French forward Antoine Griezmann. (Photo : Getty Images)
Tournament host France will face heartbreak team Iceland in the quarterfinals of the 2016 UEFA European Championship. Their match is set to be held at the Stade de France in Saint-Denis on Sunday, July 3.
France is focused on accomplishing their quest of winning this summer's Euro title, their third in history if ever, and head coach Didier Deschamps' boys are expected not to take the Cinderella squad Iceland lightly in this last eight matchup.
The French team escaped with a 2-1 decision over the Republic of Ireland during their round-of-16 encounter at the Parc Olympique Lyonnais in Lyon, as per Daily Mail Online.
It was Atletico Madrid striker Antoine Griezmann who saved the day for Les Bleus with a brace in the second half after they gave up a penalty kick to Leicester City target Robbie Brady right in the second-minute of the match.
Griezmann netted at the 57th and 61st minutes to help his team come back from the early deficit and to continue on with their goal of winning the crown in front of their hometown fans.
Meanwhile, Iceland pulled off a shocking 2-1 victory over tournament-favorite England also in their own round-of-16 fixture held at the Stade de Nice in Nice, via The Guardian.
England captain Wayne Rooney broke the deadlock early with a penalty kick in the fourth minute, but Strákarnir okkar managed to answer right away with a sixth-minute strike from defender Ragnar Sigurdsson, leveling the match at 1-1.
Iceland found the back of the net once again in the 18th courtesy of a shot from striker Kolbeinn Sigborsson off an assist by teammate Jon Dadi Bodvarsson to grab the lead.
The Three Lions were not able to recover from the setback as they succumbed to an embarrassing defeat to the underdogs.
The team of head coaches Lars Lagerback and Heimir Hallgrimsson will try to duplicate their performance against England in this match with La Sélection but it obviously would not be as easy.
France is an overwhelming favorite to march on to the semifinals as they look to halt Iceland's terrific Euro run here in the quarters.
The predicted result is a 3-1 win for France.
France starting lineup (4-3-3 formation): Lloris; Sagna, Mangala, Koscielny, Evra; Matuidi, Cabaye, Pogba; Griezmann, Giroud, Payet
Iceland starting lineup (4-4-2 formation): Halldorsson; Saevarsson, Arnason, R. Sigurdsson, Skulason; Gudmundsson, Gunnarsson, G. Sigurdsson, Bjarnason; Sigborsson, Bodvarsson
