Ben Fisher was at the BVB Stadion Dortmund this afternoon, and his verdict has landed. Here it is! Congratulations/commiserations to France, just commiserations to Poland, and thanks for reading this MBM.
France’s failure to hold onto that lead is costly. They’re now in the same side of the draw as hosts Germany, Spain and Portugal. Should England win Group C tonight, they’d be in the other half, with a route to the final that on paper looks significantly easier. Then again, Austria. And if they don’t, chances are they’ll be playing Germany in the next round. Probably wisest to wait and see how it all comes down, though where’s the fun in that?
Austria have beaten the Netherlands, and so it’s Ralf Rangnick’s vibrant side who finish top of Group D. France go through in second place, which they can hardly complain about, seeing they’ve only got one penalty and an own goal to their name in three matches. The Dutch are guaranteed to make it through as one of the four best third-place finishers.
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Austria | 3 | 2 | 6 |
| 2 | France | 3 | 1 | 5 |
| 3 | Netherlands | 3 | 0 | 4 |
| 4 | Poland | 3 | -3 | 1 |
FULL TIME: France 1-1 Poland
The whistle goes. A valedictory draw for the Poles, who thoroughly deserved it. France were disappointing and are disappointed. Mbappé sad rather than angry, perhaps there wasn’t so much in that late penalty shout after all.
90 min +5: Mbappe tries to spin Dawidowicz on the edge of the box. Dawidowicz clatters into him. It looks like a penalty, but neither referee nor VAR agrees. Didier Deschamps is livid.
90 min +4: Kounde instigates some pinball in the Poland box after crossing low from the right. Again the ball’s blootered long by Poland, who are determined not to go out of Euro 2024 with a record of three defeats.
90 min +3: Świderski is booked for a preposterous rugby tackle on Hernandez. He goes into the book, and the resulting free kick is sent into the mixer from the left, and clanked out of play by Upamecano.
90 min +2: Mbappé drops a shoulder to come in from the left, but can’t make a decent shooting opportunity for himself. Eventually in desperation he takes a whack, but it’s predictably deflected and loops harmlessly into the arms of Skorupski.
90 min +1: Mbappe probes down the left but there’s nobody in the middle to find. He settles for a corner, and swings it in himself. Poland hoick it clear.
90 min: There will be five additional minutes.
89 min: Giroud spins Dawidowicz, who takes one for the team by cynically checking his man. Into the book he goes.
88 min: Mbappe takes a whack on the mask from Lewandowski. Accidental, as the pair competed for possession, but that’s gotta hurt.
86 min: A corner from the left leads to a corner from the right. And from that second one, the ball drops to Griezmann in space on the right-hand corner of the six-yard box. Everyone expects the net to bulge, but Skorupski tips away at the striker’s feet. What a game the Polish reserve keeper has had!
85 min: Mbappe releases Kounde down the inside-right channel with a glorious defence-splitting back-flick. Kounde cuts back for Giroud, who has a first-time swing at the ball. It deflects off Bednarek, who spreads himself bravely. Corner coming up. Before it can be taken, Randal Kolo Muani comes on for Dembele.
84 min: Poland are on top. Moder floats a cross in from the right for Lewandowski, whose earlier mugging of Tchouameni has sparked something in the Poles. Upamecano is forced to head behind under serious pressure. Nothing comes of the corner, but France are suddenly hanging on a bit here.
82 min: France are rocking now. Fofana comes on for Tchouameni. Then Lewandowski – who has now scored in four separate Euros - steps into the box from the left and lashes a rising drive inches over the bar. This is great fun!
80 min: While that was going on, the Dutch equalised against Austria … only for Ralf Rangnick’s side to retake the lead again soon after! All of which means Group D now looks like this …
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Austria | 3 | 2 | 6 |
| 2 | France | 3 | 1 | 5 |
| 3 | Netherlands | 3 | 0 | 4 |
| 4 | Poland | 3 | -3 | 1 |
GOAL! France 1-1 Poland (Lewandowski 79 pen)
… but VAR gets involved! Maignan had come fractionally off his line, and Lewandowski is gifted a second chance! He does the tippy-toes again, and sends it towards the bottom left again, but this time there’s more power behind the penalty and he tucks it tight into the corner! What drama!
Updated
77 min: Lewandowski misses! He stops mid-run, performing the tippy-toes, and can only scuff towards the bottom left. Easy for Maignan to tip away! What an awful penalty!
