This aircraft should shine after the new damage model is in, and it gets more ground attack weapons. It's better armored and has a radial engine, so it won't be as vulnerable.
The same way the P-47 will be better than the Mustang at surviving Ground attack missions.
You would not have seen a D9 or the 109-K4 defending against the Normandy invasion because they were not in the field then, and both models were intended more for A2A.