Nizhny Novgorod: The world would witness one of the biggest matches of this FIFA World Cup when France’s attack will deal with Uruguay’s rock-solid defence in their quarterfinal match here, Friday.
The Les Bleus, France popularly called, got off to a slow start but four goals against Argentina last weekend will be a stark reminder to Uruguay of what they are capable of producing.
Didier Deschamps’ men were always among the tournament favourites but an underwhelming set of warm-up internationals plus a timid start in Russia suggested their reputation rang louder than reality.
That was dispelled last Saturday in Kazan as 19-year-old Kylian Mbappe and cohorts thrilled in a 4-3 victory over a Lionel Messi-led Argentina in the last 16.
Not only did the French midfield cleverly nullify the threat of Messi, but upfront the pace of the teenager and his combination with teammates showed what their squad can achieve.
No more will that be needed than against Uruguay, who have conceded just once in the tournament and pride themselves on their stingy defence.
But if any side has the armoury to break them down, it is France, with Mbappe at the attacking helm and Antoine Griezmann and Olivier Giroud alongside.
“I don’t think France has had as powerful an attack since 1998 when they won the World Cup,” said former Croatia coach Slaven Bilic, who is a TV pundit in Moscow during the tournament.
“When I saw Mbappe sprinting some 70 yards to earn France a penalty, I thought to myself ‘that’s incredible’,” former Switzerland striker Stephane Chapuisat told reporters this week. “In addition, he has another quality that you don’t often see in goal scorers: altruism. Mbappe feeds off teammates as much as he contributes to the collective,” he added.
Should they win, France will face either Belgium or Brazil in the semifinals. A clash against Brazil would evoke memories of France’s only World Cup title triumph 20 years ago, certainly an inspiration if needed to get past Uruguay.