Karl Konan who takes care of his return, Wesley Pardin who shines, Vincent Gérard who is expelled, the Icelanders who miss each other… Find the tops-flops of the success of the Blues against Montenegro this Monday (36-27).
TOPS
Melvyn Richardson, the trigger?
Since the start of the Euro, the right-back has been more frustrating, and frustrated, than happy. The potential of Barcelona’s new player is undeniable. But in the France team, he is slow to demonstrate it, contenting himself with a few bits of good performance. This Monday, however, the right-back chose his moment particularly well to come out of his box and score two very fine goals from distance at the end of the first period, while the Blues struggled in attack against Montenegro. Without knowing it yet, Richardson had just launched his team to an easy success (36-27, final score).
Karl Konan, the lion was unleashed
Usually, a player always remembers with emotion his first international competition in selection. For Karl Konan, it will be even easier to remember as it takes an incredible turn. Brilliant at the start of the competition, the Aixois had been suddenly stopped in his tracks by a positive test for Covid-19. Which forced him into a necessarily complicated six-day isolation, as he described it at the microphone of BeIn Sports: “That feels good. I was like a caged lion for five days and I just wanted to get out there and get high for the team. It was painful to follow the news of the team in my room of 20 square meters. It was very special to experience.But good news, it didn’t disrupt his focus and performance curve. Against Montenegro, from the first action, he signed an interception and everything else was of the same quality.
Wesley Pardin showed he was there
Even if no one really doubted it, Wesley Pardin, very involuntarily, took advantage of the expulsion of his colleague Vincent Gérard (see flops) to showcase himself and demonstrated that he was a luxury substitute, capable of overcoming any problem with the holder of Paris SG. With 10 saves at 36%, the Martiniquais was brilliant, even stopping two seven-meter throws or two counter-attacks from Milos Vujovic. Very beautiful work, which largely explains why France experienced a comfortable second act.
And immediatelyWinner of Montenegro, once again blue skies for France
FLOPS
The unwelcome expulsion of Vincent Gérard
Admittedly, the action was miles away from resembling that, in football, of German goalkeeper Harald Schumacher on Patrick Battiston during the 1982 World Cup. At the time, it was an attack, purely and simply. This Monday, Vincent Gérard, he will only have touched the hand of Milos Vujovic, who added to it by holding a face yet spared. Nevertheless, the rule was clear: a goalkeeper must not touch, or even graze his vis-à-vis if he takes the risk of leaving his six meters to intercept a counter-attack. The last bastion knew it, and he did not contest the decision of the refereeing body after examining the video. The fault was small, but the consequences much greater…
Iceland misses the mark
Even if it’s cruel to hit an Icelandic formation hard hit by the cases of Covid-19 and who fought valiantly against Croatia, but there is no doubt that their defeat against the Croats changed everything in the approach to the meeting for Blues. Aware that they could take their destiny into their own hands with success, the Olympic champions have found a little serenity. Now, the deal has completely changed and exhausted, Iceland will have a lot to do on Wednesday to defeat Montenegro and force the French not to lose against Denmark.