Penalty for Poland
76 min: VAR gets involved, and Upamecano did indeed clip his opponent on the heel. There wasn’t much in it … but there was enough in it. Lewandowski to take.
74 min: End-to-end drama as Upamecano appears to clip Świderski from behind in the box. No penalty, according to the referee. France go up the other end, where Mbappe is teed up on the edge of the D by Dembele. Mbappe sidefoots weakly straight at Skorupski. But hold on…
73 min: That was brilliant play by Lewandowski, and perhaps it’s woken France up, because they’ve been strangely passive for the last few minutes. Mbappe attempts to dribble into the Poland box down the left but can’t fashion space to shoot.
72 min: Lewandowski, who has been feeding on scraps, takes matters into his own hands and strips the snoozing Tchouameni of possession, 35 yards from goal. He turns and steams towards the French box, fizzing a low drive inches wide of the left-hand post. Maignan probably had it covered, though he was diving across in desperation.
70 min: A lot of space for Hernandez out on the left. His low cross is easily mopped up by the Polish defence, because there’s nobody in blue in the middle. The ball, begging to be rammed home, deserved better.
69 min: Tchouameni and Lewandowski race to meet a loose ball in midfield. A clatter. Lewandowski takes a sore one on the lug, and he’s not happy about it, but there’s no official censure.
68 min: Poland make a double change. Sebastian Szymański and Nicola Zalewski are replaced by Karol Świderski and Michał Skóraś.
67 min: Dembele drops deep and attempts to find Mbappé with a clever long pass down the inside-right channel. Skorupski reads the danger and races out of his box to blooter clear.
66 min: Griezmann takes a whack from the edge of the D. It’s not a particularly good shot, but it gets deflected wide left for a corner that Griezmann takes himself. Another wasted corner.
65 min: Poland haven’t really responded to falling behind, and France are strolling around in the content style. Nothing much happening right now, in other words.
63 min: Dembele once again romps into acres down the right. Does he shoot? Does he cross? It’s not clear. Goal kick.
62 min: A triple change by France. N’Golo Kanté, Adrien Rabiot and Bradley Barcola make way for Antoine Griezmann, Olivier Giroud and Eduardo Camavinga. Giroud is making his 33rd appearance at a major tournament for France, a new mark that usurps the previous record-holder Lilian Thuram.
61 min: It’s all happening in Group D. Austria have retaken the lead against the Dutch – Baz has your back - and now the table looks like this …
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | France | 3 | 2 | 7 |
| 2 | Austria | 3 | 2 | 6 |
| 3 | Netherlands | 3 | 0 | 4 |
| 4 | Poland | 3 | -4 | 0 |
60 min: Barcola turns Bednarek inside out as he sashays down the left. He enters the box and shoots from a tight angle. Another confident stop by Skorupski, who has been Poland’s man of the match so far.
58 min: It’s fair to say that goal had been coming. But France had been getting a little frustrated at their inability to break the deadlock, so Kiwior did them a big favour there.
57 min: France are now in the box seat in Group D.
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | France | 3 | 2 | 7 |
| 2 | Netherlands | 3 | 1 | 5 |
| 3 | Austria | 3 | 1 | 4 |
| 4 | Poland | 3 | -4 | 0 |
GOAL! France 1-0 Poland (Mbappé 56 pen)
Mbappé opens his body and, having sent Skorupski the wrong way, slots calmly into the bottom right. He swipes off his mask to soak up the applause. That’s his first goal at a European Championship finals, and the first goal scored by a French player in this tournament!
Updated
Penalty for France
55 min: Dembele turns on the jets and flies down the inside-right channel. He enters the box. Kiwior sticks out a leg and Dembele doesn’t need asking twice. He goes over it, and the referee immediately points to the spot.
Updated
53 min: Hernández comes clattering into Bednarek. He’s comedically late, and fortunate to escape a booking. Poland coach Michał Probierz isn’t so fortunate, though; he’s shown yellow for telling it to referee Marco Guida as he sees it.
51 min: Poland haven’t really come out for the second half yet. France had gotten on top towards the end of the first period, and they continue to look by far the most likely.
