France (Sept 2023 | Friendly) France vs Germany best bet Pick: 2+ goals in first half — YES Odds: +150 (BetMGM)
While international friendlies can get cagey after halftime with multiple substitutions to break up play, the first half should provide fans with a good show. Plus, if there's one thing Germany love to do, it's put themselves in a hole by conceding goals before halftime, and Kylian Mbappe should oblige.
Across their 11 international friendlies in 2023 (Germany didn't play a competitive match as they have qualified for Euro 2024 automatically as hosts), Germany both scored and conceded first-half goals in six of them. If you remove the four games in which only one participant scored, you now have six of seven matches featuring goals by each side before the break.
There's serious firepower on both sides in this meeting, and while France will be hampered without Antoine Griezmann, they have enough to breach the German defensive line, which is probably Die Mannschaft's weakest unit.
France vs Germany prop bet Pick: Niclas Fullkrug anytime goal scorer Odds: +280 (BetMGM)Niclas Fullkrug has been hit or miss since joining Borussia Dortmund this season, but when he puts on the Germany kit, he's been one of the most dangerous forwards in the world. Since his international debut in late 2022, Fullkrug has 10 goals in 13 international caps, failing to score in just four appearances.
Meanwhile, the opposite is true — when Fullkrug fails to score, so do the Germans. In the four games in which Fullkrug appeared but failed to score, three of them finished without a goal for his side. Only the 2-1 defeat to Japan in the World Cup saw Germany score without Fullkrug netting, but they still tasted defeat, while in the other three they were beaten a combined 5-0 by Poland, Colombia, and Austria.
Fullkrug missed the win over France back in September due to injury, but his influence in this all gas no brakes setup under Julian Nagelsmann is undeniable.
France vs Germany live stream, TV channel TV channel Streaming USA — ViX Canada — DAZN UK Viaplay Sports 1 Viaplay UKThe match between France and Germany will only be broadcast in Spanish in the United States by streaming service ViX.
In Canada, the match will be streamed by DAZN, while in the UK it will be televised on Viaplay Sports 1 with streaming available on their in-house platform.
