Nearly a year has passed since the Euro 2024 semi-final between Spain and France — time sure flies.
In Stuttgart this Thursday, the two giants will once again (the 13th time in the 21st century) come face to face in a European football classic. This time, in a bid to fight their way into the final of the Nations League. And while on the face of it there may be little really at stake, for Didier Deschamps’ men it will be an opportunity to put the finishing touches to what has been a turbulent year, to say the least.
September saw the first signs of this trend. Whereas the European Championship had shown the limitations of a team regularly criticised for its minimalist style of play, the heavy defeat by Italy (1-3) in their Nations League opener only served to fan the flames of an increasingly vocal protest. The whistles heard at Groupama Stadium on the sidelines of France’ 2-0 win over Belgium three days later were just the embodiment of that mood.
On top of all that, September was the moment chosen by Antoine Griezmann, the third most capped player in the history of the French national team (137 caps, 44 goals), to announce his international retirement — at 33. His decision came as something of a shock, prompted by a downgrade that no longer seemed to suit the legendary No7, despite the fact that he had expressed his desire to continue wearing the blue jersey some time previously. Fans were left groggy.
The Mbappe situation
Yet everyone was still far from suspecting what the following weeks would hold in store for them. Especially Kylian Mbappé.
After suffering an injury in La Liga just a few days after his return from international duty, the France captain was given permission not to rejoin Les Bleus for October’s fixtures. The decision was roundly criticised by French fans, who accused the Real Madrid striker of favouring his club, with whom he had returned to the pitch just a few days before the squad meeting (despite being announced as unavailable for three weeks), over his national team.
A subject of far less importance — or, rather, of a different importance — than the rape scandal to which his name, although never explicitly and officially mentioned, was linked a few days after his October trip to Stockholm. It was a case with worldwide repercussions and an unparalleled media impact, which the Swedish public prosecutor’s office closed two months later due to a lack of sufficient evidence to pursue the investigation.
In the meantime, France’s No10 had again missed a training camp, the one in November, the last one of a 2024 that Les Bleus punctuated with a qualification for the Nations League quarter-finals. And while the real reasons for Mbappe’s absence remain unclear to this day, his form and level of performance are thought to have been decisive in Deschamps’ decision to do without his leader.
When he returned in March, many things had changed.
France’s renewal underway
A new cycle had even begun for France. The last of the 14 years of the Deschamps era, who had announced a few weeks earlier that he would be stepping down as coach after the 2026 World Cup.
New faces have also appeared. In September, Mbappé was able to welcome Michael Olise (Bayern Munich, 23) and Manu Koné (AS Roma, 24), both called up to the national team for the first time, but he finally had the opportunity to meet Lucas Chevalier (Lille, 23), brought in in November to compensate for the absence of Alphonse Areola, and Désiré Doué (PSG, 20), whose form at the start of 2025 had opened the doors to the French national team.
March was also a month of reunions for Les Bleus. A re-union with one of their great rivals, Croatia, unfortunate finalists at the 2018 World Cup, whom they met again to battle it out for a place in the last four of the Nations League. Far from being a cakewalk, France came very close to elimination, pushed to the penalty shootout by a valiant Croatian team, led by stainless Luka Modric. But this time, unlike in 2022 against Argentina, Deschamps’ men emerged victorious, aided by an imperious Mike Maignan.
Spain is warned
Against Spain, things promise to be very different. But Les Bleus are resourceful. And since the last meeting, things have continued to change. Starting with the status of certain players.
Dembélé, crowned Ligue 1’s best player and a recent Champions League winner, is enjoying the best form of his career. To the point of being considered one of the favourites for the Ballon d’Or. Doué, who scored twice against Inter Milan (0-5), is also brimming with confidence.
As is Rayan Cherki (21), called up for the first time as a reward for his successful season with Olympique Lyonnais and for whom the next few weeks are shaping up to be intense, while his transfer to one of the Premier League giants now seems only a matter of time.
So many reasons to cheer, almost enough to make you forget the long list of injured players (Jules Kounde, Dayot Upamecano, Eduardo Camavinga and William Saliba) absent from this Nations League decider.
A reminder that in the world of Les Bleus, life may not always be rosy, but the bad weather always passes.
