The horizon of the European Championship is approaching at high speed for the Blues, brought to gauge themselves one last time against the 32nd nation in the Fifa ranking, Vietnam, six days after the easy success against Cameroon (4-0) and, above all, more than a week before the start of the match against Italy, on July 10 in Rotherham.
The French will pay less attention to the scoreboard than to any progress displayed in the game, the scheduled objective of this test, while other favorites such as England and Sweden have shown their muscles against opponents otherwise more raised.
“
The Euro teams will also be all ready on D-Day, so the idea is really to keep a cool head and focus on our common objective.
“Which is to shine at the Euro, summed up midfielder or striker Clara Matéo after the friendly against the “
Lionesses
”.
The preparation gave satisfaction to the tricolor supervision, but a few clouds came to veil the blue sky of Clairefontaine, or rather its infirmary.
The last annoyance concerns captain Wendie Renard, reduced by pain in the quadriceps, a muscle located on the front of the thigh.
The soon-to-be 32-year-old central defender was excused from training on Wednesday and will be "
preserved
" against Vietnam, in the words of Corinne Deacon.
"
I don't want to take any risks.
Wendie would like to play but we prefer to be careful
“said the coach at a press conference in Clairefontaine, where the French continue their preparation.
Defender Sakina Karchaoui (thigh) and midfielder Grace Geyoro (knee) will also skip this last friendly match before leaving for England next Tuesday.
“
Same thing, we preserve them.
They resumed the field sessions but still on the sidelines of the group
, ”said Deacon.
The boss of the Bleues hopes to be able to count on all of her 23 players for the first training session on English soil, on July 5 in their base camp located in Ashby-de-la-Zouch.
“
The idea is that they all train collectively on Tuesday
,” she hoped.
Marie-Antoinette Katoto, uncertain future
Wendie Renard was the only outfield player not to have taken part in the duel against Cameroon, along with Kadidiatou Diani.
The right wing of Paris SG, one of the centerpieces of Deacon, is expected at kickoff Friday in the small stadium of La Source, announced sold out with 6,000 tickets sold, according to the Federation.
When announcing her list at the end of May, the coach had mentioned her desire to give playing time to as many people as possible for the first friendly before lining up, against Vietnam, a starting "
eleven
" "
closer
from that envisaged at the Euro.
Eyes will probably be on another Parisian, Marie-Antoinette Katoto.
The 23-year-old center-forward, considered one of the headliners of the Euro, has still not decided the question of his future, as his contract with PSG expires on Thursday.
Negotiations around the extension of "
MAK
" with her favorite club, where she has been playing since 2011, have been dragging on for several months.
So much so that as of June 30, the expiration date of her contract, the 23-year-old player has still not signed anything.
She will therefore find herself in a rather unprecedented situation when playing the last preparation match for the Euro.
Read alsoMercato: Marie-Antoinette Katoto will return to PSG
In the event of injury or other inconvenience, the players are covered by insurance taken out by their respective clubs.
No club, no insurance a priori.
Joined by AFP, the French Football Federation however ensures that this scenario had been anticipated.
The FFF has taken out and paid for insurance for any player at the end of their contract who has not signed an extension or a new commitment on July 1.
In addition to Katoto, three other Bleues are coming to the end of their leases in their respective clubs and have still not officially announced their future base: they are goalkeeper number 3 Justine Lerond (Metz / D2), central defender Aïssatou Tounkara (Atlético Madrid), substitute for the Bleues, and midfielder Sandie Toletti (Levante), holder in the midfield.
The coach had asked her Blues to settle the question of their future before preparing for the Euro, but she was particularly kind to Katoto.
"
There are things we don't control and neither does she.
She will ensure that the situation is resolved as quickly as possible
, ”corinne Deacon replied on June 14.
"
Marie feels very good, I don't feel disturbed at all
," she added last week.
Behind the scenes, the positions between PSG and Katoto have come very close in recent hours, so much so that an agreement seemed imminent at the start of the week.
The two parties have found common ground on the duration of the lease, of three seasons, and on the emoluments of the N.9, at a record level.
To extend his nugget, credited with 32 goals in all competitions this season in the red and blue jersey, PSG offered a salary close to 50,000 euros gross monthly, a source close to the negotiations told AFP.
It will even receive double each month by adding the signing bonus and the bonuses planned for the next three seasons, according to this source.
The player, however, is slow to initial the document pending, mainly, a clarification of positions within the club.
Since the departure of Leonardo, who managed all hot issues, the club has announced the creation of a sports department dedicated to women, without however setting it up.
Above all, Katoto is waiting to know who will lead the team at the start of the school year.
Coach Didier Ollé-Nicolle, linked to Paris until 2023, was "
laid off
” a month ago for “
inappropriate facts and remarks
” reported to the club.
Since the announcement of this “
conservative and temporary
” measure, the situation has not settled down.