France Predicted Starting Line-Up

Hosts France have been in outstanding form throughout Euro 2016, and in truth they have yet to be truly tested by any of their opponents. Expect that to change in Thursday’s semi-final against Germany, however.

Coach Didier Deschamps has shuffled his pack so far in order to keep his players fresh, but you can expect him to name his strongest possible line-up here:

Goalkeeper: Hugo Lloris

The France captain is a shoe-in for selection, and his performances for both club and country in the last year or so have been nothing short of exemplary.

Defence: Bacary Sagna, Adil Rami, Laurent Koscielny, Patrice Evra

They may be the oldest full back pairing in the competition, but Sagna and Evra have been around long enough to handle the big occasion and defend with complete confidence. They may offer little in the final third, but when you have the attacking talents at your disposal that France do that doesn’t really matter.

The central pairing of Koscielny and Rami played the first four matches, and while the latter had to sit out the Iceland game through suspension his replacement, Samuel Umtitti, looked less than convincing, so expect Rami to return.

Midfield: N’Golo Kante, Blaise Matuidi

This pair of midfield metronomes was split up against Iceland due to Kante’s suspension, but playing Pogba in a deeper role didn’t quite work, so expect the Leicester man to return to the starting eleven here.

Attack: Antoine Griezmann, Paul Pogba, Dimitri Payet, Olivier Giroud

What a four-pronged attack this is, with three of the tournament’s top goalscorers in Griezmann, Payet and Giroud backed by the orchestration of Pogba. With Griezmann pulling slightly to the right, Payet left and Pogba just behind Giroud, this quartet will surely take some stopping.