France will host Türkiye this Sunday, November 15, at Matmut Atlantique in Bordeaux for the sixth and final matchday of the UEFA Nations League group stage.
Zinedine Zidane’s side has put itself in a difficult position after suffering a 3-1 defeat to Italy on Thursday, November 12. As a result, if France loses to Türkiye, it will no longer control their own qualification hopes for the quarterfinals. France currently has 10 points, level with Italy after five matches, with a record of three wins, one draw, and one loss. Belgium is close behind with nine points from three wins and two defeats.
Therefore, if Belgium beat Italy and France lose to Türkiye, Zidane’s team would be eliminated from the competition.
However, a draw or a victory against Türkiye, which appears to be the more likely outcome, would guarantee France a place in the quarterfinals regardless of what happens in the Belgium-Italy match.
Below is the key information you need to know ahead of this match.
France vs. Türkiye Match Details & Form
Kickoff: 3:45 pm ET / 12:45 pm PT @ Matmut Atlantique, Bordeaux
How to watch live: Streaming on FOX One, fuboTV and ViX
As previously mentioned, France’s most recent outing ended in a 3-1 defeat to Italy. Michael Olise scored France’s only goal in the 10th minute, while the Italians secured the victory with a brace from Pio Esposito and another goal from Davide Frattesi.
Türkiye, meanwhile, is coming off a 2-1 loss to Belgium. Arda Güler scored Türkiye’s only goal with a spectacular free kick in the 20th minute. Kevin De Bruyne and Charles De Ketelaere were the goal scorers for Belgium.
France enters this matchup with a relatively positive run of form, having won three of their last five games. Before losing to Italy, they defeated Belgium 4-1 on October 5, following a 1-1 draw against Italy on October 2. They had also beaten Belgium 1-0 on September 28 and Türkiye 1-0 on September 25.
Türkiye, on the other hand, has lost all five of their last five matches. Before their aforementioned defeat to Belgium, they lost 3-1 to Italy on October 5 and suffered a 3-0 defeat to Belgium on October 2.
On September 28, they were beaten 4-1 by Italy before falling 1-0 to France on September 25.
France Players to Watch
Despite the disappointing result against Italy, it’s impossible not to keep an eye on France’s attacking options, including players like Michael Olise and Bradley Barcola, who were among the team’s better performers in the last match.
We also can’t rule out a moment of brilliance from Rayan Cherki or Désiré Doué. Although they may be among the most skillful players in Zidane’s squad, neither made much of an impact on November 12.
Ultimately, everything will depend on the French manager’s selections. However, there are other players, such as Pablo Pagis and Warren Zaïre-Emery, who remained on the bench and have been performing exceptionally well at the club level.
Türkiye Players to Watch
As for Türkiye, it’s impossible not to mention the excellent form Arda Güler has been showing for both club and country.
He was Türkiye’s only goalscorer in their last match against Belgium. Beyond finding the back of the net, he also recorded the most touches of any player in the game, with 85 in 90 minutes.
Güler also comes into this matchup after recording goal contributions in two consecutive games for Real Madrid.
He scored and provided an assist against Valencia on November 7 before setting up another goal against Racing Santander on November 1.
Match prediction: France 2-0 Turkey
Manuel Meza is a writer for Hooligan Soccer. He is a distinguished digital content creator specializing in soccer and NHL writing, SEO, and podcast production. With a B.A. in Business Administration from Instituto Tecnologico de Sonora, Manuel has honed his expertise in news writing, copywriting, digital journalism, social media, and community growth. His prolific work, including over 600 articles for Athlon Sports, established him as a key contributor to their early soccer coverage. He notably led coverage of Sunderland for Sports Illustrated, elevating it to the network’s top soccer site. Manuel’s insights have also graced Yardbarker, Roundtable Sports, The Sporting News, Inter Miami News, and MX Futbol. As a former Site Expert at FanSided, he generated over one million pageviews in a single month and has hosted the official Spanish-language Paris Saint-Germain FanFest. Connect with Manuel on X, LinkedIn, and Muckrack for his expert analysis and engaging content. Manuel is dedicated to delivering high-quality, insightful content that captivates and informs.
