Euro 2024: Deschamps chasing first continental title in 12 years, quarterfinal high bar for Southgate and Germany looking to boast as hosts | Football News

It takes quite an ear-catching hail mary for Lionel Messi to sit up in his Florida home and take notice. But Kylian Mbappe managed to draw out a Messi opinion.The latest Real Madrid recruit suggested that winning the European Championship was more ‘complicated’ than winning the World Cup, forcing the Argentine to retort that the Euros didn’t have World Cup winners like Brazil, Argentina, and Uruguay (Last won the World Cup in 1950). It isn’t the first time that Mbappe has waxed lyrical about the intensity of competition faced in Europe versus what Messi and Neymar have to deal with in their part of the world in the Copa America.
And the Frenchman isn’t the only European who believes this.
Messi wouldn’t even need to dig too far. His own former teammate Xavi believes that the Euros are a tougher prospect than the World Cup – and the Catalan metronome was at the heart of Spain’s greatest generation – one that took the European crown in 2008, conquered the world in 2010 and then returned to defend their continental crown again in 2012. His famous words were: “In the World Cup, with all respect, you can face Honduras or Saudi Arabia.”
Why the Euros are tough
Go through the bookmakers and the defending champions are considered nowhere near the favourites. That tag goes to the Germans, Portuguese, French and even this Rashford-less English team, over Italy. The same Italy that previously clinically dispatched Luis Enrique’s Spain in the semi-finals and then Gareth Southgate’s Three Lions in the final, and still couldn’t qualify for the 2022 World Cup.
In a group that they should have topped at a gallop, Italy came second to Switzerland. The very same Italy then lost to North Macedonia in a playoff race to reach the World Cup. The statics back the Italians over here – there are now four European champions who have failed to qualify for the subsequent FIFA World Cup – Czechoslovakia, Denmark, and Greece.
Because Europe enjoys 13 of the 32 spots in a World Cup, there would always be a great team that wouldn’t be able to make the cut. But once those 13 teams reached the World Cup, chances are that they would dominate. At Qatar, eight of the thirteen teams reached the Round-of-16. Five European countries have won the World Cup thirteen times between them and five other European countries have been finals at least once.
At Qatar, eight of the thirteen European teams, who qualified for the World Cup reached the Round-of-16. (AP)
There is no doubt that the competitive gap between the European footballing powerhouses and other continents is closing down rapidly – Japan, South Korea and Iraq in Asia; Morocco, Egypt and Senegal in Africa; and Uruguay and Colombia in South America, are all teams that can now compete against the best in Europe. But if the heart of football continues to reside in South America, Europe and its industrial blueprint of football continue to rule the numbers game. Italy and Brazil have won back-to-back World Cups – only Spain has been able to defend their European crown.
Predictions go haywire in the Euros as well – just take the previous edition. France may have won the World Cup in 2018 but the team that they brought to the European Championships in 2021 was simply diabolical. A front two of Karim Benzema and Kylian Mbappe. A midfield three of Antoine Griezmann, Paul Pogba and N’golo Kante. A centre-back triple threat of Raphael Varane, Clement Lenglet and Presnel Kimpembe. This was the 96’ Chicago Bulls of football teams. What happened next? Switzerland in the Round-of-16 scored three goals to match the three put in the French and then beat this crack team on penalties with Mbappe missing his from the spot. Best in the world but beaten the Swiss in Romania.
Tougher to predict
When Germany begins their campaign against Scotland on Saturday, they go into this tournament as the favourites, and not just because they are the hosts. On paper, their offensive talents get the supply of possession they need now that Toni Kroos was pulled out of his retirement. Jamal Musiala, Kai Havertz and Florian Wirtz’s danger quotient goes up exponentially because of the amount of possession control Joshua Kimmich, Kroos and captain Ilkay Gundogan can exert. Thomas Mueller and Leroy Sane can turn up from the bench when goals and pace are the need of the hour.
The French have evaded any Mbappe transfer drama spilling over and Didier Deschamps will be looking to finally win the European trophy after 12 years in charge of his country’s football team. Spain and Italy find themselves in a group with Croatia – and while the Croats do wonderfully at the World Cup now – at the Euros, their best performances have been two quarter-final appearances – the last of which was in 2008.

England, if they top their group and manage to circumvent the Round of 16, will likely meet Germany, Italy, or Spain. That should be the end of the tournament for Gareth Southgate unless the English can finally come true on the promise of their simply astounding talent pool and drop a statement-defining victory.