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Euro 2020 Team Previews: Group F

Hungary:

Bet you didn't think I'd start with Hungary, did you? Hungarians still remember Euro 2016 fondly. They qualified for their first major tournament since 1986 against expectations and were supposed to be pushovers once they got there – three defeats would only have been logical.

But that’s not how things played out. Instead, the Magyars won 2-0 against supposed dark horses Austria, drew with Iceland and took the lead three times against Portugal before settling for a draw. They finished top of Group F, sparking raucous celebrations around the country. It was a superb achievement that united a nation, and even the 4-0 thrashing against Belgium that followed in the last 16 didn’t ruin their party. Some hoped those performances would change Hungarian football for the better, but such optimism proved misguided. The players failed to use that momentum to reach the next level, while FA officials fared infinitely worse. Hungary’s domestic leagues are still weak, the grassroots revolution has stalled and subsequent 2018 World Cup qualifiers even included defeat to Andorra. They finished fourth in their group for Euro 2020 qualifying, too, but the 2018/19 Nations League gave them an additional route to the finals – one Hungary took in dramatic fashion.

Iceland were favorites in Budapest and ahead for most of the game, but Hungary equalized with two minutes left… then watched rising star Dominik Szoboszlai make it 2-1 in injury time. The 20-year-old midfielder, widely regarded as the brightest talent to come out of Hungary in decades, instantly became a legend, and now fans can dream of repeating those glorious days of June 2016. Granted, Hungary have been drawn in the toughest group imaginable with France, Portugal and Germany, and Szoboszlai will be out on injury, but nobody gave them much hope five years ago either. Things have improved since qualifying, too: the Magyars only lost one of eight matches in 2020, topped their 2020-21 Nations League B pot ahead of Russia to gain promotion to the top tier and went nine games unbeaten in March. Hungary have a stable and experienced goalkeeper in Peter Gulacsi, plus a very reliable centre-back in Willi Orban. Together at RB Leipzig they’ve developed a magnificent mutual understanding over several years. Could this Red Bull duo give Hungary wings and cause an upset?

France:

Former player and captain of France Didier Deschamps manages France, and is only the third ever person to win the World Cup as both a player and manager - behind Mario Zagallo and Franz Beckenbauer.

The 52-year-old became France manager nearly a decade ago, in 2012. Following spells at Monaco, Juventus and Marseille as manager, Deschamps joined a disjointed France side. Since, the former diminutive midfielder has transformed the nation into World Cup winners and European Championship finalists, some saying they're the best team in World football today.

Kylian Mbappe, the team's brightest star, has emerged in recent years as France's best player for not only the future, but also the present day. Taking over the mantle from Antoine Griezmann, Mbappe is setting Europe alight with his displays for PSG, and is still just 22-years-old. The forward revels playing in France's forward line, combining with Griezmann.

Mbappe has scored 16 goals in 42 appearances for France, and is showing no signs of slowing down. Already a World Cup winner, the Frenchman will look to add the missing European Championship to his trophy collection. With players such as Griezmann, Paul Pogba, Raphael Varane and Hugo Lloris, he is certainly in a brilliant position to do so.

Then, you add the surprise, and this team becomes a bit of a delight for football fans, with Karim Benzema finally making his rightful return to the national team setup.

Benzema has not played for his country since 2015, following his arrest over the alleged blackmail of fellow French player Mathieu Valbuena. He accused French coach Didier Deschamps of bowing to racist pressure after dropping him, and it was confirmed that he would stand trial over the incident earlier this year.

But after several years at the top of his game for Real Madrid, he is Deschamps 26-man squad for Euro 2020, as he should be, and will probably lead the line next to Mbappe with Griezmann feeding them from either the flank or as a 10.

Having won the World Cup three years ago, Deschamps has an embarrassment of riches at his disposal, and left out a number of high-profile players, including Real Madrid's Ferland Mendy and Tottenham's Tanguy NDombele, but no matter. The only thing that can stop France is the weight of lofty expectations.

