Switzerland vs France facts

Switzerland and France face a decisive fixture at the CFR Cluj Stadium in Cluj-Napoca in the final round of Group D games at the UEFA European Under-21 Championship.

France hold the upper hand in the section having won both games, beating Italy 2-1 and Norway 1-0 thanks to Michael Olise's 57th-minute strike.

Switzerland are three points further back after losing a five-goal thriller to Italy on Matchday 2, second-half strikes from Kastriot Imeri (47) and Zeki Amdouni (52) not enough after the Swiss had conceded three times in the first period. They had come from behind to beat Norway 2-1 in their first fixture, Imeri getting the winner.

France will go through (as group winners) if they avoid defeat. They will also go through if they lose and Italy do not beat Norway. France would also go through regardless if they lose by a one-goal margin and score at least two goals (i.e. not 1-0 or 2-1, when they would still need Italy not to win); if France, Italy and Switzerland all end on six points, they will be split by a mini-league of direct results between the three.

Switzerland will go through if they win. They will also go through if they draw and Italy lose. Switzerland will also go through even if they lose should Norway beat Italy 1-0. Switzerland will finish top if they win and Italy do not, or if Switzerland win by any scoreline other than 1-0 or 2-1.

Previous meetings

Each team recorded a 3-1 home victory when they were paired in 2021 qualifying, the defeats the only game each lost en route to the final tournament.

Switzerland were 3-1 winners in Neuchâtel on 19 November 2019 despite falling behind to Odsonne Édouard's 19th-minute penalty; goals just before half-time from Jérémy Guillemenot (44) and Andi Zeqiri (45+1) quickly turned the match in the home team's favour, Zeqiri wrapping up the win with his second goal and Switzerland's third eight minutes into the second period.

France turned the tables in Caen on 16 November 2020, the victory ensuring they finished above their opponents at the top of Group 1 on goal difference. Édouard's first-half double (18, 23) put them in control and, though Imeri halved the Swiss deficit with two minutes to play, there was still time for Randal Kolo Muani (90+2) to ensure Les Bleuets topped the section.

Anthony Le Tallec's hat-trick gave France a 3-0 away victory in Schaffhausen in October 2005, making it three wins in their first five competitive games against Switzerland. The reverse fixture in Troyes had ended 1-1, both teams going on to reach the play-offs with France first in Group 4 and the Swiss second; however, while Les Bleuets beat England 3-2 over two legs, Switzerland lost by the same aggregate score to Portugal.

Thierry Henry got the only goal of the sides' two meetings in the 1998 qualification competition, in France's 1-0 home victory in Pau; however, neither side reached the finals as Norway finished top of Group 3, two points above runners-up France.

This is the sides' second meeting in a U21 final tournament. France beat hosts Switzerland 2-0 in Basel in the 2002 semi-finals thanks to second-half goals from Steed Malbranque (62) and Olivier Sorlin (70), although they went on to lose the final on penalties to Czechia.

Pierre Kalulu and Maxence Caqueret were both in the France side that beat Switzerland 3-2 in the European U19 Championship elite round on 23 March 2019; Jan Kronig, Serge Müller, Imeri and Dan Ndoye were in the Swiss side, Ndoye scoring their second goal.

Form guide

Switzerland

Switzerland are in their fifth final tournament, appearing in successive events for only the second time. Semi-finalists on home soil in 2002, their debut appearance, their most successful campaign came in 2011 when, with Yann Sommer in goal, they did not concede until a 2-0 loss to Spain in the final.

The Swiss qualified for the first time in five editions in 2021, finishing third in Group D on three points and losing out to Croatia on head-to-head goals scored after that pair and England had all finished level on three points.

Ahead of these finals, a 1-0 win against England on Matchday 1 in 2021 made it five wins in Switzerland's last six finals matches although they lost the next two, against Croatia (2-3) and Portugal (0-3).

A team coached by Mauro Lustrinelli qualified for the 2023 finals as the best runners-up overall, finishing second to the Netherlands in Group E. Switzerland won seven of their ten games, losing only away to the section winners (0-2).

Lustrinelli left to take charge of Thun on 1 July 2022, Patrick Rahmen being named as his replacement two weeks later.

Amdouni was Switzerland's top scorer in qualifying with six of their 22 goals, while Simon Sohm started all ten matches.

Amdouni has also scored for the senior Switzerland side in all four of their opening UEFA EURO 2024 qualifiers, five goals in total, including a double at home to Romania (2-2) on 19 June.

Imeri was the joint top scorer in the finals after Matchday 2, level with England's Emile Smith Rowe on two goals; both players scored in each of the first two matches.

Ndoye has had 12 shots to date, four more than any other player in the first two matchdays.

France

Champions in 1988 with a squad including Laurent Blanc, Eric Cantona, Franck Sauzée and Jocelyn Angloma, this is France's seventh appearance in the final tournament and third in a row.

Having missed out for six successive tournaments from 2007 onwards, France got to the semi-finals on their return in 2019 and the quarter-finals two years ago. France have qualified four times since a group stage was introduced in 2000, and have reached the knockout rounds on each occasion.

In 2021 Sylvain Ripoll's squad finished second in Group C behind Denmark before losing 2-1 to the Netherlands in the quarter-finals, the decisive goal coming three minutes into added time.

This time round France remained unbeaten to qualify as Group H winners, winning eight of their games and scoring 31 goals while conceding only five, three of them in their final fixture, a 3-3 draw away to runners-up Ukraine.

Amine Gouiri was Les Bleuets' top scorer in qualifying with five goals. Benoît Badiashile, who is not in the final tournament squad, started all ten matches, while four other players – Kalulu, Caqueret, Sofiane Diop (another finals absentee) and Arnaud Kalimuendo – also featured in every game.

France have won 12 of their 14 matches in the group stage (D1 L1). They have never conceded more than once in any of those 14 games, keeping ten clean sheets.

Links and trivia

Have played together:
Dan Ndoye & Amine Gouiri, Képhren Thuram (Nice 2020–21)
Gabriel Barès & Joris Chotard (Montpellier 2022–)

Have played in France:
Gabriel Barès (Montpellier 2022–)
Dan Ndoye (Nice 2020–21)