France will take on Norway in Boston on Friday for the right to top Group I, but one man thinks itâs already done. âHonestly I donât care that muchâ, Erling Haaland told Fox in the US. âTheyâre probably going to win against us. Theyâre probably going to win the whole tournament.â
Haaland may have been playing mind games, and you will not hear Didier Deschamps making any such argument. But the French head coach certainly took satisfaction from his teamâs storm-hit but ultimately straightforward victory over Iraq. Featuring another Kylian MbappĂ© double and two more assists for Michael Olise, this matchâs notable success was Ousmane DembĂ©lĂ©âs arrival at the party, scoring his first tournament goal at the 20th attempt.
The Ballon dâOr winner got a second-half goal, finding separation in the box to convert a smooth Olise assist with a shot across the Iraq goalkeeper, Ahmed Basil. By this point he already had a notable assist, squaring simply for MbappĂ© after snaffling the ball during another Iraq defensive snafu. This brought particular joy to Deschamps as it ended the recent line of media questioning as to the role of the Paris Saint-Germain star in the team.
âThere is no issue with Ousmane, he has had to readapt to a system he doesnât play all year,â was Deschampsâ post-match verdict. âAs long as Ousmane is well physically, itâs just fine-tuning. I trust in Ousmane, he knows that, and doing what he did today was important. Heâs a decisive player, so is Kylian, but Ousmane has that capacity.â
After being shifted out of the No 10 position in the second half against Senegal, DembĂ©lĂ© remained stationed on the right side of Franceâs fearsome attacking four for the duration of the contest with Iraq. He maintained the width effectively, had 67 touches, created three chances, made four passes in the final third and recovered the ball three times. In each of these metrics, bar the recoveries, his performance was comparable to that of Olise and ahead of Bradley Barcola on the opposing flank.
âI think he played a very good match,â said Jules KoundĂ©, who has been charged with building a partnership with DembĂ©lĂ© on Franceâs right. âHeâs someone who is naturally confident. Iâm just happy for him that he was able to score that first goal and overall be decisive. But itâs above all a collective performance. I know [the media have] focused a lot on Ousmane these last few days, but on our side, as Kylian said, thereâs no problem. On the contrary, I think Ousmane was very calm.â
Les Bleus were not affected by the two-hour break in play caused by roiling thunderstorms over Philadelphia on Monday. They have been able to open up attacking opportunities apparently at will, with nine big chances created in their first two games. Despite claims by Iraqâs head coach, Graham Arnold, that France were not an effective pressing team, they have regained the ball 47 times in the opponentâs defensive third, the second highest total in the tournament and just two behind Spain.
For Mondayâs match, Deschamps was able to rotate Barcola, Manu KonĂ© and Lucas Digne smoothly, with KonĂ© impressive as he deputised for AurĂ©lien TchouamĂ©ni. Add in that there is none of the traditional discord emanating from the camp and that, in fact, France seem to be projecting determined unity and itâs hard to see how the campaign could be going much better for the two-time world champions.
Yet there are weak points. The win in Philly was Franceâs first clean sheet in seven matches, but Iraq had their chances. They were a couple of inches from getting on the scoresheet when Ali al-Hamadiâs poked effort had the beating of Mike Maignan in the second half, and they generated 0.63 xG in total. France not only throw their fabulous front four into every attack but send their full-backs after them too, with their high positioning leaving space in the channels for opponents.
The Norway game will provide greater insight into quite how significant these perceived vulnerabilities might be. Itâs surely true, too, that any France flaws might simply be a result of being dominant: that itâs hard to remain 100% focused when much of the game comes so easily. This is a dichotomy that has hurt Deschampsâ teams before, notably in their knockout defeat by Switzerland at Euro 2020.
The France attack has clicked, while the jury on the defence remains out. The mental battle is one thatâs ongoing, too.
Haaland may have been playing mind games, and you will not hear Didier Deschamps making any such argument. But the French head coach certainly took satisfaction from his teamâs storm-hit but ultimately straightforward victory over Iraq. Featuring another Kylian MbappĂ© double and two more assists for Michael Olise, this matchâs notable success was Ousmane DembĂ©lĂ©âs arrival at the party, scoring his first tournament goal at the 20th attempt.
The Ballon dâOr winner got a second-half goal, finding separation in the box to convert a smooth Olise assist with a shot across the Iraq goalkeeper, Ahmed Basil. By this point he already had a notable assist, squaring simply for MbappĂ© after snaffling the ball during another Iraq defensive snafu. This brought particular joy to Deschamps as it ended the recent line of media questioning as to the role of the Paris Saint-Germain star in the team.
âThere is no issue with Ousmane, he has had to readapt to a system he doesnât play all year,â was Deschampsâ post-match verdict. âAs long as Ousmane is well physically, itâs just fine-tuning. I trust in Ousmane, he knows that, and doing what he did today was important. Heâs a decisive player, so is Kylian, but Ousmane has that capacity.â
After being shifted out of the No 10 position in the second half against Senegal, DembĂ©lĂ© remained stationed on the right side of Franceâs fearsome attacking four for the duration of the contest with Iraq. He maintained the width effectively, had 67 touches, created three chances, made four passes in the final third and recovered the ball three times. In each of these metrics, bar the recoveries, his performance was comparable to that of Olise and ahead of Bradley Barcola on the opposing flank.
âI think he played a very good match,â said Jules KoundĂ©, who has been charged with building a partnership with DembĂ©lĂ© on Franceâs right. âHeâs someone who is naturally confident. Iâm just happy for him that he was able to score that first goal and overall be decisive. But itâs above all a collective performance. I know [the media have] focused a lot on Ousmane these last few days, but on our side, as Kylian said, thereâs no problem. On the contrary, I think Ousmane was very calm.â
Les Bleus were not affected by the two-hour break in play caused by roiling thunderstorms over Philadelphia on Monday. They have been able to open up attacking opportunities apparently at will, with nine big chances created in their first two games. Despite claims by Iraqâs head coach, Graham Arnold, that France were not an effective pressing team, they have regained the ball 47 times in the opponentâs defensive third, the second highest total in the tournament and just two behind Spain.
For Mondayâs match, Deschamps was able to rotate Barcola, Manu KonĂ© and Lucas Digne smoothly, with KonĂ© impressive as he deputised for AurĂ©lien TchouamĂ©ni. Add in that there is none of the traditional discord emanating from the camp and that, in fact, France seem to be projecting determined unity and itâs hard to see how the campaign could be going much better for the two-time world champions.
Yet there are weak points. The win in Philly was Franceâs first clean sheet in seven matches, but Iraq had their chances. They were a couple of inches from getting on the scoresheet when Ali al-Hamadiâs poked effort had the beating of Mike Maignan in the second half, and they generated 0.63 xG in total. France not only throw their fabulous front four into every attack but send their full-backs after them too, with their high positioning leaving space in the channels for opponents.
The Norway game will provide greater insight into quite how significant these perceived vulnerabilities might be. Itâs surely true, too, that any France flaws might simply be a result of being dominant: that itâs hard to remain 100% focused when much of the game comes so easily. This is a dichotomy that has hurt Deschampsâ teams before, notably in their knockout defeat by Switzerland at Euro 2020.
The France attack has clicked, while the jury on the defence remains out. The mental battle is one thatâs ongoing, too.
