France v Belgium: Euro 2024 last 16 – live

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Half-Time: France And Belgium Remain Goalless

46 minutes in: Get ready, we're back in action. Amadou Onana and Kevin De Bruyne start the game again and there haven't been any substitutions on either team as far as I know.

An email from Chris Ross asks, "Is Kante a Transit?" He thinks Kante is more like a G Wagon. Peace and love.

An email: "The Euro 2024 game is not very exciting," according to Kev McReady. "It's interesting how the best player in the tournament is Kante, like a large truck winning a race."

Although I wouldn't say it's common for this tournament, a lot of the teams that are supposed to be strong have actually been quite bad. There have been a lot of exciting games in this competition, with many of them involving Georgia.

France And Belgium Are Tied At Halftime

We just wasted 45 minutes of our time that we will never get back. France is currently dominating the game, but they are missing that final touch needed to secure the lead they have earned. Belgium has shown some promise, but their head coach Kevin de Bruyne needs to address important matters with the team during the upcoming 15-minute break.

45+1 min: Mbappe does well to move quickly and skillfully along the edge of the field before passing the ball to Tchouameni in a great spot to shoot. Unfortunately, Tchouameni sends the ball way over the bar. The first half ends.

44 minutes: I was just informed that there was a mistake in the author's name of this article, but it has been corrected. If you have any complaints, please send them to Barry Glendenning, as I am the one responsible for reporting on this uneventful match. Taha Hashim is not at fault and France is awarded a corner kick. Jan Vertonghen successfully clears it.

After 42 minutes, Mbappe passes the ball to Kounde on the right side. Kounde then passes it back to Griezmann, who quickly sends it out to Hernandez on the opposite side with the help of Mbappe. Incredible play!

38 minutes into the game, Tchouameni makes a pass into the Belgium penalty area, but Wout Faes clears it with a header. France is still putting pressure on Belgium. This game can be compared to a chess match rather than an intense battle.

37 minutes into the game, France quickly changes the direction of play. Jules Kounde delivers a great cross, but Marcus Thuram fails to direct his header towards the goal. He had the opportunity to do better in that situation.

33 minutes: When it comes to me only being able to function within the constraints of the situation I'm in, Marlon Seton suggests, "Just improvise!" He points out that politicians like Sunak, Trump, Farage, and potentially Le Pen are known to do the same without evidence.

Though I really want to, it would be a serious violation of the reporter's unspoken ethical guidelines to give away spoilers. But, if this is an incredibly exciting story, maybe I'm just pretending not to share to keep things simple.

30 minutes into the match and it is incredibly dull and uninteresting. Just a thought - Kevin De Bruyne might believe that Belgium's manager is not competent and may lead a rebellion on the field if the game doesn't improve for his team.

28 minutes into the game, Doku continues to excel on the left side. He passes to Openda, whose shot is redirected towards Carrasco. Carrasco tries to score, but Hernandez manages to block his attempt in the penalty area. Belgium believes there was a handball and appeals for a penalty, but the referee and the video assistants do not see a foul.

At 26 minutes into the game, the referee from Sweden seems to be overly strict. He gives Adrien Rabiot a harsh yellow card for his challenge on Doku. I'm not convinced it was even a foul, but now the French midfielder will be suspended for the next game if his team advances.

At the 23rd minute, Belgium's Jeremy Doku received the ball and advanced towards the goal. He was brought down by Griezmann, who received a yellow card. De Bruyne took a powerful free-kick that dipped towards the goal, but Maignan managed to kick it clear, although it looked like he had trouble following its path. The France goalkeeper was fortunate to escape without conceding a goal.

20 minutes into the game, Super Ally McCoist is providing commentary on ITV. He points out that Kevin De Bruyne is playing very deep, almost alongside Andre Onana in the Belgium midfield. Alistair expresses doubt that De Bruyne is pleased with this positioning, saying he probably doesn't want to play there for the entire match.

In the 20th minute, Adrien Rabiot takes a shot from a distance but it goes over the bar.

19 minutes: I have to be honest, watching this is difficult. I'm sorry if reading about it is also tough, but I can only write about the game I have.

At the 17th minute mark, Jules Kounde passes the ball towards the Belgium box from the right side, resulting in a corner kick. Griezmann delivers a fantastic curved kick towards the near post, but Marcus Thuram's header goes way off target.

In the 14th minute of the match, Griezmann decides to take a quick corner kick. The ball eventually reaches Mbappe in the Belgium penalty box, but his shot misses the target by going over the crossbar. The ball also appears to have been deflected along the way. The referee signals for a goal kick, but France protests the call, leading to Tchouameni being shown a yellow card. It all seems quite illogical.

13 minutes into the game, a weak attempt by Griezmann was quickly saved by Koen Casteels, the goalkeeper for Belgium.

