The tops
Mbappé’s virtuosity:
From the first seconds, we felt that he had legs and great motivation after remaining on the bench in Marseille against Côte d’Ivoire. Each of his accelerations was a torture for the South African defense. Virtuoso on a few sequences, he scored with a sumptuous strike from the right without momentum in the top corner (23rd). He also tried to make his partners play even if he also sometimes wanted to do too much. In the second half, he continued to lead the French attack. Not far from the double with a strike on the bar (52nd), he finally scored his ninth goal in five selections from the penalty spot (76th), before delivering a decisive pass for Mattéo Guendouzi (90th + 2).
Giroud is getting closer to the record:
Its March rally is more than successful. Back with the Blues after a nine-month absence, Olivier Giroud continued to add to his tally, both in Marseille and Villeneuve-d’Ascq, where he doubled the lead with a goal full of composure in the heart. from the surface (33rd). If he still tends to disappear at times, he was still involved in many actions in the South African area. Olivier Giroud is only three goals away from Thierry Henry’s goal record in the national team (51).
A well-oiled system:
Even if adversity tends to qualify the observation, the 3-4-1-2 of the France team made sparks. Well in place, the Blues had total control of the game and created many situations. Small bonus, Wissam Ben Yedder who had to spend a frustrating rally on the bench scored his third goal in blue while Mattéo Guendouzi opened his counter.
The flops
The welcome given to Clauss:
A first tenure in the France team is already stressful enough for the context of a home game, what’s more, not to make the atmosphere heavier. Jonathan Clauss quickly understood that he would not have the support of all the public. Already, on the night of Monday to Tuesday, the poster representing him on the forecourt of the Pierre-Mauroy stadium had been covered with insults. During the presentation of the teams and during the meeting, the Lille ultras whistled the Lensois even if part of the public tried to cover these crackles with applause. A nice ovation nevertheless during his exit (88th).
South Africa’s weakness:
With Côte d’Ivoire, the France team had been seriously shaken up in Marseille in the first period. South Africa failed to move the Blues who, if they had plenty of time to recite their attacking game, did not really have to defend. Difficult to judge in these conditions the performance of the men of Didier Deschamps.