The handbrake is off. What has Didier Deshcamps unleashed on this World Cup?
Formidable France flexed their muscles once again on Tuesday, as they despatched Sweden 3-0 in New Jersey. In truth, it should’ve been more.
Deschamps’ side hit the post twice in a first half which they started slowly, only for Kylian Mbappe to break the deadlock with a bit of brilliance shortly before half-time. France didn’t let up in the second period, with Michael Olise elegantly slotting Bradley Barcola through for Les Blues’ second goal.
The third was magnifique. Producing a slide rule pass, Olise set up Mbappe to put the game to bed, as France’s captain drew level with Lionel Messi on seven in the race for the Golden Boot.
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France will now face Paraguay in Philadelphia on Saturday, wary of not losing their scalp to the South Americans, who beat Germany on penalties. As for Sweden, they’ll just be glad that they got this far.
After a botched qualifying campaign in which they failed to win any of their six games, their performance in the 2024 Nations League earned them a backdoor route into the play-offs. Graham Potter’s wounded animals beat Ukraine 3-1 in Spain before they ended up on the right side of a five-goal thriller against Poland in the final, having been drawn as the home team.
Once they got to North America, a 5-1 win against Tunisia before a loss by the same scoreline against the Netherlands left their hopes of reaching the knockouts in the balance. Fortunately, a 1-1 draw with Japan suited both teams and Sweden progressed as one of the eight best third-placed teams.
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View 2 ImagesSweden’s World Cup run has come to an end(Image: Catherine Ivill – AMA/Getty Images)
Potter’s focus will now shift to another Nations league campaign while Deschamps goes in search of World Cup No.2 as a manager. Returning to the touchline after travelling back to France last week following the sad death of his mother, this was the perfect way to get back to business.
France are now the first team ever to score three goals in five successive World Cup fixtures. Les Blues will take some stopping and right now, they’re the team to beat.
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But if this fabled tournament tells you anything, it’s that reputations counts for nothing.
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