11 minutes into the game, Romelu Lukaku runs to the edge of the field to try to catch a long pass, but he ends up kicking it out of bounds for a France throw-in. William Saliba is closely defending Lukaku. Lukaku asks for a free kick, but the referee does not give it to him.

In the 9th minute, Lois Openda sprinted after a pass back to Mike Maignan, but the goalkeeper handled it easily despite the pressure. He quickly passed the ball to Theo Hernandez near the sideline.

8 minutes into the game, both teams are being cautious in their approach. However, France is dominating possession, putting pressure on the opponent and searching for a chance to score.

In the 7th minute, Kylian Mbappe moves towards the Belgium penalty area while controlling the ball. He passes it sideways to Antoine Griezmann and runs into the box, hoping to get the ball back. Unfortunately, his teammates' pass over the top doesn't reach him.

In just 5 minutes into the game, France gets a throw-in in Belgium's half thanks to some strong play on the right side by Mbappe and Tchouameni. Castagne manages to keep the ball from going out for a corner, choosing the safer option. However, the throw-in doesn't lead to any scoring opportunity for France.

3 minutes into the game, Belgium had the ball. Lois Openda tried to get to a pass sent down the right side, but Dayot Upamecano easily handled it. He then passed it back to Mike Maignan, the goalie for France.

2 minutes into the match, Belgium's goalkeeper Koen Casteels makes an early play, with his team positioned with a defensive formation of five players at the back. Timothy Castagne and Yannick Carrasco are positioned as the wing-backs for the team.

1 minute: France has won the national anthems and now they have started the match in an attempt to win. They are wearing white shirts, blue shorts, and white socks. Belgium's players are wearing maroon shirts, black shorts, and maroon socks. Let the game begin!

Soon: The players walk onto the field, with France led by Kylian Mbappe and Belgium led by Kevin De Bruyne. Kevin seemed frustrated with his coach, teammates, and fans after their recent tie with Ukraine. But today is a fresh start. We'll see how Kevin is feeling soon. The game will start after the national anthems, handshakes, a coin toss, and the referee's whistle.

France: According to Jonathan Wilson, Kylian Mbappe performs better when playing on the side, but this could create a lack of balance in the team when facing Belgium.

The team selections are just as predicted, with Antoine Griezmann returning to the France starting line-up and Marcus Thuram taking the place of Ousmane Dembele.

Belgium coach Domenico Tadesco decides to switch things up by bringing in Lois Openda and Yannick Carrasco to the lineup, while Leandro Trossard and Youri Tielemans are dropped from the starting XI.

France And Belgium Starting Players

France: Maignan, Kounde, Upamecano, Saliba, Hernandez, Tchouameni, Kante, Rabiot, Griezmann, Thuram, Mbappe.

Below are the featured players in the blog section: Samba, Pavard, Mendy, Camavinga, Giroud, Dembele, Muani, Zaire Emery, Fofana, Coman, Clauss, Areola, Konate, Barcola.

Belgium: Casteels, Castagne, Faes, Vertonghen, Theate, De Bruyne, Onana, Doku, Openda, Carrasco, Lukaku. Translation: Belgium: Goalkeeper Casteels, defenders Castagne, Faes, Vertonghen, Theate, midfielder De Bruyne, Onana, Doku, Openda, Carrasco, and striker Lukaku.

Possible rephrased section: Players: Debast, Witsel, Tielemans, Trossard, Kaminski, Sels, Lukebakio, Vranckx, De Ketelaere, Mangala, Bakayoko, Vermeeren, De Cuyper.

Assistant referees: Mahbod Beigi and Andreas Soderkvist

The fourth referee for the game is Donatas Rumsas.

Video assistant referee: Pol van Boekel is in charge of making decisions using video technology during soccer matches.

The coach of the French national team, Didier Deschamps, has all his players available for selection. It is anticipated that Antoine Griezmann will be brought back into the starting eleven, potentially replacing either Adrian Rabiot or Bradley Barcola. Ousmane Dembele may also be left out of the starting line-up due to his underwhelming performances in the group matches. If Dembele is benched, it is likely that Marcus Thuram, a striker from Inter Milan, will be given the opportunity to start.

Belgium may have to play without Axel Witsel and Thomas Meunier due to injuries. Dodi Lukebakio is back in action after being suspended for the last game against Ukraine. Yannick Carrasco or Lukebakio may replace Leandro Trossard, who did not perform well in the last match. Aside from Kevin De Bruyne, not many players stood out in the previous game, so it wouldn't be surprising to see some squad changes.

France Vs Belgium: Round Of 16

Today's game between France and Belgium will take place at the Dusseldorf Arena, where both teams will be looking to step up their game after underwhelming performances in the Euros so far. Despite finishing second in their respective groups, only one team can advance to the quarter-finals. France is considered the favorites, but their victory is far from guaranteed. The match kicks off at 5pm in western Germany, so stay tuned for updates on team line-ups and pre-game analysis.