Raymond Domenech’s Bleus attempt to bounce back swiftly from their humbling at the hands of Nigeria.
Much Maligned
Rarely has the hostility to France’s national side reached such a crescendo. Since winning the World Cup in 1998 and the European Championships in 2000, France have been on a steady decline, which was accelerated in 2006 when Zinedine Zidane quit the international stage.
Many fans believed that ‘Zizou’ was propping the team up, and results over the last three years have done little to prove critics of les Bleus, and in particular coach Raymond Domenech, wrong. All too often the French crowd have watched their side stifled by less technically able and less experienced opponents.
This was exemplified on Tuesday evening, when les Bleus were defeated 1-0 by a Nigeria side that they were equipped to beat. It must be said that Nigeria performed well, defending impressively and breaking menacingly; however, the crowd in Saint-Etienne were in no mood to be sympathetic.
Les Bleus’ Lyon players – Karim Benzema, who started, and substitutes Jeremy Toulalan and Sidney Govou – were roundly booed from the outset by the Stade Geoffroy Guichard crowd, who, it was suggested by captain Patrick Vieira after the encounter, forgot they were watching France v Nigeria and not Saint-Etienne v Lyon.
But the catcalls were not simply the reserve of OL-contracted players. The entire side was booed at half-time and full-time, chants against Raymond Domenech were clearly audible and each Nigerian pass during certain stages of the encounter was greeted by an ‘Ole!’.
All-in-all, it was an entirely unsatisfactory evening, and such occurrences are becoming increasingly common with regard to les Bleus. Patrice Evra, who spoke out against the crowd on Tuesday evening, had previously complained that every ‘home’ match France played was more like an away fixture due to the hostility coming from the stands; this after a defeat by Argentina in Marseille.
Noel Le Graet, vice president of the FA, was not exactly sympathetic to the players’ cause, describing the encounter as “not a show that made you want to applaud”. However, he told the AFP news agency that in front of a full house in Lyon, he is confident the team will be backed.
This may be a friendly, but the pressure is on the hosts.
Not Such A Turkish Delight
Like France, Turkey have endured a relatively poor run of results. Unlike les Bleus, who are at least primed to finish in a play-off spot in Group 7, the Turks are a distant third in Group 5. European champions Spain appear uncatchable, boasting a ten-point lead with only 12 points to be won, so Turkey’s focus is on catching Bosnia, who are a more attainable four points ahead.
There is yet hope; the Crescent Stars have only suffered defeat to Spain, albeit twice, and the Bosnians must play the Spanish once more before the qualifying tournament is over. In addition, Turkey have a chance to make some significant ground up on the Bosnians when they travel to the former Yugoslav state in September.
But Turkey have shown precious few signs of real life lately. True, Spain did require a last-minute strike to defeat them in Istanbul but otherwise they have underwhelmed since a strong run at Euro2008. A home draw against Belgium and a stalemate away in Estonia last autumn damaged their World Cup hopes but their record in friendlies is a little better, playing four this season and remaining undefeated.
The latest of those was against Azerbaijan on Tuesday evening, a match that proved tricky to negotiate, despite the 2-0 success. Head coach Fatih Terim, who has been having his own problems lately after severely damaging a finger in a boating accident, watched on as goals in the final quarter of the match from Hamit Altintop and Ibrahim Uzulmez somewhat spared their blushes.
Turkey will therefore also be looking to hit some rhythm before August’s vital World Cup qualifiers.
FORM GUIDE
France
LOST 0-1 (h) Nigeria (Friendly, June 2)
WON 1-0 (h) Lithuania (World Cup qualifying, April 1)
WON 1-0 (a) Lithuania (World Cup qualifying, March 28)
LOST 0-2 (h) Argentina (Friendly, February 11)
DREW 0-0 (h) Uruguay (Friendly, November 19)
Turkey
WON 2-0 (h) Azerbaijan (Friendly, June 2)
LOST 1-2 (h) Spain (World Cup qualifying, April 1)
LOST 0-1 (a) Spain (World Cup qualifying, March 28)
DREW 1-1 (h) Ivory Coast (Friendly, February 11)
WON 4-2 (a) Austria (Friendly, November 19)
TEAM NEWS
France
Missing some top stars, such as Lassana Diarra, Samir Nasri and William Gallas, going into these post-season games, Raymond Domenech’s side have not picked up any serious knocks since Tuesday’s match. There are three doubts, though. Franck Ribery, Florent Malouda and Cedric Carrasso will all face fitness tests. Sebastien Squillaci, Karim Benzema and Patrice Evra all picked up seemingly superficial knocks.
Changes must be expected from the XI that lost against Nigeria, which was something of an experimental side. Captain Patrick Vieira must be favoured to retain his place but there are likely to be significant alterations elsewhere.