Germany:

If one man was grateful for Euro 2020 being delayed by a year, it was Joachim Löw. As Germany trudged glumly towards the tournament last summer, before COVID-19 intervened, there were serious concerns about a harrowing repeat of their 2018 World Cup display.

Despite having access to a reliable production line of talent, Die Mannschaft spent too much of their post-Russia rebuild spluttering. That’s partly because the German FA left themselves no other choice, having awarded Löw a juicy new contract before that World Cup, but also because of their long-serving manager’s insistence on his ability to still do the job.

Other than a defeat to the Netherlands, Germany’s 2019 was largely a step in the right direction on the field. Off it, Löw’s bold move to retire three stalwarts in Thomas Muller (29 years old at the time), Mats Hummels (30) and Jerome Boateng (also 30), all with immediate effect, was accompanied by the resignation of embattled FA president Reinhard Grindel, as drama became the norm.

The delay of the Euros seemed to give them time to take stock, but Löw spent most of 2020 persisting with a back three, adamant that Germany needed to be tactically flexible against top teams. His side, meanwhile, kept drawing and conceding easy goals.

Then came the nadir, as their year finished with an emphatic hammering by Spain. That shocking 6-0 defeat was Germany’s worst since 1931, and led to questions being asked of Löw’s future. “Now Jogi is wobbling!” squealed the headline in tabloid Bild, who pondered alternative candidates seven months out from the finals. As Euro 2020 drew ever nearer, the DFB announced that Löw will step down after the tournament, amid all the destabilising speculation about his future. Weeks later, though, they lost to North Macedonia in World Cup qualifying, and big questions remain. Will Löw recall Muller, or his other exiles? Will he go for three at the back, or opt for a four? Will Germany make the most of this summer’s competition? We now know the answer to the first question is 'yes', but it is the latter that’s the biggest question of all. They’re less likely than ever to challenge for the trophy, but this team can still take a step forward in its development. That is the optimistic view at home, anyway. Plenty more fear Germany will go down in flames for the second tournament in a row.

Portugal:

Europe, beware: the reigning champions have a significantly stronger squad than they did when lifting their first-ever major trophy in 2016. Whether Portugal has a better team this summer, though, will depend on coach Fernando Santos’ ability to don his white coat and master the chemistry of his first-choice XI. At one-time Swansea striker, Eder was Portugal’s match-winner against France in Paris five years ago, but Santos now boasts an embarrassment of riches at his disposal. Although a traditionally conservative coach, he’s rightly shown signs of loosening the shackles: failure to maximize the attacking talent of Cristiano Ronaldo, Joao Felix, Diogo Jota, Bernardo Silva, and Bruno Fernandes would feel like a crime against football. As Santos knows full well, however, big names alone don’t win you major tournaments – much less international ones, where keeping things tight and taking the few chances on offer is usually the recipe for success. With the Selecao in Euro 2020’s Group of Death, it’s unlikely he’ll be going gung-ho.

Despite glimpses of a more expansive style in impressive home wins against Croatia (4-1) and Sweden (3-0), the evidence from Portugal’s latest Nations League campaign suggests Santos will be perfectly happy to stick with the modus operandi that has served him well. They reverted to type in the two matches against their main rivals France, with revered marksman N’Golo Kante scoring the only goal across 180 minutes. It’s not like the country’s FA are anything but thrilled with Santos’ approach, though, considering they handed him a new four-year contract last summer, which could take him to a decade of service. While Portugal has the weapons to hurt any team, things aren’t quite so rosy at the back. A 38-year-old Pepe remains crucial at the heart of defense, but the replacement for Porto’s increasingly injury-prone (and angry) center-back is 37-year-old Jose Fonte. Pepe staying fit throughout the tournament, or Santos finding a solid alternative to partner Manchester City’s Ruben Dias in central defense, could be essential in establishing whether or not Portugal can embellish the most golden era in their history with more silverware.