50 min: Mbappe isn’t going to stop trying. He whips a low shot across Skorupski and inches wide of the right-hand post. “How much mayonnaise do Hellmans have to sell before they get a return on their investment in pitchside adverts?” wonders Gary Naylor. “Answer in swimming pools please.” Gotta say, I haven’t even noticed their ads, so best of luck to them, though Heinz make a better mayo in my book, and in any case salad cream tops the lot. (That may finally get me sacked by the Guardian. So be it.)
Updated
49 min: … but France come back at Poland, Dembele and Mbappe taking turns to pelt the ball at Skorupski. The keeper continues doing what he’s been doing.
48 min: Dembele breezes down the right and cuts back for Kante, whose shot is deflected wide right. Once again, the resulting corner is a non-event.
47 min: The Dutch have already equalised against Austria. Barry Glendenning has the details and now the group looks like this …
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Netherlands | 3 | 1 | 5 |
| 2 | France | 3 | 1 | 5 |
| 3 | Austria | 3 | 1 | 4 |
| 4 | Poland | 3 | -3 | 1 |
After a brief wait for Mbappé to secure his mask, and the referee to source a ball to play with, France get the second half underway. No changes. “Has anyone called him Mbappman yet?” wonders Craig Sinnamon. “The m€rch po$$ibilitie$…” A cursory glance at X suggests you might need to get your skates on to secure the intellectual property.
Half-time advertising break. Sign up now! Sign up now! Sign up now? Sign up now!
HALF TIME: France 0-0 Poland
Both teams have given it a good go; both have had their chances; neither have managed to find the net. France were beginning to crank up the pressure towards the end of the half, though. As things stand, with Austria leading the Netherlands 1-0 at the break, Group D looks like this …
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Austria | 3 | 2 | 6 |
| 2 | France | 3 | 1 | 5 |
| 3 | Netherlands | 3 | 0 | 4 |
| 4 | Poland | 3 | -3 | 1 |
Updated
45 min +2: Dembele whips the free kick into a loaded box. Skorupski slaps it away from danger. He’s having a glorious tournament debut.
45 min +1: The first of two added minutes sees Frankowski slide in hysterically on Barcola down the left. A free kick. He’s lucky not to go into the book.
45 min: … and now Mbappe finds himself in more space down the left! He shoots from a tight angle but can’t force the ball past Skorupski, who blocks with his feet at the near post and is having quite the game. Again, the corner leads to nothing.
Updated
44 min: France are beginning to seriously threaten now, and Hernandez powers down the left, crossing low. Zalewski, the only man in the six-yard box, hooks clear.
43 min: Rabiot is booked for an agricultural clip on Szymański’s heel.
42 min: Barcola spins elegantly down the inside-left channel and into the box. He’s not able to shoot, though, because Mbappe takes charge and flicks a cute shot across the keeper. Skorupski sticks out a strong arm to deflect the ball inches wide of the right-hand post. Great play all round. Nothing comes of the resulting corner.
41 min: Bison Grass vodka, man. That is some good stuff.
40 min: Dembele attempts to tear clear down the right but has the ball taken off his toe by a sliding Kiwior. France should get a corner, but they don’t get one. Goal kick. Both teams have benefitted from such a mistake now. Meanwhile here’s some pennant-punditry pedantry from Grant Tennille, who can also speak for me: “The issue here, which to be honest I’d never really considered before, is that serifs simply aren’t a good look on a pennant. That, and including lower-case; also a poor aesthetic decision. To be fair, they are out of the tournament, so I can’t really fault someone for multi-tasking with a bottle of Żubrówka.”
38 min: Dembele dribbles down the right and feeds Kante infield. Kante shuttles the ball further into the middle for Tchouameni, whose low shot from the edge of the D is deflected wide left. The resulting corner sees Upamecano cushion a header down for Saliba, who hooks wildly over the bar.
36 min: Poland are giving as good as they’re getting here. A much-improved performance. Too late for them, sadly, but here we are.
34 min: Zalewski sends Zieliński racing down the left and dinks infield for Lewandowski, in a bit of central space, ten yards out. Lewandowski plants a downward header towards the bottom-left corner, but it flies just wide. Maignan had it covered, I think, though it should have been a corner, the ball taking a small deflection off Saliba. But France are awarded a goal kick. For a player of Lewandowski’s quality, that goes down as a huge chance and a poor miss.
32 min: Moder slips when launching long from deep for Lewandowski. His pass still nearly finds the target, though, and for a second it looks like Poland’s captain will latch onto the ball and burst clear through the middle. But it just evades him, and flies through to Maignan, who smothers on the edge of his box.
