Griezmann Calls Against Austria Important To Determine France's Fate

Duel Cristiano Ronaldo and Antoine Griezmann in the European Cup. (photo: x.com)

French national team striker Antoine Griezmann said the match against Austria at the Dusseldorf Arena, Tuesday, June 18 at 02.00 WIB was very important to determine the extent of Les Bleus' fate at Euro or the 2024 European Cup in Germany. Griezmann said this because the match against Austria was France's inaugural match in the 2024 European Cup and therefore it was very important to start the inaugural match with a win if Les Bleus wanted to win the European Cup for the third time. France is a country that was again favored at the quadrennial event after reaching two World Cup finals (one win in 2018) and one European Cup final in the last eight years. “We feel good and we are very confident. Physically, I think we are ready. We knew the first match (against Austria) would be very important to start the competition well, so we are in the process of preparing,” Griezmann said as quoted from the official UEFA website via Antara, Monday, July 17. "We will unite from start to finish, a team that moves in the same direction, and that will be the key to our success. I know what I need to do and what the team needs to win, and you learn it through matches and competitions,” he added. The 33-year-old forward, who recently set an international record by playing in 84 games in a row for his country, then declared a number of teams that became France's toughest rivals in the European Cup this year. He called Germany the first favorite candidate to win the European Cup this year for playing as the host. The Dutch national team led by captain Virgil van Dijk who is in the same group as his country in Group D also did not escape his views. He then added that three teams in the hell group, Group B, namely Italy, Croatia, and Spain were also included in his favorite list as a candidate to win this year's European Cup. Not to forget, the Atletico Madrid striker is also wary of England, which is currently reinforced by Jude Bellingham, who has just won the Spanish League and Champions League this season. “ I think there are some favorites. There are Germany playing at home. There are Netherlands, Croatia, Italy, Spain, England & helicopter; lots of them. Euro is very difficult,” Griezmann said.

"“It depends on us to play well, to show whether we are favorites on the pitch or not, and we leave the rest on chances. We know that the final will be held on July 14, the French national day," he added. "It will be a dream, so it's up to us to make it happen, give everything to make it happen and be there to play in this final and bring home the trophy," he concluded.