Chapter 161 Opponent France

On the night of defeating Cesena, Bruno embarked on a journey back to Portugal.

According to the notice, Portugal will complete the assembly on the morning of October 7th, local time. After three days of training, they will take a charter flight to Paris, France on the evening of October 10th, and then play a warm-up match with the French team at the Stade de France on the evening of the 11th. Then they went north to Denmark, and on the evening of the 14th, they ushered in the second group match of the European Cup qualifiers.

This warm-up match with the French team has attracted much attention in Portugal, not only because the opponent is the powerful French team, but also because this game is the first time Bruno and Ronaldo have played together in the national team.

As Bruno gradually secures his starting position in the national team, and Cristiano Ronaldo returns from injury, the long-awaited perfect central axis of "Cristiano Ronaldo + Bruno + Pepe" has finally emerged.

In fact, this game has high hopes not only in Portugal, but also by countless fans around the world.

For a long time, the Portuguese national team lacked an excellent organizer in the midfield, resulting in their poor performance in the World Series.

Although Moutinho is very popular among Portuguese fans, he is not a world-class organizer.

The appearance of Bruno gave the Portuguese hope.

However, due to some unexpected reasons, Bruno has been unable to occupy a position in the Portuguese national team.

After experiencing a coaching change, Portugal finally welcomed their midfield commander.

Bruno's real debut with the Portuguese national team did not disappoint the fans. One shot and one pass helped Portugal beat Albania 3:1 at home.

In that game, the only regret for Portuguese fans was that Ronaldo was absent due to injury and failed to play.

After another month of waiting, in this warm-up match with the French team, the dream scene finally came true.

………………

For Portuguese fans, the French team is undoubtedly a very unwilling opponent to face. The two teams have met 22 times in history. The French team has 16 wins, 1 draw and 5 losses, scoring 46 goals and conceding 27 goals. In friendly matches, it has 13 wins, 1 draw and 5 losses. In the 13 games played at home, it has 10 wins, 1 draw and 2 losses. A more obvious advantage.

Especially since 1975, France has won all eight meetings between the two teams.

Compared to Portugal, which only has three top stars, Ronaldo, Bruno and Pepe, the French team can be considered a star-studded team, with top players in every position.

Deschamps also attached great importance to this warm-up match with Portugal and sent out almost the entire main lineup.

There are many things to watch in this game. For example, the duel between Ronaldo and Benzema, the Real Madrid strike partner, or the first duel between Bruno and Pogba, two super-stars, in the national team.

Ever since they gathered at the Bernabeu in the summer of 2009, Cristiano Ronaldo and Benzema have been Real Madrid's most reliable forward partners, but there has never been a showdown between the two of them on the field.

Pogba and Bruno, a pair of supernovas in the new era, have experienced duels with the National Youth Team, Serie A and the Europa League since their debut. However, this is the first time that the two have faced off on behalf of the adult national team. .

Under such circumstances, I am really looking forward to what kind of sparks this game will produce!

………………

"The French team launches an attack from the left."

"Pogba dribbled the ball and cut inside, Cedric clung to him and there was no chance."

"The ball was passed back to the left and handed to Griezmann."

"Griezmann takes the ball and makes a cross!"

"Later point!"

"Benzema!"

“The ball went in!!!!”

"GOALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!!!!"

"In the third minute, just three minutes into the game, Benzema scored a beautiful header eight meters in front of the goal!"

…

After Benzema scored, he was so excited that he rushed out of the stadium.

The entire Stade de France, 81,000 fans, shouted in unison, chanting Benzema's name.

That scene was so exciting!

The players of the French team also rushed towards Benzema, including Griezmann and others who were rumored to be at odds with Benzema. They also stepped forward to celebrate Benzema's goal.

Head coach Deschamps was also dancing excitedly on the sidelines. He obviously also knows very well that this goal undoubtedly plays a role in stabilizing the morale of the French team!

"1:0!"

"France got off to a pretty good start."

"This was an opportunity created by the left wing. Pogba drew the attention of Cedric with the ball, and then suddenly passed it back to the left wing. Griezmann followed up and crossed, assisting Benzema to score with a header! "

"This goal reflects the French team's consistent tactical coordination."

"In fact, judging from the three minutes after the opening, the French team's ball control and overall advantage are relatively obvious."

