France captain Hugo Lloris says the Euro 2016 semifinal against Germany will be decided by "mental strength," but has admitted that the hosts are feeling "tired" ahead of Thursday's match.
World Champions Germany have won six out of seven semifinals against host nations at major tournaments, including a famous victory over France in the 1982 World Cup, and the tournament specialists are ominously moving through the gears ahead of Thursday's match in Marseille.
Germany coach Joachim Low will be without suspended defender Mats Hummels and injured duo Sami Khedira and Mario Gomez, while his opposite number Didier Deschamps has a fully-fit squad to choose from.
Lloris, however, believes team selection will be secondary to mentality at the Stade Velodrome and says the "tired" French are taking inspiration from their role as hosts.
"Regardless of the formation or personnel, it will be very important to believe in our chances of going through," Lloris said. "We are going to have to outdo ourselves altogether to pull off this feat, but I do feel we're ready to do that.
"I don't know if it is because we're the host nation, but there is something deep within us that has been steering us from the outset, and we really want to go as far as possible, really pushing back the boundaries.
"Mental strength really will be important tomorrow. It's a semifinal, we're very close to the end of the competition so people are tired, and ultimately the head will take over.
"We need energy at this stage of the competition, a semi-final is a big step against the World Cup winner. At this moment of the competition, the mentality is very, very important. It can make the difference."
However, former France international Emmanuel Petit disagrees and thinks the current French side's talent, rather than mental fortitude, will be the key to beating Germany.
Petit -- who won the 1998 World Cup with France -- says that although Les Bleus have demonstrated that they are not lacking mental strength by scoring several decisive second half goals during the tournament, the 2-1 win over Republic of Ireland in the second round was a good example of why mental strength alone is not enough to achieve international success.
"If football was a game based simply on mental strength then anyone could beat anyone," the ex-Arsenal midfielder told RMC.
"You would have small nations who would be European champions every four years.
"We saw it against Ireland. They have all the mental strength and grinta [grit] that you want on a pitch. But you have to have other qualities too."
France have a poor record against semifinal opponents Germany in competitive fixtures, having lost in the last three meetings at major tournaments.
Deschamps' side did beat Germany 2-0 in their most recent meeting -- last year's friendly in Paris on Nov 13, which was overshadowed by terrorist attacks in the city that killed 130 people.
The winners of the semifinal in Marseille will go on to face Portugal in Sunday's Euro 2016 final.
Mark Rodden, ESPN's French football correspondent, contributed to the writing of this report