What’s the deal with the faces of French national team captains? Rugby sensation Antoine Dupont had a severe facial break at the World Cup last year, but he rejected medical advice regarding his broken cheekbone to return bravely and guide his powerful team to a painful quarter-final loss against South Africa.
After eight months, football sensation Kylian Mbappé will need to wear a mask to shield his broken nose when he is called up to a team that is vying for gold at Euro 2024.
The injury was sustained by Mbappé on Monday night during the last moments of France’s 1-0 victory over Austria. Tests revealed he wouldn’t need emergency surgery, dispelling fears that he would miss the competition. For the Real Madrid striker, a red, white, and blue face mask has been made.
France demonstrated on Friday night in Leipzig that they needed the 25-year-old’s nose for a goal during the 0-0 draw with the Netherlands.
Mbappé scored twice in France’s victory over the Netherlands during the previous year’s Euro 2024 qualifying campaign, helping them to win the group and knock the Dutch out of second place.
“I had two good chances,” interim captain Antoine Griezmann said following the draw on Friday night to French network M6.
“It was unfortunate. We played well both strategically and defensively. The assailants were the ones who fell short.”
Due to the draw, France now sits second in Group D with four points, one point ahead of the Netherlands, who lead based on goals scored. Austria is in third place with three points after
As one of the top four third-place teams, France should advance to the round of 16 with their four-point total.
However, France needs at least a point from their final match on Tuesday in Dortmund against Poland in order to guarantee themselves of automatic advancement.
Such hardships for a side that swaggered into the competition as the top-ranked team according to Fifa rankings and was admired for the wealth coach Didier Descahamps seemed to have at his disposal.
Modification
However, England entered the competition as the runners-up at Euro 2020. Was that predetermined?
Five days later, they played a terrible match in a 1-1 tie with Denmark after opening their Group C campaign with a mediocre 1-0 win against Serbia.
All of a sudden, hotshot Harry Kane, who scored 44 goals with Bayern Munich last season, and Real Madrid wonder kid Jude Bellingham, who scored the game-winning goal against Serbia, appeared quite gloomy.
After the game, England manager Gareth Southgate remarked, “We didn’t press the ball with enough intensity and we kept conceding possession too cheaply.”
“And it becomes difficult to maintain control in the game when you do those two things. Thus, the longer the game lasted, the more nervously the player performed.
“We understand that that’s got to be better if we want to progress to the stages of the tournament that everybody is expecting and delivering what we need to deliver.”
Emphasize
The good news for Southgate and the throngs of England supporters is that, after two games, they have four points and should qualify for the round of sixteen with a draw against Slovenia.
Denmark lost an opportunity to surprise a squad that was stumbling through the gears from leaden to lumpen, as they only had two points from their two games.
Denmark manager Kasper Hjulmand said, “It’s a shame, but I can’t say that we’re disappointed.” “We had an option on the outcome.
“We did well, so I can’t say we’re disappointed. I believe we played well and had a positive vibe going into the game.”
Group C is well-positioned for the upcoming round of games on June 25 after the draw. Slovenia and Serbia may also advance straight to the round of 16.
As of now, hosts Germany and the Spaniards have shown all the pomp and grandeur, while pre-tournament favorites England and France will only be scrapping.
Accolades
Die Mannschaft, as the German national team is referred known, seems to have gained some elasticity under head coach Julian Nagelsmann.
In the tournament’s opening match on June 14 in Munich, they destroyed Scotland 5-1, and five days later, they proved to be too cunning for Hungary.
Leading the race for the “golden boot” is Jamal Musiala of Bayern Munich, who scored his second goal of the competition. But Nagelsmann had praise for more than just his marksmanship.
Nagelsmann declared, “He has played brilliantly in both games.” “Whenever he has the ball, I think every situation or offensive proposition is pretty tough for the opponent to defend.”
They continue in perfect order. Similar to the Spaniards who, following their 3-0 rout of Croatia in Group B’s opening match, added Italy, the reigning champions, to their list of victims in order to mock the notion of
Anxiety-free environment
Luis de la Fuente, the coach of Spain, cried, “I am delighted and proud,” following the 1-0 victory in Gelsenkirchen.
“Not just for the outcome—beating a formidable team—but also for how we won the game and all we demonstrated.
“But as you progress, obviously the rivals start to know you,” he continued. “They get more aggressive. When I first arrived, I declared my conviction that our squad was the best.
“And I still believe it’s true, as long as we continue to behave and work as we are.”
In loss, Italy manager Luciano Spalletti, who led Napoli to the Serie A championship in 2023, was both thoughtful and selfless.
“The game revealed
The 65-year-old continued, “There’s really no point discussing about other areas of the game since that’s the foundation of everything. We just weren’t as agile as them.
“You can’t make the choices with the same speed, with the same reaction time when you’ve not got the legs.”
The area further up the human frame is of concern to France and their legions.
Mbappé will keep tending to his nose, and his squad still has work to do to move forward.
And that reality cannot be concealed in any way.
