(at halftime)
I’m not live-blogging this one, but I hope you’re watching: this is, without a doubt, the best World Cup game I’ve seen so far. It’s everything that I thought Argentina/Germany would be, and more.
We’re tied 0-0. France has dominated so far. They have played extremely solid defense, and have built up their attacks through meticulous passing. If Brazil is all about the creative side of soccer, France is about defense and control. While the game has featured some rough play, it’s gratifying to see both teams spreading the field and opening up the game.
Those who laughed at me on Friday for picking France to win must be having second thoughts right about now. Brazil could pull out a victory, but it won’t be easy.
More after the game. Allez les bleus!
UPDATE: Wow. Wow, Wow, Wow. An amazing game. I hope you caught it.
The French goal was a thing of beauty — a visciously arcing free kick from Zidane that found Henry completely unmarked as he swooped in and swatted the ball straight up into the net.
The game was relatively rough throughout, but the refs handled it well. The few bad calls evened out in the the end.
The man of the match? Who else?
Zidane played a sparkling game all around, centering the offense and holding the defense steady. Also notable on the French side were Henry, Thierry, and Ribery. The coach, Raymond Domenech, has to be commended for his substitutions. He took both Henry and Ribery out — bold moves, considering how well they had played — but the fresh legs turned out to be just what the French needed.
My guess is that the end of Brazil’s run, combined with the defeat of England today, will translate into a distinct loss of American interest in the World Cup. I hope that doesn’t happen, but there is no denying the fact that Brazil has fueled a great deal of the American passion for the Cup.
If you’re looking for a team to root for, you should consider jumping on the French bandwagon. The giant-killers, who have rebounded from a weak start to beat two of the strongest teams in the tournament (Spain and Brazil), have come under attack in their own country for the multi-cultural makeup of the team.
Jean-Marie Le Pen, the French nationalist, ideologue, and bigot who sought the French presidency in 2002 — and who recieved a frightening number of votes — complained recently [via] that France could take no pride in a team that had so many black guys on the roster (sixteen of their twenty-three players are non-white). He also complained that some members of the team weren’t singing the French national anthem before games (yes, this creep is the French version of Bill O’Reilly).
Lilian Thuram, a defenseman on the French squad, responded:
“What can I say about Monsieur Le Pen?” said Thuram ruefully. “Clearly, he is unaware that there are Frenchmen who are black, Frenchmen who are white, Frenchmen who are brown. I think that reflects particularly badly on a man who has aspirations to be president of France but yet clearly doesn’t know anything about French history or society.
[. . .]
“When we take to the field, we do so as Frenchmen. All of us. When people were celebrating our win, they were celebrating us as Frenchmen, not black men or white men. It doesn’t matter if we’re black or not, because we’re French. I’ve just got one thing to say to Jean Marie Le Pen. The French team are all very, very proud to be French. If he’s got a problem with us, that’s down to him but we are proud to represent this country. So Vive la France, but the true France. Not the France that he wants.”
Would that we had similarly direct and moving reponses to such bigotry in America.
A victory for this French team would validate not only this particular group of players, but also the changing face of European countries such as France. I know that they have my vote of confidence for the rest of the tournament.
But that’s only part of the reason I’m rooting for them. They play the game solidly, with style and skill, and I admire them for not backing down in the face of the celebrated Brazil squad.
Besides, my French brother-in-law and his friends would kill me if I rooted for anyone else.
8 Comments on "Brazil vs. France"
Frank:
Allez, Le Bleus! is right. Great goal by Henry a second ago. And then another try that Zidane almost got to (or Juan nearly made an own goal). Beauty. Fabulous game so far.
Lizzy:
Bummed, I wanted Brazil.
UncleHorns:
A continental final four!
I was growing weary of the Brazil hype… They do play brilliantly at times, but it was time to go. I’ll look forward to watching Ronaldinho next season in La Liga.
Excellent quote from Thuram, Matt!!!
Martin:
It’s almost 3am here. I just got back from a long day in New York, the centerpiece of which was that great France-Brazil game.
I watched the game in a nominally Irish pub called One and One in the East Village. I had seen the Mexico-Iran game at the same pub the first weekend, and the place today had probably 3x as many people as then. Of vocal supporters, it was probably 2:1 French to Brazilian, which made it a great vibe. No matter what was happening, someone was chanting or singing. “Alleeeeez Bleus!” got sung a lot.
I was rooting hard for France throughout, mainly because I was with a French-American who incidentally is a big Marseilles fan. I also wanted Brazil to lose on general principles. Today was about… the 8th day or so I’ve spent watching the Cup in bars and the like, and I’d probably not trade that one game today for all the other days put together.
France beat the pants off of Brazil. I think it was apparent Brazil wasn’t going to win at halftime already. There was nothing that Brazil could point to, really, like a bad call or some flukey bit of luck. France played harder, played better — and, I would bet, had a much better gameplan, whether that means something that the coach dictates or something that a handful of players had in their heads vis-a-vis their individual assignments. Which is all a long way of saying, the quality on the French side was an edifice that the Brazilians weren’t just going to be able to blow down. When the ball is on the opponents’ side 80% of the time, you’re going to lose.
What a game. Damn, that was sweet!
A couple of pics I took below. I actually took a lot more than this, but these are the only ones that even approximate the vibe; the others are all just folks looking at a TV, basically. These were taken after the game, when the pub began pumping “We Are the Champions” at high volume (also, incidentally, an effective way of saying, Get Out).
Martin:
Oops, forgot the URLs (they’re both very similar shots, taken a few seconds apart):
http://s93143764.onlinehome.us/IMG_2476.JPG
http://s93143764.onlinehome.us/IMG_2477.JPG
Martin:
I was just reading my own comment above, and I was pondering why I thought that the outcome was pretty much discernable already at halftime. I don’t think it was any of the reasons mentioned, coaching, effort, etc. I think what happened was that in the first half France basically broke Brazil’s will — or maybe their confidence.
By playing so much better, France had sent the message, Look, we came to play — if you’re going to win, you’re not going to be able to do it on your charm, Ronaldinho’s toothy grin, and “Joga Bonito.” You’re going to have to figure out how to beat us — and since you’re just realizing all this for the first time now, you probably won’t.
Matt:
Thanks so much for your comments and for putting up those pictures, Martin. Great stuff. I’m still coming down off of the post-game high.
Here is some analysis of the game from the football sites I’ve been following:
The Rootless Cosmopolitan (I think he’s right about the importance of the French midfielders, and I love his comments on Domenech)
BBC (via Deadspin - which I’m starting to love even though it’s a Denton site. It has the traditional Denton sarcasm, but it also has a heart)
ESPN soccernet
NYT
Basma Ab:
My favorite team that has and may always be is Brazil so I was pretty down but France did deserve to win because scores beat talent in this World cup and we all saw that with Germany vs Argentina. (NO COMMENT)
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