France U21 vs Ukraine U21
, KO: 20:00 Jul 2, 2023, Cluj Arena
A thrilling contest could be on the cards as France battle Ukraine in the quarter-finals of the European U21 Championship. Both teams have shown their quality in attack and could be set to serve up a high scoring encounter.
France have been one of the more impressive teams in this competition as they progressed to the quarter-finals with a 100% record. Sylvain Ripoli’s men were barely troubled by any of their group opponents and often looked dangerous in attack, scoring seven times in just three matches.
Having claimed a 2-1 victory over Italy and a 1-0 triumph against Norway, France saved their best for last as they eased to a 4-1 win over Switzerland. They showed the full range of their attacking quality with Amine Gouiri, Bradley Barcola, Rayan Cherki and Maxence Caqueret all on target.
While the goals have flowed freely at one end of the pitch, France have not been too convincing at the other, conceding in two of their three matches in the competition. Their defensive problems did not just start in Romania as they have kept just two clean sheets in their last 15 matches across all competitions.
Ukraine are also enjoying a fine campaign at the U21 Championship as they are also came through the group stage unbeaten. However, unlike France, Ruslan Rotan’s men did not have a 100% record and finished second in the Group B standings.
Having begun with a 2-0 victory over Croatia and a 1-0 triumph against co-hosts Romania, Ukraine battled to a 2-2 with England in their final group fixture. They twice threw away the lead with efforts from Bhodan Vyunnik and Heorhii Sudakov cancelled out by the Spaniards.
Ukraine’s performance in this competition is a continuation of their rising profile in recent times as they have lost just once in their last 10 matches across all competitions. However, the result against England highlighted a defensive vulnerability that could be capitalised on by the French attack.
How the bookies view it
France are considered overwhelming favourites among the bookies and are priced at 8/13 by Unibet. A victory for Ukraine is valued at 19/4 by BetVictor while 10bet is offering odds of 3/1 for a draw.
Head to head
France have a 2-1 advantage with three draws from six previous matches with Ukraine. The most recent meeting between both teams was a clash in the qualifiers back in September which ended in a 2-2 draw.
Players to watch
Bradley Barcola had been one of the standout players in this competition as he often troubles defenders with his pace and movement. The French forward scored twice in three group stage matches and is priced at 21/10 by William Hill to find the net on Sunday.
Ukraine have spread their goals across the team but Danylo Sikan often leads the line and could be worth keeping an eye on. The striker was on target in the opening fixture and is priced at 17/5 by William Hill to be back among the goals on Sunday.
Anything else catch the eye?
France and Ukraine have plenty of attacking quality and produced over 3.5 goals when they met last September. A repeat is priced at 23/10 by BetVictor, over 2.5 goals is valued at 6/7 by 10bet while bet365 is offering odds of 19/20 on both teams to score.
Both teams have had a few late showings in this competition and can be set to produce more goals after the break at 11/10 by William Hill.
This match between France U21 and Ukraine U21 will be played on Jul 2, 2023 and kick off at 20:00. Check below for our tipsters best France U21 vs Ukraine U21 prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
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