In the suffocating heat of a Philadelphia Independence Day, the World Cup favourites decided to leave the champagne on ice. This was not the free flow...
In the suffocating heat of a Philadelphia Independence Day, the World Cup favourites decided to leave the champagne on ice. This was not the free flowing, gilded football we have come to expect from Didier Deschamps' France. Instead, it was a gritty, dirty, deeply pragmatic performance that would have made the old guard of 1998 proud.Let us be clear from the off. Paraguay came to fight. They set up in a compact, relentless low block, snapping into tackles and daring France to find a way through. For long stretches, the French looked frustrated, their usual slick transitional play blunted by the heat and the physicality of their opponents. Kylian Mbappé, the modern day goal machine, spent most of the night scrapping in the trenches rather than gliding past defenders. He had to settle for a single penalty to draw level with Lionel Messi in the Golden Boot race. That alone tells you this was not a vintage display.Yet there is a quiet, often overlooked value in winning ugly. France proved they can drop a gear, get their hands dirty, and still find a result. This was a 1. 0 victory in extra time, the kind of squeaky bum time contest that tests a squad's mettle. They did not bottle it. They absorbed the pressure, waited for the decisive moment, and took it with clinical punishment from the spot. It might not have been the tuxedoed elegance of a Fontaine hat trick from 1958, but it was effective.What does this mean for the tournament It suggests Deschamps has drilled a remarkable tactical flexibility into this side. They can play the beautiful game and they can also park the bus or, in this case, drive it straight through a parked bus. For all the talk of Mbappé's brilliance, this victory was built on defensive resolve and patience. Football is not always about the pretty stuff. Sometimes, you have to win like a nuisance, and France did exactly that.As the heatwave broke, Les Bleus walked off knowing they have another gear. The question is whether they will need it against tougher opposition. For now, they remain the team to beat, even when not at their best. And that, dear readers, is the mark of true champions.
