The European press – particularly the Spanish one – has not been kind to the French team, second in its group but qualified for the last 16 of the Euro after the draw against Poland (1-1).
“France is a machine for wasting chances.” The inefficiency of the Blues in front of goal was the focus of the European press after another difficult outing for Didier Deschamps’ players, who wasted many opportunities and were content with another draw this Tuesday against Poland (1-1) at Euro 2024.
>> Relive France-Poland
“A flat team with flaws”, underlines As about the Blues, who delivered “a purge” during this group phase concluded with a victory and two draws. Beyond the balance sheet, Marca is enjoying the French offensive weakness (two goals scored, a CSC and a penalty). “France is a machine for wasting opportunities (…) Lewandowski is always determined to make penalties last longer than a Netflix series but the French awakening was late and mediocre.”
Mbappé at the center of attention
Substitute against the Netherlands after breaking his nose against Austria eight days ago, the captain of the Blues was entitled to a lot of lines in the foreign media. For Sky Sport Germany, he was “the attraction of the French team’s match” despite a slight delay in lighting. “Mbappé needed time to get going. The superstar certainly caused murmurs in the stands with his ball catches, but he only rarely put in his accelerations. What’s more, he got angry after the one of the French’s greatest chances by Ousmane Dembele, because N’Golo Kante didn’t see it.”
In England, the Daily Mail points out that “one player does not make a team” and that the French team’s draw on Tuesday “reflects a team looking for the same unity as all the Spanish talents”, “looking for fluidity” to convert its opportunities.
After the “solid poor performance of the Blues” in this Euro, the Belgian media La Derniere Heure is already planning towards a possible France-Belgium in the round of 16. A match which “would cause a lot of ink to flow” between the two neighbors, six years after the semi-final of the World Cup won by the Tricolores. Guaranteed to play their next match Monday July 1 at 6 p.m., Didier Deschamps’ men are now awaiting their opponent, who will be known this Wednesday.
