France know a draw against the Netherlands in Rotterdam on Friday evening will be enough for the world champions to seal their spot in the Final Four of the inaugural UEFA Nations League.
Friday, November 16, 2018
UEFA Nations League Group 1
Rotterdam
Netherlands – France 
Didier Deschamps is without three starters from the World Cup final (Paul Pogba, Samuel Umtiti and Lucas Hernandez) and they are set to be replaced by Steven Nzonzi, Presnel Kimpembe and Lucas Digne. Deschamps is poised to opt for a 4-4-2 that will feature Kylian Mbappé on the right side of midfield.
Deschamps said: “The test is for the whole team. I have confidence in those players I have called up. Of course there won’t be the same understanding between them as there would be with players that are used to playing together. They don’t know each other as well but the match should help them find their feet.”
The France boss is a fan of the new competition: “You cannot recreate the atmosphere of competitive football in friendlies. We have a clear objective and that is to finish top of the group. That objective is important off the back of the world title. The adrenalin is there for players who reached the summit in Russia and it’s a good thing.”
Dutch on the up
The Dutch are full of motivation as a win would put them a point back from the French with a game in Germany to come on Monday evening. Ronald Koeman’s side impressed in the last international break as they walloped Germany 3-0 and then drew 1-1 in Belgium in a friendly.
Koeman said: “We’re on the right road and we already felt that in defeat to France. To be reassured in your work you need results. Before the first game against Les Bleus we were full of doubt. Last year they had beaten us 4-0 and now we were coming up against a team that had become world champions. For 20 minutes we were scared but we improved and took confidence from the game. The truth is that the national side weren’t very popular at home as people were fed up and a bit disgusted by the fact we didn’t qualify for Euro 2016 and the World Cup of 2018. We wanted to change the image of the national side and we have achieved that.”
Special Rotterdam memories for Deschamps
Rotterdam holds special memories for Deschamps as it’s the city where he lifted the Euro 2000 trophy as Les Bleus added that to the world title won two years previously. The coach commented: “It was a long time ago and I’ve not been back since. It’s agreeable to be back. It’s a good memory for me as there wasn’t a lot at international level for me after that, apart from the farewell match. But the players won’t understand if I talk about that. Some weren’t born and some were really little!”
Probable Teams:
Netherlands: Cillesen; Tete, De Ligt, Van Dijk, Blind; De Roon, De Jong, Wijnaldum; Bergwijn, Depay, Babel
France: Lloris; Pavard, Varane, Kimpembe, Digne; Mbappé, Nzonzi, Kanté, Matuidi; Griezmann, Giroud
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