France failed to finish top of EURO2024’s Group D following a lacklustre 1-1 draw against Poland at the Westfalenstadion in Dortmund.
Penalties from Kylian Mbappé and Robert Lewandowski prevented a goalless stalemate with an action-packed affair taking place between Austria and the Netherlands in the other half of the group.
The result had huge implications for French chances of success, with Les Bleus set to enter the same half of the knockout draw as Germany, Spain, and Portugal.
As it happened
The stage was set for a cagey final day of Group D proceedings. For Poland, it was a meeting fueled by nothing but pride – after all, the White-Reds became the first nation to be eliminated from EURO2024 earlier in matchday two.
France, on the other hand, were desperate to string together a first-place finish, having struggled to find their rhythm in their opening two matches. For that to happen, Les Bleus needed both a victory over Poland and for points to be dropped by the Netherlands.
The Oranje’s tricky opponents, Austria, took an early lead in their match, which was good news from the get-go for the French – but only if they walked away with a decisive three points of their own.
Deschamps’ side were handed a boost through the return of star Kylian Mbappé. The newly unveiled ‘Galactico’ sustained a broken nose during France’s opening matchday victory over Ralf Ragnick’s Austria, and looked as though he could be out of action for the remainder of the group stage.
Embed from Getty ImagesIt was an encouraging start from Les Bleus, who carved out two good opportunities inside the opening 20 minutes. Ex-Borussia Dortmund forward Ousmane Dembélé showed early signs of promise having struggled to find his feet so far in the tournament – perhaps he felt comfortable in the familiar surroundings of his magnificent old stadium.
Nevertheless, it was the men in red with the first big chance of the match. An incoming cross found the head of Polish talisman Robert Lewandowski, who directed the ball narrowly wide of Mike Maignan’s post – perhaps a warning sign to the French that complacency could be costly.
New kid on the block Bradley Barcola showcased his talents on just his second start for the French national team. The 21-year-old made his debut under Didier Deschamps in a friendly against Luxembourg earlier this year but has played second fiddle to the more experienced Marcus Thuram so far at EURO2024.
Barcola’s two big chances created inside the first half were indicative of the quality he has produced in a Paris Saint-Germain shirt, and got the French faithful off their seats.
With Polish goalkeeper Wojciech Szczęsny retiring from international football tonight, it was time for Łukasz Skorupski to fill the gloves of a national icon.
The Bologna man kept 13 clean sheets as Thiago Motta guided I Rossoblu to a remarkable fifth-place finish in Serie A – and he put in a very good shift for Michał Probierz’ White-Reds tonight.
Skorupski made save after save in the opening half of football to deny Les Bleus an all-important opening goal and found himself at the cause of the frustration of a certain masked Frenchman.
The second half continued much like the first, with Didier Deschamps no doubt telling his team that if they keep probing, a goal will come – though perhaps the opener didn’t arrive quite as expected.
Dembélé’s tricky feet caused a problem for Arsenal’s Jakub Kiwior as they entered the penalty box, with the defender’s clumsy leg clattering into his opponent and leaving the referee with no choice but to point to the spot.
Up stepped Kylian Mbappé, and into the back of the net the ball went. It didn’t stem from the free-flowing, high-quality football we know the French are capable of, but for the 64 million people watching back home, that simply did not matter.
Embed from Getty ImagesIf the final result remained the same, then France would have guaranteed themselves a first-place finish in the difficult Group D. Football is rarely that straightforward though, and Poland heading east out of Germany without showing their worth.
Dayot Upamecano had all eyes on the ball at Karol Swiderski’s feet but made full contact with the Polish man. Penalty to Poland.
The spot-kick was messy, to say the least. Lewandowski stuttered during his run-up to try and catch Maignan out, and the ‘keeper stepped off his line as he saved the attempt. The decision? A retake, which is tucked away to send the travelling Poles into jubilation.
Embed from Getty ImagesThe White-Reds may have already been eliminated, but you wouldn’t have known it by the deafening support. Forget the Yellow Wall, Poland painted the Westfalenstadion red and white.
You could tell that the goal caught the French by surprise. They looked startled during the closing stages of the match, and couldn’t muster together any real attempt at a crucial winning goal.
Mbappé thought he was fouled inside the box with just seconds to go, but referee Marco Guida waved play on and blew the final whistle. France needed a win and came out with a draw.
With Austria beating the Netherlands in a thrilling game in the German capital, France finished second in Group D. Did you predict that to happen ahead of this summer’s tournament? I certainly didn’t…
They’re still through, but life may have just got that much harder for Didier Deschamps’ Bleus as they look to win their first European Championships since Zinedine Zidane spearheaded their second tournament victory in 2000.
As for Poland, they can walk away from this evening’s encounter with their head held high. They gave their fans a result to smile about as they said ‘do widzenia’ to EURO2024.
Embed from Getty ImagesThe lineups
FRA: Maignan; Koundé, Upamecano, Saliba, Hernández; Tchouaméni, Kanté, Rabiot; Dembélé, Mbappé, Barcola
POL: Skorupski; Bednarek; Dawidowicz, Kiwior; Frankowski, Moder, Zieliński, Zalewski; Szymański, Lewandowski, Urbański
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