France brace to blunt German attack

Munich, June 14: France and Germany usually play each other in the latter stages of major football tournaments. Not this time.

The teams will meet in the group stage of a European Championship or World Cup for the first time on Tuesday when they open their Euro 2020 campaigns in Munich.

Their last match at a major tournament came in the Euro 2016 semifinals. Antoine Griezmann scored twice for France in the 2-0 victory over thenWorld Cup champions Germany in Marseille.

Germany have never really recovered, and though the French lost to Portugal in the final five years ago, they went on to win the World Cup two years later.

Remarkably, no player in Germany’s current squad has ever scored in a European Championship match. Thomas Mller, who has played 11 tournament games, missed a penalty in the 2016 quarterfinal shootout win over Italy.

German hope this time are pinned on a good start in Munich to set the team up for success in Joachim Lw’s last tournament as coach after 15 years in charge.

Germany will also face European champion Portugal on June 19, four days before their last game in Group ‘F’ against Hungary.

France will play Hungary on June 19 in Budapest, and stay in the city to face Portugal on June 23.

France’s fearsome front three of Griezmann, Kylian Mbappe and Karim Benzema the latter recalled by Deschamps after an almost six-year absence will be far more likely to capitalise on any German lapses in defense.

The 33-year-old Benzema has recovered from an injury picked up in France’s 3-0 warm-up win over Bulgaria on June 8.

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