France rounded off the group stages of the Toulon Tournoi with a 2-1 win against Portugal, to win a place in the final against Brazil.
Their first match, against Chile, was the traditional game of two halves. While pressing well without the ball, France’s longer-ball tactics weren’t working in the wind, and passes were going astray. With Chile also pressing high and fast, as Mexico would also later do, Nardi kept France in it with several fine saves, and Naby Sarr was also impressive in defence.
The second half saw a distinct change in fortunes – first Bahebeck made a goal from nothing, with a wonderful strike from the left corner of the box, right in the opposite corner, then Sacko had two chances in quick succession, the second provoked by a lovely pass from captain Adrien Hunou for the second goal. Finally, Robles (who also got sent off in the epic 3-3 draw with China, where Chile went down to nine men) gave away a penalty by hauling down Bahebeck who converted from the spot to make it France 3-0 Chile.
That scoreline was slightly flattering, perhaps, and the reservations caused by the first half in particular were underlined in the second game, a 1-1 draw against China. Again the first half was goalless, China having one disallowed, and Haller missing an open header. He made amends in the second half, however, as a corner was half-cleared and the Auxerre striker somehow dived backwards to get his head round the ball for the opener.
China got back into it when Sarr was booked for a foul right on edge of area. It may have been a penalty, but that was academic as the freekick was curled into the corner by Xinhui Wang. France came close to 2-1 as a couple of excellent Bourigeaud free kicks just needed somebody on the end of them, but the draw was a fair result in a match of few chances, in which China rarely looked ruffled. They would later show their mettle in coming from 2-0 down against Chile, albeit helped by the steadily decreasing number of Chilean players on the pitch.
Match three was a 2-0 win over Mexico that again didn’t quite allay those reservations. Hunou scored on seven minutes, spinning on the penalty spot to slot home a cross from Ikoko on the right, who had been released by a pass from Wesley Said. Another cross set up Haller for a chance, but the drop was difficult and his attempted bicycle kick was blocked by a defender’s face.
France were looking sprightly, Nardi again making some good saves, and Amavi impressing at leftback. They pushed on seeking a second, but most of the chances fell to Hunou, now looking a little out of sorts (possibly knackered). First Nangis tore up the left to leave a defender trailing in his wake and put the cross in but Hunou headed wide; then he was released through the middle but got the ball tangled up and didn’t get anything on the shot which trundled to the keeper. With ten minutes to go they thought they’d got the second as Bahebeck got the ball in the back of the net but he was (wrongly) flagged for offside. With Mexico still pressing high and fast, France were looking a little nervy. Bahebeck shot wide, Rabiot forced a last-ditch clearance, and then Ikoko and Said combined on the right again and this time the right-back got his reward.
Going into the last match needing a win to top the group, all bets were off. Portugal had three wins (2-0 against Mexico, 3-1 against Chile, and a comprehensive 4-1 against China) and were looking good. France’s organisation at the back, and another fine performance from Nardi, gave the attack the basis to do their thing, and they clicked well. Sacko was a holy terror on the right, but the first half-hour was mostly Portugal, until Bahebeck unleashed a thriker from outside the area, forcing Varela into a good save. The corner was unsuccessful, but shortly after, Bourigeaud put the ball forward to Rabiot on the edge of the area (and the edge of offside) – he went down, but the ball had bounced to Sarr, who opened the scoring with a fine finish.
This was the first time that Portugal had been behind in the tournament, and they didn’t seem to deal with it particularly well. Tackles were flying in – Fernandes particularly robust in this respect, Cancelo booked for contestation, Goncalves for going through Rabiot – and then Bahebeck was brought down by Varela as he streaked away from his marker. Sacko converted the penalty to make it 2-0, but Portugal came back hard and Nardi was forced to make a series of good saves before finally being beaten from a corner. Ruben Vezo got the goal, with a firm downward header after the ball had sailed over its intended target. Worryingly for France, nobody was at the far post and Nardi could not get back to it. The last ten minutes were increasingly tense, as France knew an equaliser would be enough for Portugal to make the final – Nardi made more saves as substitute Iuri Medeiros got into the game, and Costa and Horta also tried to make it even. Meanwhile Said, on for Nangis who had a quiet match, was stopping things being one-way traffic at the other end. The defence held out, and France were through.
They will meet Brazil in the final, who have sauntered to the top of the group with their first three results – 2-0 against South Korea, 2-1 against Colombia, and 2-1 against England (a match featuring a superb freekick from James Ward-Prowse). They have a final match on Friday against Qatar (who have drawn against Korea and Colombia, and lost 3-0 to England) to get through but are safe on nine points and have threat all over the park. France will need their defence to stay on song while hoping that their attack can carry on from the match against Portugal, rather than the slightly stuttering approach of the earlier games.
Portugal, meanwhile, will play the bronze medal match against…all to play for. Korea have the spot at the moment with five points, but are sitting out the last round, where a point for England against Colombia would be enough unless Qatar pull off a 5-0 win over Brazil, which seems slightly unlikely. Colombia came second last year, but have been poor this time, coming from behind against Qatar for their only point so far – they could yet pull themselves together and dampen England’s day.
