French deliver cold truth
SAINT-DENIS, France — The Icelandic thunderclap roar proved no match for the sheer talent of France as the hosts finally showed their title credentials at the European Championship yesterday.
A crushing 5-2 victory lined up a semifinal with Germany as France displayed the attacking ruthlessness that had been missing in its previous four games at the tournament.
“We have a lot of desire to get our own back for what happened at the World Cup,” France striker Olivier Giroud said of the quarterfinal loss to eventual champion Germany two years ago.
Was it only six weeks ago Giroud was being jeered by his own supporters?
When Giroud cupped his ears to the crowd after scoring his second goal yesterday, the striker seemed to revel in silencing his critics. And yet only national unity is on the mind of Giroud as France prepares for its first tournament semifinal in a decade on Thursday.
“I am delighted for the players as they deserve this, and for these fans who have been behind us for months,” Giroud said magnanimously through a translator. “To be able to offer them something to make them smile and feel happy.”
And yet Iceland left the Stade de France far from browbeaten.
An embarrassing exit was on the cards at halftime when France led 4-0. But the Nordic newcomers recovered the resolve that has seen them charm and captivate the continent over the last month.
Two second-half goals allowed the smallest nation to ever qualify for a major tournament to leave with its head held high.
“We didn’t handle it well mentally (in the first half),” joint-coach Lars Lagerback said. “But we showed in the second half it wasn’t something physical in the team, we reloaded.”
The night began with rain descending on the field and the Viking slow capping ritual, with its “Huh” chant, booming around the stadium from the Iceland fans.
France wasn’t going to have its home stadium to itself and Gylfi Sigurdsson even had the game’s first shot.
But inspirational chants and a strong team ethic only take a team so far. This was a night of French superiority; when stature and skill of the hosts was too mighty to curb.