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France take on Iceland and players linked with Manchester United, Leicester and Tottenham are in action

Iceland players celebrate after England win

No-one expected Iceland to be France’s opponents at this stage of the competition but here they are, as they take on the hosts at the Stade de France.

France will be the overwhelming favourites but they will be wary of the upset that Iceland caused in the last round as they came from behind to dump England out 2-1 in Nice on Monday.

That came after a solid group stage which saw them draw with both Portugal and Hungary, but pick up a win against Austria at their first major tournament. If they managed to claim the scalp of France, upsetting England could almost pale into insignificance.

France have yet to be truly convincing. In the group stages they relied on late winners against Romania and Albania – and drew with Switzerland in the final game. Then they had to come from behind against the Republic of Ireland courtesy of two Antoine Griezmann efforts in Lyon to make it through to the last eight.

Paul Pogba

France’s Paul Pogba in action

Everyone still seems to be waiting for this magnificent talent to really make his mark on this tournament. Without a doubt he is a very good player but he hasn’t had the impact that many hoped or expected he would have – certainly not in the same way that has helped Juventus to their latest era of dominance in Italy.

His performances so far have not stopped him being linked with a move back to Manchester United, with The Guardian reporting this week that they’re interested in him returning to Old Trafford at the cost of £65 million.

Ragnar Sigurdsson

Iceland’s Ragnar Sigurdsson celebrates scoring against England

After his heroics against England at both ends of the field, Sigurdsson has been linked with a move to the Premier League, with The Guardian reporting that both Leicester City and Tottenham are pursuing Krasnodar centre-back.

Against a France side that has struggled to break down solid defences until late on in games, he is going to need to put in another strong display this evening for Iceland to have any chance of taking their biggest scalp yet at this tournament. Who knows? Maybe he will add to his goal tally again.

Antoine Griezmann

France’s Antoine Griezmann scores their second goal against Ireland

The forward has become the French’s top scorer at this tournament thanks to his heroics against Ireland, and it seems that he is finding some form at just the right time for his country. He will be keen to add to his three goals at the tournament so far in order to book his side’s place in the last four.