Euro 2024 promises plenty of blockbuster showdowns, perhaps none more exciting than Kylian Mbappe vs Virgil van Dijk.
The two will go toe-to-toe this summer at the European Championship after France and the Netherlands were drawn together in Group D, alongside Poland and Austria, to make it one of the toughest groups.
One person who probably was cursing with that draw is Van Dijk, as France superstar Mbappe has caused him a few problems over the years.
The pair have played against each other six times and World Cup winner Mbappe is winning their head-to-head quite comfortably.
Playing for Paris Saint-Germain and his country, the striker has won on four occasions and lost only twice.
More telling is that he has six goals and one assist in those games.
The first four of those matches all took place in 2018 – two at club and two at country level.
The club matches saw Liverpool and PSG battle in the group stages of the Champions League of the 2018/19 campaign.
Mbappe scored once with one win apiece across the two games.
In the Nations League clashes between France and the Netherlands, it was again even with one win each and a goal for the striker.
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There were five years before the next game and Van Dijk had a nightmare time against a more experienced Mbappe.
France won both Euro 2024 qualifiers, 4-0 and then 2-1, with Mbappe helping himself to four goals and an assist.
Van Dijk even admitted that sometimes it is difficult to stop players of his quality.
In 2023, the Liverpool defender said: “This is unfortunately sometimes the case in football, players like him can make the difference. That’s what he did.”
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Speaking in an interview with France Football, Van Dijk later added: “Of course, Kylian has a special talent. You have to be at your best to face him, the whole team has to be at their best, in fact.”
Van Dijk will definitely have to be at his best this summer when the Netherlands face France on June 21 or it could set up an early exit.