30 min: … and we’re back.
28 min: A drinks break. It’s very sunny in Dortmund, the mercury nudging 28°C.
26 min: Barcola drives with purpose down the left and sends in a low cross that forces Bednarek to hack behind for France’s third corner of the game. Dembele takes but it’s an easy claim for Skorupski.
24 min: … Mbappe attempts to break upfield on the counter. He spins Zalewski, who drags him back. Zalewski goes into the book.
23 min: Szymański whips a vicious cross in from the left. With Lewandowski lurking, Kounde is forced to concede a corner. From which …
21 min: France press forward but Poland have a lot of players back. No way through. Dembele nutmegs Moder but there are other red shirts in the road. Kante, all perpetual energy, eventually runs the ball out for a goal kick.
19 min: Kiwior ships possession in midfield and suddenly Kante is leading a four-on-two charge. Kante slips Dembele into the box down the right. Dembele opens his body but slaps a shot straight at Skorupski, who nevertheless has spread himself bravely. Kante’s late-career resurgence, this glorious Indian summer, continues apace.
Updated
17 min: Moder has a dig from distance. Full marks for ambition if nothing else. “I for one am happy to see Pennant Watch make a triumphant return, it is actually one of the things I enjoy the most about the MBM,” writes Espen Bommen. “Which now as I’m writing it out might not be a ringing endorsement of the actual MBM but that’s not how I meant it. Honestly. I just think ranking pennants is a fun little thing to do.” Hey, we’ll take whatever we can get.
15 min: Szymański powers down the inside-left channel and takes a shot that deflects off Hernandez and out for a corner on the left. Urbański meets the set piece with a shot that flies straight at Maignan, who fumbles but collects at the second attempt, then looks to start a counter. Lewandowski clatters into him from behind and concedes a foul that puts a stop to Maignan’s caper. Lewandowski fortunate not to go into the book for sheer cynicism.
13 min: Mbappé spins into space in the centre circle and sends Kante romping upfield with a simple straight pass. Not sure whether Kante tries to lob Skorupski from 35 yards or flick the ball wide left for Barcola. Either way, he doesn’t pull it off. Goal kick.
11 min: Dembele jinks into space down the right. He whistles a low cross through the six-yard box. Barcola can’t poke it home. Hernández, haring in from the left, meets it with a drive towards the bottom-left corner. It’s well hit, but Skorupski sticks out a foot to divert it around the post. Nothing comes of the corner. France dangerous there, though.
10 min: Austria have taken the lead against the Dutch in Berlin. Our Baz has the details, and the group currently looks like this.
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Austria | 3 | 2 | 6 |
| 2 | France | 3 | 1 | 5 |
| 3 | Netherlands | 3 | 0 | 4 |
| 4 | Poland | 3 | -3 | 1 |
8 min: Mbappé, black eye mask on, drops a shoulder to glide infield from the left flank. A brief flash of danger, but there’s nobody around to help.
6 min: Poland go up the other end and show in attack for the first time. Zieliński threads a shot towards the bottom right from distance. Maignan handles it well.
5 min: Dembelé hits a laughably poor corner over everyone’s head and out for a goal kick, but gets a second chance at delivery because the referee hadn’t blown his whistle. The second effort is much better, and Upamecano should meet it with a header at the far post, but for some reason doesn’t attack the ball, which sails out for a goal kick.
4 min: France quickly establish their authority, probing this way and that. Poland happy to sit back for now. Then suddenly Barcola bursts down the left and wins a corner off Moder.
Updated
2 min: No pyro, no party, as they say. A lot of smoke drifting across the pitch. Perhaps some of it gets in Skorupski’s eyes, as the Polish keeper nearly tees up Mbappé 12 yards out with a blind and underhit pass across the face of his own goal to Dawidowicz. The defender intercepts just in time. He swivels and dribbles clear, getting his keeper, and Poland, out of trouble.
Poland get the ball rolling. France’s kit is lovely. That oversized coq just perfect when you get used to it. Just Fontaine would surely approve.
The teams are out! A rare old atmosphere, which is no surprise, it is the Westfalenstadion after all. France in blue, Poland in second-choice red. Coins about to be tossed, hands shaken, fists bumped, anthems sung. Poland Is Not Yet Lost initially sounds a bit stiff and stilted, but once you work out what it’s trying to do, it actually swings. A bit like The Shape of Jazz to Come by Ornette Coleman in that respect. Really nice. La Marseillaise meanwhile is the greatest anthem in the world, and we don’t write the rules. Take it away, Edith. We’ll be off in a minute or two!
