Former Celtic star Chris Sutton has made a couple of bold predictions for the upcoming 2024 European Championship (EURO 2024) semi-finals. Sutton has backed France to overcome Spain in the first semi-final on Tuesday (July 9) and England to beat the Netherlands on Wednesday.
Spain & Netherlands Have Looked Sharper Than France & England
Three-time European champions Spain have been in blistering form in EURO 2024. They have played eye-catching soccer throughout the competition, maintaining a 100% record. Luis de la Fuente’s side, who have scored a joint-best (level with Germany) 11 goals, overcame Germany to reach the semi-finals, beating the hosts 2-1 in extra time.
Their last-four opponents, France, meanwhile, have been utterly goal-shy, scoring only thrice in five games. They have yet to score from open play, with two being own goals and the other coming from the penalty spot. Kylian Mbappe and Co. beat Portugal on penalties in the quarter-finals after playing out a goalless draw in extra time.
Like France, England have also failed to live up to expectations. They have scored just five goals in as many games and narrowly scraped past Switzerland in the quarter-finals, beating them on penalties.
The Netherlands, on the other hand, had a slow start to EURO 2024, but have picked up the ante in the knockouts. They beat Romania 3-0 in the Round of 16 before beating Turkiye 2-1 in the quarter-finals. They played scintillating, eye-catching soccer in both matches.
Chris Sutton Makes Bold Predictions For EURO 2024
Despite Spain and the Netherlands’ stunning showings, Sutton is predicting they will crash out of the competition. In his BBC column, Sutton backed France and England to suffocate them and then grind out a victory. Ominously for La Roja and Oranje, Sutton was spot on with all four of his quarter-final predictions.
Sutton started with England vs Netherlands, saying:
“I don’t think anything is going to drastically change in the way England play – they are not going to suddenly find some amazing patterns of play that break the Netherlands down. Instead, if England are going to reach their second successive Euros final, they are going to have to rely on individual brilliance again.
“I have not just been blindly backing them to get through each knockout round in Germany but they are definitely on the more gentle side of the draw. This is their toughest game yet, and it is going to be very close, but I do think England will edge it… somehow.”
Discussing the clash between Spain and France, he added:
“Of course [Kylian] Mbappe could play like the superstar he is, or [Ousmane] Dembele could cause Marc Cucurella problems if he starts… but it is more likely that France will just smother Spain and, even if they do not play well, get the job done.”
Sutton has predicted that both England and France will secure 2-1 victories to move into the EURO 2024 final.
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