Group B: France 5-0 Montenegro

France Observations

 

In Possession

• 4-3-3
• Build-Up:
  • Played out from the GK and CBs, with occasional variation of longer passes into the forward line and/or behind​
  • As Montenegro attempted to go M2M in CM, France used frequent CM rotations, including: 
    • ​#6 rotated between DM, RB and advanced midfield positions
    • #17 regularly interchanged with #6 and also moved across to the left side
    • #20 alternated between pivot and advanced midfield roles
  • These rotations helped France progression through CM before getting the ball wide in the opposition half / final 3rd
• Chance Creation:
  • Predominantly came from wide areas, with dribbles from wingers and ​​FBs (#12 + #3) consistently providing overlap and underlap support
  • #19 and #18 switched wings around 20 mins, with both appearing more comfortable after switch

  • Whilst on two instances, the quality shown was worth noting - France showcased a couple sequences of effective one-touch combination play, with both leading to goalscoring opportunities. Each sequence started on the right-side, before moving into the centre and finishing with a goalscoring opportunity on the left-side (41:10 and 42:05-42:30)​​​

​​​

Out of Possession

• 4-4-2 high, with #20 moving alongside #9

• Pressed aggressive once high block set, particularly in wide areas

• Became 4-4-1-1 mid/low block, with #20 dropping to support midfield

​

Players

• #16 (GK) - Axel Decrenisse

  • Minimal GK work.

  • Played short but was never put under significant pressure, so limited opportunity to assess ability with his feet

  #12 (RB) - Mohamed Diaby

  • Right-footed

  • Consistently provided overlap and underlap support on the RW

  • 26:40: overlap created space for #19's shot

  • 30:50: overlapped before delivering cross for opening goal

• #14 (RCB) - Mohamed Sylla

  • Right-footed

  • 47:40: composed carry through midfield, beating an opponent before passing

• #15 (LCB) - Léo Lemaître

  • Left-footed

  • Made several successful last-ditch / sliding tackles

  • 28:30: last-ditch tackle inside the box

  • 34:10: another last-ditch tackle to stop Montenegro #17

  • 39th min: sliding tackle resulted in a yellow card

• #3 (LB) - Nathan Kasia Nkondo

  • Left-footed

  • Provided support on LW - below the ball and overlaps / underlaps

  • 52:05: clipped a long pass into the left channel

• #19 (RW) - Loan Merrifield

  • Left-footed

  • Opening 10 minutes: twice cut inside onto his right foot, firstly to play a through ball for #20, and secondly carry into the penalty area

  • Moved to RW around 20 mins

  • 20:11: cut inside onto his left foot and attempted a through ball

  • 26:40: controlled a diagonal pass well before curling an effort that was saved

  • 40:40: cut inside onto his left foot and attempted another through ball

  • 42:30: curled into the far corner, but the goal was disallowed for handball

  • Substituted at HT

• #17 (RCM) - Aymen Amaaaouch

  • Constantly interchanged with #6, taking up the single-pivot role

  • Comfortable receiving, retaining and carrying the ball through midfield

  • Licence to move across to the left side

  • 17:15: carried from deep, passed to #18 and provided a forward option with an underlapping run

  • 27:40: carried forward, used a no-touch turn and combined with #20 before the ball was played to #19

  • 55:35: won possession, carried diagonally and played into #20 to start the move for the 3rd goal

• #6 (LCM) - Kénan Doganay (C)

  • Heavily involved in build-up

  • As closely marked, made lots of off-ball movement to create space for himself or teammates to receive in CM

  • Rotated between RB, DM and RCM

  • 29:29–30:00: showed composure under pressure, using two pieces of skill to evade pressure in own defensive third before winning freekick (appeared fortunate as released pass not cleanest)
    34:10: bypassed by opponent in midfield and did not recover particularly quickly
    64:00: played a first-time through ball in behind for #18 following a turnover
    67:40: long aerial diagonal started the move for France's 4th goal
    85:40: good positional awareness in defensive transition, covering for the LB and intercepting after France lost possession high up the pitch

• #18 (LW) - Mamadou Meite

  • Appeared more comfortable on LW

  • 25:25: beat his defender and crossed into the box

  • 42:30: delivered an inswinging cross into the box

  • 52:05: received following a long-ball sequence and shot narrowly wide

  • 53:40: received vertically, carried diagonally and attempted a through ball

  • 55:35: scored from close range

  • 64:00: made a run in behind from #6's through ball

• #20 (AM) - Noah Loufoundou

  • Frequently drifted towards the right-hand side

  • Used his body effectively to secure and protect possession under pressure

  • 25:00: shielded possession under pressure

  • 29:29–30:00: won the ball back before being fouled

  • 30:50: scored with a near-post header

  • 34:10: dispossessed while playing as the pivot

  • 40:40: played a through ball for #9 to run in behind and win a penalty

  • 42:05: retained possession under heavy pressure

  • 55:35: received from #17 before releasing #7

  • When receiving and carrying, regularly moved across the path of recovering defenders to shield

  • ​End product often lacking in final 3rd, more successful actions when combining and during build-up​

• #9 (CF) - Christ Batola

  • Right-footed

  • Willing to drift into wide areas, particularly RW

  • 30:30: received a throw on the left, shielded well and crossed into the box

  • 38:30: held the ball up following a pass over the top

  • 40:40: timed his run in behind from #20's pass to win a penalty

  • 45:00: scored the penalty

  • 48:40: came short to combine before spinning into the right channel and winning a corner

  • 52:05: made another run into the LW channel

  • Used his body well in aerial duel and hold-up situations with pressure behind, back-to-goal

• Substitutions:

  • #5: On for #15 at HT. No notes

  • #7: On for #19 at HT. Played RW. 55:35: delivered a low cross for #18's goal. 67:40: cut inside from RW and scored France's 4th goal

  • #10: On for #17 at 61 mins. Right-footed. Dropped deep to receive possession. Combined well with #20 through simple passes and supporting movements underneath

  • #13: On for #20 at 69 mins. Played as the most advanced CM

  • #1: On for #16 at 75 mins. No notes