France stamp their authority on Euro 2016

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  • France finally show up

    PARIS, France — As La Marseillaise rang out around the Stade de France after the final whistle, it felt as though France had finally arrived at Euro 2016. The anthem urges citizens to ‘marchons, marchons’ and that’s exactly what Les Bleus did – advancing through Iceland’s defensive line at will and powering into the semi-finals.

    It was the performance that the French public had been waiting patiently for three weeks to witness. Didier Deschamps’ side have made a habit of just ‘doing enough’ so far at this tournament. But while narrow victories are of course the hallmark of champions, there’s really nothing like a goal glut to inspire confidence.

    Against an Iceland starting XI that was unchanged for a fourth game in succession, France looked far fresher. It was a display of real swagger, a ruthless razing of Iceland’s European Championship dreams.

    When Les Bleus won Euro 1984 it was a 5-0 annihilation of Belgium in the group stage that really got France believing. This five-goal haul has had a similarly stirring effect.

    They may not be able to call on the storied ‘Magic Square’ as they did on home soil 32 years ago, but Deschamps can certainly boast a quality quartet. In Paul Pogba, Blaise Matuidi, Dimitri Payet and Antoine Griezmann, France have four tremendously gifted footballers.

    Against Iceland, they produced some breathtaking one-touch football and each played a role in France’s five goals, Les Bleus’ list of creators and scorers reading: Matuidi to Giroud, Griezmann to Pogba, Griezmann to Payet, Giroud to Griezmann, Payet to Giroud.

    Matuidi is the group’s unsung hero, quietly going about his business, breaking up play with aplomb. At one stage in the first half he gave the ball away cheaply in midfield but ran hell for leather to atone for his error, emerging with the ball. He didn’t lose it again. Matuidi has guile as well as grit, though, exemplified by his perfectly weighted assist for Giroud’s opener.

    With Pogba’s powerful running, Griezmann’s direct dribbling and Payet’s perfect deliveries – plus a confident, in-form Olivier Giroud – France looked formidable. As Pogba rose to head home the second goal from Griezmann’s corner, you couldn’t help but think of Zinedine Zidane’s World Cup final header here at the Stade de France in 1998. Pogba is still some way short of that lofty billing, but his influence is growing as the tournament progresses.

    Expectation will now be heightened and rightly so. With Germany missing the valuable experience of Mats Hummels, Sami Khedira, Bastian Schweinsteiger and Mario Gomez, France can be viewed as favourites for the semi-final clash.

    For Iceland, Euro 2016 expectations have been comfortably exceeded. They have shaken up both the established order and French stadiums alike, their deafening Viking war cry proving almost as popular as ‘Will Grigg’s On Fire’ off the pitch.

    On it, there were at least a pair of consolation goals to celebrate at the Stade de France, Kolbeinn Sigthorsson and Birkir Bjarnason ensuring a whitewash was avoided. It wasn’t the fairytale ending the neutrals had hoped for, but Iceland have broken through many barriers at these European Championship and it will be no surprise if another is dismantled in 2018.

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