England vs. France: Historical Rivals, Friends and Foes

The opening phase of the European Championships has thrown up a number of hyped-up confrontations. There can be no doubt that one of the matches of the qualifying round is the Group B clash between defending European Champions France and England, the great rivals from across the channel. As well as being a potentially make-or-break game between two of the more fancied teams in the championships, the match is full of significance on many other levels.

The two countries have shared a war-torn history which came to an end with the entente cordiale, a colonial-era deal between Britain and France that ended centuries of military hostility and which showed its true strength when the age old enemies joined forces twice to repel the threat posed by Germany in both world wars.

In a sporting context, the two nations continue to foster a healthy rivalry which allows the entrenched distrust of each other -- a trait common in both citizens born from many hundreds of years of conflict -- to be released in controlled expressions of patriotism. Any game involving England and France therefore comes with the historical baggage of two nations more used to fighting and invading than embracing and sharing.

The match itself will provide some very interesting personal contests. Many of the players on show on Sunday come into contact with each other week-in, week-out in the English Premiership, both as colleagues and opponents. Current league champions Arsenal boast a defense made up of both English and French international stars while the awesome attackers that terrorized teams over the past season will be taking to the field in bleu come Sunday.

Friends become opponents

French striker Thierry Henry who will be testing the defensive prowess of his Arsenal buddies Sol Campbell and Ashley Cole while Sylvain Wiltord is capable of showing the kind of control and incisive running that the England defenders will be acutely aware of if he is given a run in the team.

Behind Henry and Pires will be another Arsenal man, the driving midfielder Patrick Vieira. Vieira will be clashing in the middle of the field with many of the men who have been challenging him in the action zone of the championship race for the past few months. Manchester United's Paul Scholes, Liverpool's Steven Gerrard and Chelsea's Frank Lampard have all contested the Premiership title against the French dynamo.

Wide of the main battles will be Vieira's midfield foil Robert Pires, a player who ghosts inside defenses with the composure of a man popping down the shops for a newspaper. Manchester United's Gary Neville will be sure to watch Pires as he has done on countless occasions, hoping to rob the Frenchman and turn defense into attack by feeding his right-flank partner David Beckham.

Midfield battles paramount in early stages

Also in midfield, Real Madrid team mates Zinedine Zidane and Beckham will be the big names vying for control of the game and hoping to outshine each other's star qualities by stamping their personalities on the match. Zidane, unarguably the best player of his generation, will face the man who is definitely the most famous. If either shrinks at the challenge ahead, one can be sure the other will grab the opportunity to make more of their name with both feet.

But beware: the man to watch in terms of form this year in that all important third of the pitch is Steven Gerrard. Injured for the 2002 World Cup, this is Gerrard's real baptism on the world stage -- and he will relish the challenge against the champions and whoever comes his way after that. The first ten minutes of the match on Sunday will determine much in the contest to see who runs the game as Gerrard and Vieira trade tackles and Beckham and Zidane look for weaknesses with their probing passes.

In attack, England's Merseyside strike force of Liverpool's Michael Owen and Everton's Wayne Rooney -- the past and present youngest-ever England scorers -- will know all about Marcel Desailly, William Gallas and Claude Makelele of Chelsea and Mikael Silvestre of Manchester United after pitting their pace and goal-scoring prowess against the French defensive stalwarts in the service of their clubs. Both brave and fast with proven striking reputations, the England men will be a handful if the service from the midfield war-zone is accurate and thoughtful.

Experience versus youth

But Owen and Rooney's (photo) task will not be an easy one. The French defence has kept a clean sheet for almost 12 months and despite the ageing stars of the back four, the players are still outstanding. Central defenders Silvestre and Lilian Thuram -- likely to be picked instead of Marcel Desailly -- are solid, full backs Gallas and Bayern Munich's Bixente Lizarazu quick enough to turn defence into attack at a flash.

The lack of height in the England attack may also be a disadvantage but the pace of both Owen and Rooney may be the undoing of the old legs in Les Bleus back line.

Probable France team: Barthez; Gallas, Thuram, Silvestre, Lizarazu; Pires, Vieira, Makelele, Zidane; Henry, Trezeguet.

Probable England team: James, G Neville, Campbell, King, Cole, Beckham, Lampard, Gerrard, Scholes, Owen, Rooney.