France 1-1 Poland LIVE RESULT – Euro 2024: Lewandowski equaliser sees France forced to settle for runners up spot
FRANCE have had to settle for second best after Robert Lewandowski's late penalty saw them draw 1-1 with Poland!
The result means Les Bleus will go through to the knockout stages only as the runners up after Austria shocked the Netherlands.
Kylian Mbappe - wearing his mask for the first time - had put France ahead from the penalty spot with his first ever European Championships goal.
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Legend hoping to sign off in style
Poland’s star striker has spoken about how he hopes their last game in Euro 2024 will pan out:
I hope we will play our best match of the tournament. Although we have only pride to play for, I hope we will play good football, create opportunities and score goals. We know we cannot fall apart even if things get tough. We need to have a plan and stick to it from start to finish regardless of the outcome.
Robert LewandowskiDeschamps confident Mbappe is ready for action
The French manager addressed the elephant in the room with the media when it comes to their prized asset:
He is doing better today than yesterday and the day before that. That is obvious because he has been training. The bruising has come down and he is getting used to the mask. He is as eager to play tomorrow as he was eager to play against the Netherlands. He does not find that the mask limits him but it does restrict his vision a little. He needs to get used to it, even though the technology nowadays allows these masks to be as thin as possible.
Didier DeschampsFrance with last chance to secure top-spot
Sitting second in the group heading into this game, Les Bleus trail the Netherlands on goal difference.
With Poland having already been eliminated, it seems the perfect match for Didier Deschamps side to go all out attack and try and rectify that.
As a result, this is no doubt why the French manager will be keen to get Mbappe back in his starting line-up for their final group game.
Welcome to France vs Poland
Les Bleus face already eliminated Poland in their final group game, hoping to usurp Netherlands for top spot in Group D.
France are likely to bring Kylian Mbappe back into the starting line-up today after he sat out their last game due to a broken nose he sustained against Austria.
While Deschamps took a cautious approach to his star striker in that game, he has taken part in a behind-closed-doors friendly in which he scored twice and produced two assists.
The manager will need to decide whether Aurelian Tchouameni or Adrien Rabiot make way in order to accommodate Mbappe’s return to the side.
It will be a tough choice for Deschamps as both players have been integral to Les Bleus in and out of possession but it is thought Rabiot will drop to a deeper position to partner Kante while Tchouameni has to settle for a place on the bench.
As for Poland, they have concerns about centre-back Bartosz Salamon due to an ankle injury that forced him to miss the defeat against Austria.
Given that this is likely to be his last chance to don the Poland shirt in a major tournament, it is expected that Robert Lewandowski will be reinstated to the team for this one.
The Poles have nothing to play in this game apart from personal pride but they will certainly want to put in a good shift against France to help Lewandowski sign off on a positive note from his illustrious international career.