Expect Thierry Henry to start while Florent Malouda may also gain some game time if he can prove his fitness, perhaps allowing Ribery to rest his fragile adductor. Jean-Alain Boumsong could be asked to supplement the rearguard while Jeremy Toulalan could well replace Alou Diarra in the centre of the field.
It would not be a huge surprise if Toulouse striker Andre-Pierre Gignac was asked to start either, given his energetic display after coming on from the bench in midweek and his 24-goal Ligue 1 haul. The indications were that he could be used in a wide area, though, a role he did not relish in the Pink City last season.
Probable Starting XI: Mandanda; Fanni, Abidal, Escude, Squillaci; Toulalan, Vieira; Malouda, Gourcuff, Gignac; Henry
Turkey
Fatih Terim’s squad does not include vastly experienced goalkeeper Rustu Recbar and defender Emre Asik. Also missing are Real Betis midfielder Mehmet Aurelio and Bayern Munich’s Hamit Altintop, both of whom were included in the squad for the recent round of World Cup qualifiers.
Probable Starting XI: Volkan; Gonul, Uzulmez, Balta, Gokhan Zan; Mehmet Topal, Emre, Tulan, Tuncay; Erding, Nihat
PLAYERS TO WATCH
France
Les Bleus will be desperate to make an impression in this match but it is still likely that Raymond Domenech will experiment a little. Andre-Pierre Gignac could therefore be given a chance, especially as he has come on twice in recent games to make a big impact from the bench. With 24 Ligue 1 goals this season, his influence could be vital for the homesters, who have not so much as managed a goal in Patrick Vieira’s last five outings for them.
Turkey
Although he has yet to prove a big hit on the international stage, the scene is set perfectly for French-born Sochaux star Mevlut Erding to really impose himself on Friday evening. A fine penalty box striker, Erding has mustered only one international goal to date, a vital late winning goal over Bosnia last October in World Cup qualification. Erding finished the French domestic season strongly, reaching 11 goals and six assists, and with one eye on a move to France’s big three clubs, the home of Lyon is the ideal setting to impress.
PREDICTION
Neither side has seen the goals flow in recent international fixtures and, as a result, a low scoring encounter must be predicted here. France continue to do just enough in their competitive matches while toiling in their friendlies and on recent evidence that will likely be the case here. Turkey will continue their unbeaten friendly run while France will be left once again pondering their inability to win.
France 1-1 Turkey
International Friendly :
Handicap
France vs Turkey
0 : 3/4
Much Maligned
Rarely has the hostility to France’s national side reached such a crescendo. Since winning the World Cup in 1998 and the European Championships in 2000, France have been on a steady decline, which was accelerated in 2006 when Zinedine Zidane quit the international stage.
Many fans believed that ‘Zizou’ was propping the team up, and results over the last three years have done little to prove critics of les Bleus, and in particular coach Raymond Domenech, wrong. All too often the French crowd have watched their side stifled by less technically able and less experienced opponents.
This was exemplified on Tuesday evening, when les Bleus were defeated 1-0 by a Nigeria side that they were equipped to beat. It must be said that Nigeria performed well, defending impressively and breaking menacingly; however, the crowd in Saint-Etienne were in no mood to be sympathetic.
Les Bleus’ Lyon players – Karim Benzema, who started, and substitutes Jeremy Toulalan and Sidney Govou – were roundly booed from the outset by the Stade Geoffroy Guichard crowd, who, it was suggested by captain Patrick Vieira after the encounter, forgot they were watching France v Nigeria and not Saint-Etienne v Lyon.
But the catcalls were not simply the reserve of OL-contracted players. The entire side was booed at half-time and full-time, chants against Raymond Domenech were clearly audible and each Nigerian pass during certain stages of the encounter was greeted by an ‘Ole!’.
All-in-all, it was an entirely unsatisfactory evening, and such occurrences are becoming increasingly common with regard to les Bleus. Patrice Evra, who spoke out against the crowd on Tuesday evening, had previously complained that every ‘home’ match France played was more like an away fixture due to the hostility coming from the stands; this after a defeat by Argentina in Marseille.
Noel Le Graet, vice president of the FA, was not exactly sympathetic to the players’ cause, describing the encounter as “not a show that made you want to applaud”. However, he told the AFP news agency that in front of a full house in Lyon, he is confident the team will be backed.
This may be a friendly, but the pressure is on the hosts.
Not Such A Turkish Delight
Like France, Turkey have endured a relatively poor run of results. Unlike les Bleus, who are at least primed to finish in a play-off spot in Group 7, the Turks are a distant third in Group 5. European champions Spain appear uncatchable, boasting a ten-point lead with only 12 points to be won, so Turkey’s focus is on catching Bosnia, who are a more attainable four points ahead.
