France dismantle England’s defence at EURO 2025 – a sign of things to come?
In the run up to this tournament, France found themselves in the headlines for the wrong reasons.
Laurent Bonadei named his 23-player squad, and it didn’t include national team mainstays Wendie Renard and Eugénie Le Sommer.
The pair have a combined tally of 368 appearances for Les Bleues, making their experience and leadership a significant loss in the dressing room – or so everyone thought.
When quizzed by the media over their omission, Bonadei referenced one of the most famous quotes in modern history, saying: “As Einstein said: ‘Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result’ – I want different results for this team, so I have gone with a different selection.”
He was, of course, referencing France’s lack of major silverware, something surprising for a nation that has nurtured so much talent through the decades.
Yet, despite his brazen selection less than a year into his tenure, it seems a fresh approach was exactly what this team needed.
They were absolutely relentless against the Lionesses, waves of attack met with drilled defensive discipline. It was a performance from a side that looked as though they had a point to prove.
France were set up in a way that directly exploited their opponent’s weaknesses down the wing, giving English full-backs no respite.
What is perhaps more impressive is the players they turned to on their bench – Melvine Malard, Kadidiatou Diani, and Clara Mateo, all coming on to replace the entire French starting front line, a luxury few nations can afford.
Even captain and first-choice centre-back Griedge Mbock Bathy was comfortably rested as she works her way back from injury, young defender Alice Sombath stepping in with ease.
Mentality-wise, they didn’t panic when England found the next early, for a goal that was eventually ruled out. It was business as usual, sticking to the game plan and executing it as they planned.
Their biggest concerns came when the Lionesses pulled one back late on, when they had largely rotated, but France were resolute in defence of their lead.
Bonadei wanted to avoid coming into EURO 2025 as one of the favourites, but this display against the defending champions of the tournament has put a target on their backs.