Greece – France

The world vice-champions can’t win in Athens with confidence

In Athens will play two national teams that are in a pretty good mood. The hosts have lost their chances to qualify directly for the European Championship, but three factors show that this does not make the players of the Greek team depressed. Firstly, the "flight" past the top 2 was obvious long before November this year. Secondly, the Greeks will definitely get the right to play in the knockout rounds for the right to participate in UEFA EURO 2024. Thirdly, on Friday, Gustavo Poyet's wards beat New Zealand in a friendly. As for the mood of the French, there is no doubt at all. Not only did the world vice-champions score the maximum number of points after seven rounds of qualification, but on Saturday they also amused their fans with a humiliating 14-0 defeat of Gibraltar. Bookmakers have identified the visitors as favourites for the upcoming meeting, offering odds of 1.70 on their victory. The Greek national team has been in search of a better game for a long time and so far has been doing a mediocre job. In qualifying for the World Cup, the Greeks finished third behind Spain and Sweden, which prevented them from travelling to Qatar. Last year, the Greek team won its group in League C of the Nations League, leaving no chance to Kosovo, Northern Ireland and Cyprus. Poyet's team spent the current qualifying stage according to the scheme: win as favourites - and lose as underdogs. The last qualifying match can correct this statistic. Moreover, it will be played on home ground in Athens. In last year's Nations League, the French team narrowly avoided elimination from Ligue A, having channelled all their preparations to the World Cup in Qatar. There, the French were unrivalled until the final, where Argentina beat them in a penalty shootout. France decided all the questions in the group a long time ago. Only a couple of defeats from direct competitors and some other loss of points could put the exit of Deschamps' team to UEFA EURO 2024 in early autumn in doubt. In this regard, the visitors may be less focused on the result than the hosts, who are playing in front of their own fans. After Gibraltar, France will face a different level of resistance, which is unlikely to translate into a convincing victory.