Pennant Watch. Welcome to the latest edition of the occasional feature that only runs when your MBM hack has run out of things to say, is reduced to desperate vamping, and has been able to source the appropriate photos. The ornamental trinket Kylian Mbappé will be handing over during the pre-match ceremonial exchanges is simple but extremely classy. You can’t go wrong with that tricolour. Extra marks for the voluminous braiding.
Poland’s by contrast gives off a pungent whiff of will-this-do? It’s all over the shop. Fonts a-plenty. The designer perhaps late to meet everyone else at the pub. It’s also vaguely reminiscent of the masthead of DC Thomson’s conservative-with-a-small-c periodical The People’s Friend. A pennant with traditional family values since 1869.
The last time France met Poland, les Bleus knocked the Eagles out of the 2022 World Cup. You can relive that here! Now!
It was a third French win in four meetings, and an eighth game unbeaten for France, who haven’t been defeated by Poland since a weird 4-0 reverse in Paris in 1982. That thrashing came hot on the heels of Poland’s 3-2 third-place play-off win at that year’s World Cup, a game that still stands as the Poles’ only competitive victory over France. Overall, in 17 meetings, France have won nine and Poland just three.
While there’ll be no Scotland-style heartbreak at the end of this game, with France already through and Poland already eliminated, there is still some jeopardy. Let Uefa’s official literature explain, because they’re the ones making this group stage so complicated after all.
France will be through to the round of 16 in the top two if they avoid defeat against Poland or if Austria do not beat Netherlands. France will win the group if they win and Netherlands do not. If France and Netherlands both win or both draw they will be split for first and second place by overall goal difference, then overall goals scored, then disciplinary points, then European Qualifiers rankings. Similarly if Netherlands and France both lose, they will be split for second and third place by the same criteria.
There’s nothing on the line for Poland, who are guaranteed to finish bottom of Group D whatever happens this afternoon, by dint of having already lost the head-to-head with Austria. Having said that, a valedictory Polish win would bring its own bittersweet emotions, as depending on how everything else pans out today and tomorrow, there’s a possible scenario in which Poland go home with three points and a win while another country makes it through to the knockouts with just two points and two draws. That would be pretty irritating, no?
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Netherlands | 2 | 1 | 4 |
| 2 | France | 2 | 1 | 4 |
| 3 | Austria | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| 4 | Poland | 2 | -3 | 0 |
Updated
Kylian Mbappé is back, baby. Eight days after breaking his nose against Austria, France’s captain returns to action sporting a protective mask that, according to his coach Didier Deschamps, restricts his vision. He’s one of two changes to the French starting XI in the wake of the goalless draw with the Netherlands, Bradley Barcola also coming into the team. Antoine Griezmann and Marcus Thuram step down.
Poland also have big captain-related news. Robert Lewandowski makes his first start of the tournament, too little, too late for the homeward-bound Poles. He’s one of five changes following the 3-1 defeat to Austria. Łukasz Skorupski replaces Wojciech Szczęsny in goal, while Jakub Moder, Sebastian Szymański and Kacper Urbański also start. Jakub Piotrowski, Adam Buksa, Krzysztof Piątek and Bartosz Slisz are benched.
Updated
The teams
France: Maignan, Kounde, Upamecano, Saliba, Hernandez, Kante, Tchouameni, Rabiot, Dembele, Mbappe, Barcola.
Subs: Samba, Pavard, Mendy, Camavinga, Griezmann, Giroud, Muani, Thuram, Zaire Emery, Fofana, Coman, Clauss, Areola, Konate.
Poland: Skorupski, Bednarek, Dawidowicz, Kiwior, Frankowski, Sebastian Szymanski, Moder, Zielinski, Zalewski, Lewandowski, Urbanski.
Subs: Szczesny, Salamon, Walukiewicz, Piotrowski, Swiderski, Grosicki, Romanchuk, Puchacz, Buksa, Damian Szymanski, Bereszynski, Bulka, Piatek, Slisz, Skoras.
Referee: Marco Guida (Italy).
Preamble
France are already assured of a place in the round of 16, while Poland have already been knocked out. Come on in, the water’s lovely. Kick-off is at 5pm BST. It’s on!
Updated
