victorious in England, the Blues are full of confidence two months before the Paris 2024 Games

Since the lesson learned in the Nations League final against Spain, the France team has won its last three matches, including Friday’s against the reigning European champions.

The French team registered a second big name in a row on its hunting list, Friday May 31. Following on from their short victory in Sweden (1-0), the Blues managed to overthrow the English at home in Newcastle (2-1). Successes, to which must be added the one acquired against Ireland (1-0), which testify to the great French dynamic.

If, as is often the case, everything was not perfect in the game against England, the French managed to win for the first time against a team ranked in the top 3 of the Fifa rankings in official competition. What’s more, against the reigning European champion Lionesses, who reached the World Cup final last summer.

“It’s been years since I’ve run this much. Physically it was a very tough match, we know their quality but we knew how to respond. It’s great to knock them down at home, it’s tough”, underlined Marie-Antoinette Katoto, more exhausted than happy in the mixed zone, after having scored the winning goal. Following a corner, like Elisa De Almeida’s equalizer before her.

Enough to also satisfy coach Hervé Renard, who followed the meeting from the stands due to a suspension. “It’s important to send signals to the opponents. Lately, we’ve had the opportunity to meet some very strong teams. Sweden at home, England at home… We showed the same solidity and we become more and more efficient”he reacted at a press conference.

Since being corrected by Spain at the end of February in the final of the League of Nations (0-2), the French selection has shown progress in both surfaces. In the North of England, she scored the majority of her shots (4/7), while their opponents failed to find the best opportunities (4/16). “Previously we had a lot of situations without realizing them… We scored once again from set pieces. The same ones that we work on tirelessly with Gilles Fouache [l’entraîneur des gardiennes responsable de ces phases]”, underlined Laurent Bonadéi, deputy in charge replacing Hervé Renard.

Proof of its current success, the French team also had the right to a helping hand from destiny just before kick-off on Friday. On a pitch at St James’ Park known for being slightly inclined, Delphine Cascarino’s partners were lucky enough to be able to choose the half of the field in which they wanted to start. “We knew that in the second half, we attacked with the slope of the pitch. It’s the same strategy as Newcastle, if they choose it, it’s because there’s a reason and it served us well after the break“, revealed Laurent Bonadéi.

The Blues must now continue this dynamic to arrive strongly at the Olympic Games with an entry into the competition scheduled for July 25 against Colombia in Lyon. “We’re going to use all that for the Olympics, but it’s a little far away for me”explained Wendie Renard after the match, still believing that her team could still “do better in using the ball”.

Until then, we will have to fold the matter in the race for Euro 2025. With nine points out of nine possible, all the Tricolores are missing is one success to secure one of the first two qualifying places in their hen. In other words, if they want to conclude quickly, they will have to win again against the Lionesses in Saint-Etienne on Tuesday.