There is yet hope; the Crescent Stars have only suffered defeat to Spain, albeit twice, and the Bosnians must play the Spanish once more before the qualifying tournament is over. In addition, Turkey have a chance to make some significant ground up on the Bosnians when they travel to the former Yugoslav state in September.
But Turkey have shown precious few signs of real life lately. True, Spain did require a last-minute strike to defeat them in Istanbul but otherwise they have underwhelmed since a strong run at Euro2008. A home draw against Belgium and a stalemate away in Estonia last autumn damaged their World Cup hopes but their record in friendlies is a little better, playing four this season and remaining undefeated.
The latest of those was against Azerbaijan on Tuesday evening, a match that proved tricky to negotiate, despite the 2-0 success. Head coach Fatih Terim, who has been having his own problems lately after severely damaging a finger in a boating accident, watched on as goals in the final quarter of the match from Hamit Altintop and Ibrahim Uzulmez somewhat spared their blushes.
Turkey will therefore also be looking to hit some rhythm before August’s vital World Cup qualifiers.
FORM GUIDE
France
LOST 0-1 (h) Nigeria (Friendly, June 2)
WON 1-0 (h) Lithuania (World Cup qualifying, April 1)
WON 1-0 (a) Lithuania (World Cup qualifying, March 28)
LOST 0-2 (h) Argentina (Friendly, February 11)
DREW 0-0 (h) Uruguay (Friendly, November 19)
Turkey
WON 2-0 (h) Azerbaijan (Friendly, June 2)
LOST 1-2 (h) Spain (World Cup qualifying, April 1)
LOST 0-1 (a) Spain (World Cup qualifying, March 28)
DREW 1-1 (h) Ivory Coast (Friendly, February 11)
WON 4-2 (a) Austria (Friendly, November 19)
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TEAM NEWS
France
Missing some top stars, such as Lassana Diarra, Samir Nasri and William Gallas, going into these post-season games, Raymond Domenech’s side have not picked up any serious knocks since Tuesday’s match. There are three doubts, though. Franck Ribery, Florent Malouda and Cedric Carrasso will all face fitness tests. Sebastien Squillaci, Karim Benzema and Patrice Evra all picked up seemingly superficial knocks.
Changes must be expected from the XI that lost against Nigeria, which was something of an experimental side. Captain Patrick Vieira must be favoured to retain his place but there are likely to be significant alterations elsewhere.
Expect Thierry Henry to start while Florent Malouda may also gain some game time if he can prove his fitness, perhaps allowing Ribery to rest his fragile adductor. Jean-Alain Boumsong could be asked to supplement the rearguard while Jeremy Toulalan could well replace Alou Diarra in the centre of the field.
It would not be a huge surprise if Toulouse striker Andre-Pierre Gignac was asked to start either, given his energetic display after coming on from the bench in midweek and his 24-goal Ligue 1 haul. The indications were that he could be used in a wide area, though, a role he did not relish in the Pink City last season.
Probable Starting XI: Mandanda; Fanni, Abidal, Escude, Squillaci; Toulalan, Vieira; Malouda, Gourcuff, Gignac; Henry
Turkey
Fatih Terim’s squad does not include vastly experienced goalkeeper Rustu Recbar and defender Emre Asik. Also missing are Real Betis midfielder Mehmet Aurelio and Bayern Munich’s Hamit Altintop, both of whom were included in the squad for the recent round of World Cup qualifiers.
Probable Starting XI: Volkan; Gonul, Uzulmez, Balta, Gokhan Zan; Mehmet Topal, Emre, Tulan, Tuncay; Erding, Nihat
PLAYERS TO WATCH
France
Les Bleus will be desperate to make an impression in this match but it is still likely that Raymond Domenech will experiment a little. Andre-Pierre Gignac could therefore be given a chance, especially as he has come on twice in recent games to make a big impact from the bench. With 24 Ligue 1 goals this season, his influence could be vital for the homesters, who have not so much as managed a goal in Patrick Vieira’s last five outings for them.
Turkey
Although he has yet to prove a big hit on the international stage, the scene is set perfectly for French-born Sochaux star Mevlut Erding to really impose himself on Friday evening. A fine penalty box striker, Erding has mustered only one international goal to date, a vital late winning goal over Bosnia last October in World Cup qualification. Erding finished the French domestic season strongly, reaching 11 goals and six assists, and with one eye on a move to France’s big three clubs, the home of Lyon is the ideal setting to impress.
PREDICTION
Neither side has seen the goals flow in recent international fixtures and, as a result, a low scoring encounter must be predicted here. France continue to do just enough in their competitive matches while toiling in their friendlies and on recent evidence that will likely be the case here. Turkey will continue their unbeaten friendly run while France will be left once again pondering their inability to win.
France 1-1 Turkey
( Robin Bairner / Goal )
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