It’s the big day. Les Bleus will challenge Belgium tonight at 6pm in this duel between the arch-enemies of European football. A ticket to the quarter-finals is at stake, and both nations are logically keen to seize it. Both have had a fairly mediocre group stage, and have similar characteristics: a defence that holds up well, a rather solid midfield, but an ineffective attack. The Bleus and the Red Devils have only scored two goals in their first matches.
Teams that disappoint, while they had a good rating before the start of the competition. Things are therefore going to start getting serious for Deschamps and Tedesco’s troops, and given the context, a draw at the end of the 90 minutes, then at the end of extra time, may seem like a very probable and realistic scenario. Which would give rise to a penalty shootout…
The Blues have finally worked on penalty kicks
An exercise in which the Blues have difficulty, like the last two competitions in which the French took the door on a penalty shootout. As indicated The Teamthe French staff does not want to be caught off guard and does not want to leave anything to chance this time. If penalty shootouts have not necessarily been worked on in the past, and that Deschamps’ communication presenting this event as a lottery had made some people grind their teeth, the French players have worked on this aspect a little this time to prepare for any eventuality.
France
Euro
Shape
V
V
NOT
NOT
V
Middle age
26.96 years old
Goals
-5
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For about ten minutes on Saturday, the French players had a specific exercise in which they worked on their shots from the penalty spot. The goalkeepers were informed about the habits of Belgian shooters. This may be obvious to some, but it was not done in the past. A rather light job however, especially because the Blues staff does not have a specialist in the matter as the media indicates, but which was necessary and which could well prove useful this evening…