Axel Allag, Media365, published on Thursday June 27, 2024 at 10:15 p.m.
Ahead of the Euro 2024 round of 16, which kicks off on Saturday with Switzerland-Italy (at 6pm), Opta has highlighted its “supercomputer’s” predictions for the tournament. England, who are in the weakest part of the table, are favourites, while Les Bleus have dropped to 4th position.
England to be crowned on July 14 in Berlin? While the productions of Gareth Southgate’s players do not necessarily encourage us to think so, Opta’s “supercomputer” places the Three Lions as the big favorites for the final title before the last 16 of the competition. Indeed, according to Opta’s predictions, England have a 20% chance of winning their first title since the 1966 World Cup. England is placed ahead of Spain (17.2%), Germany (15.8%) and… France (13.4%). Portugal, defeated by Georgia at the end of the group stage, closes the top 5 with an 8.3% chance of being crowned. The French team, which finished in second place in group D, visibly disappointed Opta, even if it has a 67.9% chance of reaching the quarter-finals, and therefore of getting rid of Belgium, on Monday in Düsseldorf (6 p.m.).
A clear decline for France
Before the tournament, Opta actually gave the Blues a 19.1% chance of winning the trophy and now it only has 13.4%, a drop of 5.7%, the largest among the teams still in the running.. The probability that Didier Deschamps’ players will reach the last four, still according to Opta, is 43% while an opposition will be against Portugal or Slovenia in the quarter-finals. The Blues have a 21.6% chance of reaching the final, thus possibly eliminating Spain or Germany from their path. Less favorites than before the start of the tournament, the Blues will have the opportunity to prove Opta’s “supercomputer” wrong in the coming days, especially if they eliminate Belgium on Monday, during an expected round of 16. “We are not afraid of Belgium, we are not afraid of anyone,” warned William Saliba, this Thursday at a press conference.
During the group stage, the France team did not really shine, with a short success against Austria (1-0), followed by two draws, against the Netherlands (0-0) and Poland (1-1).
