France vs Canada

France and Canada are set to trade tackles in their first-ever friendly meeting at the Bordeaux’s Matmut Atlantique.

France will be out to wrap up their warm-up campaign for Euro 2024 in style following a comfortable 3-0 win against Luxembourg last time out and uphold a near-flawless record six suffering a grand final heartache at the 2022 World Cup (W11, D1, L1). Buoyed by their recent results at major tournaments (three finals in the last four), ‘Les Blues’ head off to Germany as one of the leading candidates to lift the trophy that has eluded them for the past 24 years. Indeed, manager Didier Deschamps was the captain when France last hoisted the Euros trophy in 2000. With nine of France’s last 11 matches replicating the same halftime result at full-time, taking an early lead could set the tone for another emphatic scoreline.

On the other hand, Canada fought valiantly against the Netherlands in midweek, holding them to a scoreless draw at halftime before conceding four unanswered goals past the break to maintain an awkward tradition. Since bowing out of the 2023 Gold Cup quarter-finals against the United States on penalties, the Canucks have alternated between losing (3) and winning (2) across their last five internationals. Worryingly for ex-Leeds United manager Jesse Marsch, his men conceded 3+ goals in all three defeats during that sequence, casting doubt on their quest to avoid another humiliation against a more heavily fancied France. The only previous meeting between the sides saw Canada lose 1-0, though it was in 1986.