Getting their Group B campaigns under way in Belfast, France Under-19s and Turkey Under-19s clash on Tuesday evening, at the European Under-19 Championship.
Most recently champions in 2016, Les Bleuets are three-time winners at this level; Turkey's best result was finishing runners-up 20 years ago, and they are now back at the finals after a six-year absence.
Match preview
Having claimed the trophy when the Under-19 Euros were last held in Northern Ireland, back in 2005, France are in search of a fourth title since UEFA did away with the Under-18 classification in 2001.
Head coach Bernard Diomede can call upon much of the squad that won the 2022 Under-17 European Championship, so Les Bleuets are expected to challenge for overall victory this summer.
A member of the 1998 World Cup-winning squad, ex-Liverpool winger Diomede will at the very least be required to secure a spot at next year's Under-20 World Cup in Chile: the top two in each group will progress to the semi-finals and also book a direct ticket to the global finals.
Having played host in the first qualifying phase, where they beat Estonia and Iceland but lost to Denmark, France then had to come through the elite round, which took place in the Netherlands.
Successive wins over Belgium and their hosts were followed by a shock 2-0 defeat to Lithuania, but that ultimately proved enough to go through.
The 2005, 2010 and 2016 champions - with the latter side featuring one Kylian Mbappe - now meet Turkey in the tournament's group stage for a fourth time, having won two and drawn one of the nations' previous games at the finals.
Like their opening opponents, Turkey were at home for the first round of qualifying, in which they beat both Belarus and Lithuania 3-1 before overcoming Greece by a single goal.
In the elite round, Soykan Basar's side claimed top spot in Group 6 with wins over Romania and Croatia, despite losing 2-0 to Germany.
Turkey's previous best at the Under-19 Euros was back in 2004, when they lost out to a Spain team featuring Sergio Ramos and Roberto Soldado in the final.
After qualifying for the first time since 2018, they must now navigate their way through a group also featuring another talented Spain squad and Denmark, so merely making the semis would be considered quite a feat.
France Under-19s form (all competitions):
- W
- W
- L
- W
- W
- L
Turkey Under-19s form (all competitions):
- W
- W
- L
- W
- W
- W
Team News
Bernard Diomede has a strong squad to select from, with two-goal qualifying top scorer Mathys Tel of Bayern Munich providing a significant threat up front.
Soon to join Tel in the Bundesliga, Bayer Leverkusen-bound centre-back Jeanuel Belocian will be an integral part of the French back line in Northern Ireland.
Elsewhere, Eli Junior Kroupi recorded five goals and three assists for Lorient last season, also becoming the Ligue 1 club's youngest-ever scorer. He missed last year's Under-17 tournament win through injury, but Christian Mawissa was involved and is set to start in defence.
Turkey's top scorer in qualifying Semih Kilicsoy (with three goals) has been on senior duty this summer so was not considered for selection, alongside fellow teen stars Kenan Yildiz and Arda Guler.
In their absence, PSV winger Emir Bars is sure to be a key figure in the Turkish attack, with Antalyaspor's Emre Uzun set to take up a playmaker role.
France Under-19s possible starting lineup:
Olmeta; Kumbedi, Belocian, Gomis, Mawissa; Benama, Atangana, Lahmadi; Diakhon, Tel, Kroupi
Turkey Under-19s possible starting lineup:
Ertas; Yavuz, Kayali, Sarikaya, Yilmaz; Gezek, Dagdeviren; Gulasi, Uzun, Bars; Yildirim
We say: France Under-19s 2-0 Turkey Under-19s
A France side that will surely vie for overall glory should overcome a Turkey team that travelled to Northern Ireland without their top scorer in qualifying.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Jonathan O'Shea
