On Wednesday, the French players (4th in the FIFA ranking) will start the very first French Tournament in Calais against a formidable team from Canada (8th in the FIFA ranking) at 5 p.m. First rally of the year for the Blue, this friendly competition promises to be raised since they will face three nations of the world top 10 qualified for the Olympic Games. Three high-level matches that will allow Corinne Diacre, the French coach, "to prepare for the qualifying matches (at Euro 2021) to come in April and June," she stressed in a conference. hurry.
First edition of the Tournoi de France
March 4-10
Calais / Valenciennes
The ticket office of #TournoiDeFrance ➡ https://t.co/V3EaDLgRB7pic.twitter.com/khCvIzYWhL
The objective of Les Bleues? Win the tournament. Corinne Diacre declared it at the headquarters of the FFF on February 26: "We will especially focus on ensuring that the French team plays well but above all that it wins". Amandine Henry, captain of the French group, made the same speech before the first match of the tournament: "The objective is to win it," she announced in a pre-match conference. The French are therefore expected in the offensive animation, and some players have more to prove than others.
Katoto, top scorer in D1
This is particularly the case for Marie-Antoinette Katotot. Discarded from the group at the World Cup last summer, the young Parisian had found the selection during the qualifying matches last fall. Even if Corinne Diacre "does not want to put pressure on him", the Paris Saint-Germain striker will have to confirm his status as top scorer in the first division (16 goals) during the competition.
At the end of 2019, the number 9 of the capital's club confided to RMC Sport about its tricolor future: “We are going to go there little by little. For now, I am gaining a little more playing time. I try to give the best each time, to progress, to take steps. ” The young French nugget scored twice in two games (against Kazakhstan and Serbia) during the last rally of the French team. It remains to be seen whether it will perform well during its next performances.
Sarr, the opportunity to take a place
The absence of Gaëtane Thiney, dismissed from the group after publicly criticizing the management of Corinne Diacre, benefits Ouleymata Sarr. The Bordeaux player is back in the France team since her last selection dates back to April 2018 during a friendly match against Canada. At almost 25, she seduced the three-color coach with the performances she has achieved this season.
The Tournoi de France could be a great opportunity for the Girondine: she will have to seize her chance and show that she is up to it if she wants to keep her place with the Blue and perhaps participate in Euro 2021. An opportunity that could run as early as Wednesday against ... Canada.
A record for Le Sommer?
With 167 selections in the blue jersey, Eugénie Le Sommer could break a record during the Tournoi de France. Indeed, after his 80th goal scored in the Euro qualification match against Kazakhstan on October 10 (3-0), the Lyon striker is only one length away from the record for goals scored in the team from France, women and men combined, currently owned by Marinette Pichon with 81 productions.
Even if this feat is close, the player from Brittany had raised the subject in an interview with L'Equipe : “I am not focusing on the record (…). The most important thing is victory. If it is me who sets the goals so much the better, if it is another, so much the better. ”
The Bleues program for the French Tournament, from March 4 to 10:
France - Canada, March 4 (5 p.m.), in Calais
France - Brazil, March 7 (9 p.m.), in Valenciennes
France - Netherlands, March 10 (9 p.m.), in Valenciennes
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