by Jean-Pierre Thiesset (6/7/23)
Above: France look to acclimatise for their trip to Australia for the World Cup. Photo: FFF.
The France women’s national football team, nicknamed ‘Les Bleues’ (The Blue ones) will be looking to live up to their FIFA World Ranking of fifth to go deep into this year’s tournament.
Squad
French head coach Hervé Renard has announced squad of 23:
Goalkeepers: Solène Durand (Guingamp, France), Pauline Peyraud-Magnin (Juventus Torino, Italia), Constance Picaud (Paris Saint-Germain, France).
Defenders: Selma Bacha (Olympique Lyonnais, France), Estelle Cascarino (Manchester United, England), Elisa De Almeida (Paris Saint-Germain, France), Sakina Karchaoui (Paris Saint-Germain, France), Maëlle Lakrar (Montpellier, France), Ève Périsset (Chelsea, England), Wendie Renard (Olympique Lyonnais, France).
Midfielders: Kenza Dali (Aston Villa, England), Laurina Fazer (Paris Saint-Germain, Grace Geyoro (Paris Saint-Germain, France), Amandine Henry (Olympique Lyonnais), Léa Le Garrec (Fleury, France), Amel Majri (Olympique Lyonnais, France), Sandie Toletti (Real Madrid, Spain).
Forwards: Viviane Asseyi (West Ham, England), Vicki Becho (Olympique Lyonnais, France), Kadidiatou Diani (Paris Saint-Germain, France), Naomie Feller (Real Madrid, Spain), Eugénie Le Sommer (Olympique Lyonnais, France), Clara Matéo (Paris FC, France).
Head Coach
Hervé Renard, born on September 30, 1968, at Aix-Les Bains, France, was named the head of France in March 2023. He played as a central defender from 1983 to 1998 with Cannes, Stade de Vallauris, and SC Draguignan. As head coach of men’s teams, which included a spell as the boss of English side Cambridge United in 2004, Renard won twice the African Cup of Nations with Zambia (2012) and in 2015 with Ivory Coast.
World Cup History:
France have participated in four previous World Cups: 2003, 2011, 2015, and 2019. France was eliminated in the first round in 2003 and the Quarter-Finals of both 2015 and 2019. Their best result in the tournament came in the 2011 tournament in Germany where they finished fourth.
How they qualified:
France qualified by going unbeaten across their ten matches against Greece, Slovenia, Estonia, Kazakhstan, and Wales. In making it to Australia, the French scored 54 goals, conceding just four.
Strengths:
A lot of players in the squad have international and big match experiences like UEFA Women’s Champions League final stages and participating at European Championships and other tournaments. Hervé Renard seems to have given a new impetus to the team.
Development Areas:
It’s difficult to say as the team have only played two games under their new head coach. There does remain a question mark as to how the return of experienced players left out under previous boss Corianne Diacre and the addition of young talent will fit together. It may be the only question; if the mayonnaise takes as we say in France, it could be great!
Key Players:
Wendie Renard – central defender and captain, 32-years-old, and well known to the footballing public. She has played 141 matches for France, scoring 34 goals. With Olympique Lyonnais, since 2006 she has played 17 seasons; making 450 appearances, scoring scored 137 goals. In this period, she has won a staggering eight UEFA Women’s Champions Leagues, 16 D1 Championships (France’s premier league), and 10 France Cups.
Selma Bacha – left back or left midfield. At only 22 years old, Selma Bacha, who started in D1 (France’s premier league) in 2017 at 16 years old, has already amassed an impressive list of honours. Four UEFA Women’s Champions Leagues, five D1 Championships, and two France Cups. She was provided the most assists across the 2022/23 season with 10. Bacha’s versatility and punch can be one of the main strengths of this French team.
Léa Le Garrec – midfield, 29 years old, captain of Fleury will bring her experience and ability to the team.
Kadidiatou Diani, 28 years old, usually right-hand forward. Diani has stepped up in the Paris Saint-Germain team to take the centre forward position in place of Marie-Antoinette Katoto last season and finished top scorer with 17 goals in D1 Arkema (France’s premier league). She has played 80 matches for France and scored 22 goals.
One to watch
Vicki Becho, 19 years old, has great potential. She has always played with great maturity for her young age. In 2019, at only 15 years old, she won the U19 European Championship with France. Becho is solid on her feet and her technical skills can make the difference.
Success would be:
France must reach the final. Nothing else will be considered as a success by the fans.
Prediction:
Even if three key players are missing – Delphine Cascarino (right or left-hand forward), Marie-Antoinette Katoto (central forward), and Griedge Mbock (central defender), when we look at the players on the list, we can say that France still has a team more than capable of making the Final and potentially win this World Cup.
Group F Fixtures
23rd July – Jamaica, Sydney Football Stadium.
29th July – Brazil, Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane.
2nd August – Panama, Sydney Football Stadium.
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