The observation is implacable.
And sends France back to its unfulfilled dreams.
Wednesday evening, Hervé Renard's Bleues did not exist against the reigning world champions.
Logically beaten (2-0) by Spain, the best nation on the planet for women's football, Eugénie Le Sommer's partners are not yet invited to the (very) big leagues.
Less than five months before the Olympic Games and a clear desire for a gold medal, the French team still has a lot of work to do.
To discover
Nations League: schedule and results
Nations League standings
Too much ?
The field, as always, will provide its answer.
But in the quagmire of Seville, the French showed nothing to win their first international title.
Beaten in the duels, the intensity, rigor and technical precision, ghostly in attack (0 shots on target against 9 among the Spanish) like the Le Sommer-Katoto duo missing, the Blues never wavered the Spanish armada.
“They were better than us,
plant, lucid, the captain and top scorer in the history of the selection.
When we got the ball back, we weren't technically clean enough to get up the block and create chances.
We have to do better, be closer to each other, use more intensity, not let them play.
»
Read alsoSpain-France (F): La Roja too strong, Bleues harmless... The tops and flops after the Nations League final
Spain-France Marcelo del Pozo / REUTERS
Hervé Renard very disappointed by the overall performance... but mobilizing in view of the Olympics
Same feeling from Hervé Renard, aware of the significant shortcomings of his team on Wednesday evening:
“Football is simple: you have to be aggressive when you don't have the ball, and when you are able to recover it, you must not lose it immediately.
They put a lot of pressure on us and we had difficulty responding, we found ourselves very quickly suffocated.
»
And the former Saudi Arabia coach, whose contract ends next August with the French women's team, draws a parallel with men's football.
“I faced Spain at the 2018 World Cup with Morocco, against a midfielder Iniesta, Isco, Busquets.
I had the impression that I saw the same thing this evening
,” he compared, praising the quality of the La Roja midfielder, led by Ballon d’Or Aitana Bonmati.
Spain-France Marcelo del Pozo / REUTERS
In the quest for a gold medal in front of the French public next August during the Olympic Games, the Blues know what to expect.
“You always have to question yourself because only the winner doesn't have a big headache.
The other one must persevere
,” says Renard.
We lost against someone stronger than us and we have to go back into battle
.
» Relaunched on the reasons to hope for a first international title, the French technician tries to be positive.
“In football everything is possible, but I think that today there is a world number 1 team by a long way who will still be the team to beat.
It will not be an easy task, we will have to progress and learn lessons.
»