"On the other hand, Portugal mainly focuses on defensive counterattacks, but the Five Shields team did not play conservatively. They did not huddle at the front of their own penalty area as previously rumored, but actively pressed and pressed. Create pressure. But as a result, the probability of the team making mistakes will inevitably increase.”

"Let's take another look at this slow-motion replay."

"When Griezmann passed the ball, Pepe obviously failed to follow his club teammate in time, which led to Benzema's subsequent header, almost unmarked."

"This is definitely a big mistake. If Pepe had followed Benzema just now, I believe it would be difficult for Benzema to have a header chance."

"But no matter what, the mistake has been made, Portugal should be careful."

………………

Santos slapped his forehead hard, shook his head and walked back.

What he worried about before the game still happened.

He was out of action for three weeks due to injury in September. This caused him to be unable to keep up with the rhythm after the start. He was thrown away by Benzema just now. It was obvious that he did not smell the danger for a while.

Being absent for a long period of time can make a player's senses numb and become less sharp.

But he does not regret his choice, because Carvalho also lacked competition for a long time, and Carvalho is not familiar with Benzema, so he will still choose Pepe. I believe that as the game time goes by, he will gradually adapt.

………………

After the team conceded a goal first, Bruno gritted his teeth in frustration, exhaled heavily, and forced himself to calm down and continue to focus on the game.

In fact, Portugal did not play badly after the opening game.

Bruno sent a direct pass, and Nani made a pass from the right, but Ronaldo failed to follow up and missed an opportunity.

Pogba took the ball from the left and cut inside several times, but was trapped in double-teams by Cedric, Thiago and Gomez.

Pogba is indeed very strong!

Although many people say this season that he failed to maintain his peak form last season, the French midfielder is still very magical. Almost as long as the ball reaches his feet, anyone, even three players, can double-team him at the same time. He, he can protect the ball and pass it out.

He can pass people with ease, as if any defensive player is useless in front of him.

The goal just now seemed to be a cross from Griezmann, but before that, Pogba's pass allowed Griezmann to get rid of Nani, and the ball was received and passed at the same time.

This is the world's top superstar!

But he wants to win this game!

This desire to win has become more urgent with Benzema's header!

………………

With Santos' successive adjustments, Portugal stabilized its position.

By restricting the French team's left wing, Portugal has completed most of its defensive tasks. In addition, Eliseu restricted Valbuena on the right, and the French team's wings can no longer run as they wish.

After the defense was stabilized, Santos immediately made adjustments, and the team's entire defense slowly pressed forward.

This is also the tactic Portugal has practiced in the past few days.

The French team's defense pushed past half-time, and Portugal's defense worked hard to press out of the penalty area. This flattened both sides' formations, while the French team revealed a huge space behind them.

This is what Santos mentioned when he focused on attacking before the game, and the area where Portugal's counterattack focuses on attacking.

It's easy to say it in theory, but it's very difficult to practice it on the court.

The French team's ability to pass and control the ball is excellent, the players' individual abilities are outstanding, and they occupy the advantage of the home court. This itself leaves Portugal with few counterattack opportunities, especially in the first half.

And in the few opportunities, it is not easy to quickly threaten and cooperate.

………………

Portugal has targeted tactics, and the French team also has targeted tactics.

Portugal Portugal counterattacked several times and hit near the front line. Although they grabbed the first point, the second point was never passed well.

Cabaye followed Bruno throughout the whole process.

It's obvious that Deschamps attaches great importance to Bruno's defense.

Of course, all this was not unexpected by Santos. As early as before the game, he had repeatedly told the players that the French team would definitely dominate the first half.

Their physical fitness is still there, and they are playing at home, so their offensive firepower must be very fierce.

Facing the French team in the first half, if Portugal can stabilize its defense, it will be considered a success. Counterattacks can only depend on luck. What the team really wants to do is in the second half.

The game went as Santos expected before the game.

The only mistake was Pepe's one in the third minute, which resulted in a conceding goal.

After that, Portugal stabilized its defense. The French team launched several offensives, but failed to break through Portugal's goal.

Although the French team was given four or five chances to shoot, they were either long shots or barely started, and there were no truly threatening shots. However, Portugal itself also paid the price of two yellow cards.

Once Alves pushed down Griezmann from behind, and once Nani tackled Pogba from the front.

In the 38th minute of the game, Bruno got an opportunity on the left. Just when he was about to attack with the ball, Cabaye decisively fouled and was shown a yellow card by the referee.