In the enthralling drama of football, we're looking at a quintessential matchup: France versus Belgium. Sporting the custodian of the net for Belgium, we have Koen Casteels, who's had a decent show with a rating of 7.50, pulling off 11 magnificent saves so far. Mike Maignan, the glove man from the French side, is no less impressive with an equal rating of 7.50 and 9 saves.
Turning our attention to the arsenal of top players, we see Belgium led by the indefatigable Kevin De Bruyne, armed with a rating of 8.07, one goal, and 5 shots on goal – not to mention, an impressive pass accuracy hovering around 75%. Amadou Onana and Timothy Castagne, with ratings around 7.27, are shining in the midfield even without any recorded shots on goal.
Meanwhile, France possesses its own galaxy of stars. Nudging ahead of others with a rating of 8.10, Bradley Barcola, though goalless, is contributing to his team with precise passing. Kylian Mbappé, the young sensation with a rating of 7.65, has one goal and 6 shots on goal to his name, proving why he's a threat upfront. N'Golo Kanté, even without any goal, is a formidable presence in the midfield, flaunting a rating of 7.50.
Weighing in the tournament records, Belgium sits with one win, one draw and one loss, while France boasts a slightly milder record of one win and two draws.
The recent results for both countries show a similar pattern. Belgium managed to pull a draw against Ukraine and a 2-0 hit against Romania. However, their spirits might have dipped after a 1-0 loss to Slovakia. France, on the other hand, secures draw against Poland and Netherlands, with a slim 1-0 win over Austria to pump their spirits.
Honestly, this is shaping up to be quite the nail-biter. The Belgian side has a tad more aggressive but France's defensive strategy could pull them through. Given, the trends and slight favoritism France enjoys, in my ever-so-humble view, France should edge out Belgium in a hard-fought match.
Albert’s Prediction: France by 1