Euro 2024 qualifying

The road to the 2024 European Championship in Germany begins with some stellar clashes

Gareth Southgate’s England will be entering the lions’ den when they step onto the field at the Maradona Stadium in Naples

What better way to raise the curtain on the Euro 2024 qualifying process than a pair of epic encounters on matchday one: England travelling to Naples for a potentially volcanic clash with Italy, and France hosting the Dutch in a heavyweight head-to-head at the Stade de France in Paris.

A perusal of the history books suggests that the Dutch will be up against it in the French capital. They have lost five of their last six matches against Les Bleus and have not won on Gallic soil for a whopping 87 years (a 6-1 win back in1936).

For the French, fresh from achieving a commendable silver medal at the World Cup, the time has come for a changing of the guard in defence. Arguably the two most important individuals in their back line, goalkeeper and skipper Hugo Lloris and central defender Raphael Varane, both recently announced their retirement from international football; an unfortunate double whammy representing a considerable loss of experience with 238 caps between them.

Varane, aged just 29, had been touted in many quarters as the man most likely to succeed Lloris as captain. But Varane insists he has made the right decision, citing “physical and psychological wear and tear”. The silver lining in this particular cloud for France is that they are incredibly well stocked at centre-back, with Bayern Munich’s Dayot Upamecano, Ibrahima Konate of Liverpool and Arsenal star William Saliba all more than capable of taking up the slack.

Lloris’ exit is much more of a problem for France boss Didier Deschamps. In normal circumstances, Milan’s impressive Mike Maignan would step in between the posts. However he has been out for most of the season with a calf injury and even if he does return soon, his lack of match practice may render him a risky selection in the eyes of Deschamps.

With Lloris’ back-up at Qatar 2022, Steve Mandanda of Rennes, also opting to hang up his national team boots, Deschamps may have to turn to West Ham United’s Alphonse Areola, with Brice Samba of Lens or Nantes’ Alban Lafont as wildcards.

Back for a second spell at the Netherlands helm, Ronald Koeman has made it clear that he will not be indulging in tactical continuity. Rather than retaining the 5-3-2 system often used by his predecessor Louis van Gaal, Koeman has indicated that his default shape will be a classic 4-3-3. Despite steering the Oranje to the last eight of World Cup 2022 and signing off with a 20-game unbeaten run (in regulation play), Van Gaal’s stodgy, pedestrian approach had large swathes of the Dutch public and pundit community tearing out their hair. Koeman is proposing a far more adventurous, expressive style of play.

According to Koeman, a 5-3-2 system simply does not suit the Dutch players. “With [5-3-2] you often have a man more than you need at the back and thus are left short-handed in other areas,” he argued at his inaugural press conference.

It remains to be seen, though, whether Koeman will truly release the handbrake at the Stade de France. He may well conclude that the use of two out-and-out wingers against the French juggernaut is naive in the extreme. In his first match back in the Oranje driving seat, the former Barcelona and Everton boss will, above all, want to avoid defeat. Pragmatism may rule.

Possible new faces in the Dutch line-up include talented young PSV playmaker Xavi Simons and the Feyenoord trio, full-backs