Saturday, March 28, 2009
France vs. Lithuania
First and foremost, this game was boring - straight up uneventful. Ribery managed to fire off the wining shot (thankfully), but other than that, the game was filled with lackluster play. France continues to be disappointing, and as the first time I've seen them since Euro 2008, I was not impressed, just as last summer. France really needs to shape up, especially if they want to do some damage in South Africa. If not, they will not get through their group. Wish I could say more, but sangria beckons...
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
2 comments:
Well a couple things:
First and foremost, perhaps a boring match, but a stunning goal by Ribery. Credit where credit is due, that was great, and himself and Ballack can battle over who got the better goal of the international break.
Second, onto France, what people need to remember is that before the duo of Zidane/Henry, France were never a superpower. Always good no doubt, but never were they considered in the same league of Italy, Germany, Brazil and Argentina. Those other nations are ALWAYS favorites to win, whereas teams like France, Holland, Spain, Portugal and England fluctuate more with each generation. We just happened to grow up during the Zidane era, and mistakenly believed that France is this dynamic year in, year out. The fact of the matter is, France has won a single trophy outside of the Zidane era (the 1984 Euro Cup), which, minus Zidane, would put them on equal standings of such regional powerhouses as Denmark and Greece. Everything else was won during the Zidane era (WC 1998, Euro 2000, Confederations Cup 01 and 03). He's one of the greatest players ever and redefined the game. I'd love to see France continually challenge for trophies, but unless they're able to fill out their squad with players of the same quality that are now departing (and somehow fill that Zidane shaped hole), you won't see the French in too many more cup finals.
And actually, one little tidbit I forgot to throw in about that 1984 triumph. They were the host country and were granted automatic qualification. That may not seem like a big deal, but being the host nation definitely does (South Korea nearly made a World Cup final remember) and back then there were only 8 teams that qualified. And did I mention that was the only EuroCup they qualified for between 1960 and 1992 (and they hosted the 1960 one as well).
Post a Comment