Photo: AFP
Leipzig: After a goalless draw in Leipzig that did not ignite in Kylian Mbappe's absence, France and the Netherlands edged their way into the round of 16 of the 2024 European Cup. Four days earlier, in France's 1-0 victory over Austria, the captain of France broke his nose.
He sat out the entire match from the bench. Antoine Griezmann squandered two fantastic opportunities for France, and Xavi Simons' goal for the Netherlands was controversially disallowed.
After sharing the spoils, both teams are tied for first place in Group D with four points, one more than Austria, who defeated Poland 3-1 earlier on Friday.
The last games of the section are scheduled for Tuesday. France will play the Poles, while the Netherlands will play Austria, AFP reported.
In their two meetings during the qualifying round, Les Bleus had prevailed, although Mbappe was responsible for four of France's six goals in those contests.
"We are talking about one of the best players in the world, so course that is different for both teams," said Netherlands boss Ronald Koeman on not having to face the Real Madrid forward.
France coach Didier Deschamps stated that his decision to keep Mbappe out would have been different in a knockout game, but it was not worth the risk with his team practically guaranteed to advance to the next round.
"With each day he's getting better and if it had been a decisive game this evening, I would have thought twice about him playing or not," said Deschamps.
"We are getting to a point that is better for him. After what happened, I thought the wiser decision was to keep him on the bench.”
Encircled by an orange wall encompassing two-thirds of Leipzig Stadium, the Dutch were ready to seize any moment of French hesitancy and did so almost immediately. Jeremie Frimpong's quick pace put him clear for goal, but the Bayer Leverkusen player was unable to finish cleanly, and Mike Maignan turned his shot behind.