France – Argentina – Less the ball but more efficiency: the match in stats

A possession and an attack in favor of Argentina but…

If the occupation of the land was very shared (49/51), possession reflects Argentinian domination, with 56%. And that says a lot about the strategy of the Blues, invested in winning this war against the Argentines who did not hesitate to shower them with candles.

And it's as if the Tricolores were nourished by this tactical choice, returning somewhere to their identity built in recent years. Certainly, the meters gained with ball in hand are not flattering to them: 390 against 542. But for the rest, when we look at the crossings (4 everywhere), or the number of defenders beaten (28 against 26 for the South Americans), we said to himself that it was not a loss. Even more so when we list the inaccuracies caused in the opposing ranks: 20 hand faults compared to 12 for the Blues.

All this was also made possible by the precision of the footwork. If their number is similar (26 to 22), their quality leaned in favor of the residents of the Stade de France: 883 meters gained on foot (633 for the Pumas).

A rather airtight defense

Obviously, by giving the opponent a little more possession, we expose ourselves to more defensive sequences. But the Blues maintained relative efficiency in this area, with a ratio of 87% of successful tackles (174 for 26 missed). This is more and better than the visitors, who finished at 84% (142 for 28 misses).

Discipline: like possession

If the two teams stuck more or less to international standards (10 penalties whistled against the French, 9 against the Argentinians), the faults correspond well to Argentina's possession of the ball. Eight of the ten penalties conceded by the Tricolores relate to defense. For the visitors, it is balanced, with 5 “offensive” penalties. But the two yellow cards from Montoya and Gonzalez tarnish their record.

A little-requested conquest

The Blues will have only had four scrum introductions, and will have lost one. But by recovering 2 balls on an opposing introduction, the results are balanced. The hit is comparable, with 6 throws, one lost but one theft on the opposing line-up (which will have had 10 ammunition).