France will host Germany on Saturday night in an exciting match before this summer’s European Championships in Germany. As the Germans will be hosting the tournament starting in June, they will hope not to be embarrassed in the buildup. Ever since their 2014 World Cup win things have slowly gotten worse for Die Mannschaft, with two successive group stage world cup exits.

The French will be very confident going into this game as they know it’s a chance to prove their quality against Germany and deal a huge blow to the hosts before this summer’s tournament. As favourites to win the Euros, Les Bleus are heavily favoured to win on Saturday night. They will be without Atletico Madrid forward Antoine Griezmann due to an ankle sprain which will be a big miss for them as he is very important to Didier Deschamps’ side. However, with the players at his disposal, Deschamps doesn’t have to fear with one star player missing as with Kylian Mbappe in the squad anything remains possible.

The Germans are in a very weird position. They are approaching a tournament they are the hosts of with a new manager and a real lack of belief behind them. Julian Nagelsmann has a tough job ahead of him as with his short term contract this may be the only chance he gets of managing Germany. In a match which could give his team a big confidence boost going into the summer, Nagelsmann won’t be happy that he will be missing his first choice keeper in Manuel Neuer.

🚨🇩🇪 Manuel Neuer suffered a muscle strain in his left adductor during the national team's training.

Neuer will therefore return to Munich as he’s leaving the national team camp. pic.twitter.com/DGdNnuijUt

— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) March 20, 2024

The world class shot stopper tore a muscle in training for the national team and was forced into leaving the squad before Saturday's match. Die Mannschaft will have a surprise boost, as Toni Kroos has made a fast return after retiring from international football, not too dissimilar to the retirement of Lionel Messi. After being one of the key players in that world cup winning squad, having him around the team for Nagelsmann could prove vital.

The French will be playing on home soil in Lyon and will have the entire crowd behind them, expecting nothing less than a French win. It is near impossible to see anything less than a win for France with my final prediction being France 3-1 Germany. The sheer firepower at France’s disposal is enough to favour them against any team but added to the lack of time Nagelsmann has had with his players and with a key player like Neuer out, the Germans have no hope. I wouldn’t be surprised if the scoreline is even bigger, which could really dampen the excitement for German fans as European football prepares to visit their country.

This match will be perfect to see where these sides are ahead of the Euros. Unfortunately for Germany, the rest of Europe may not fear them after Saturday.