After UNL disappointment, les Bleus end the year on a high note

After the perfect year, the World Champions finished the year on a high after beating Uruguay 1-0 in the international friendly match.

Following their surprising 2-0 loss against the Netherlands and subsequently being eliminated from the UEFA Nations League, the French squad had to prove themselves before the end of the year.

Les Bleus bounced back against Uruguay by dominating the match and introducing the newest members of the squad. They completely dominated the first half amid multiple attempts to score by Olivier Giroud, Kylian Mbappe and Blaise Matuidi.

However Mbappe suffered a shoulder injury in the 36th minute, after Uruguay’s goalkeeper Martin Campana tackled him and sent him flying only to land on his shoulder. After getting back up the young player asked to be subbed out leaving fans to fear for the worst. After a forgettable match against the Netherlands, Mbappe had been looking to redeem himself with this match but his time was cut short.

[See: PSG issue statement on Neymar and Mbappe]

The Netherlands beat France in the UEFA Nations League

After failing to score in the first half France came back even more aggressively as Uruguay  were looking more lost than ever. In the 52nd minute Antoine Griezmann led the attack only to stopped by Uruguay defender Martin Caceres’s hand. After the referee called for a hand ball and therefore a penalty, Giroud (who hadn’t scored during the World Cup) scored his 33rd goal for France. 

Didier Deschamps also introduced some new members of the team including Alassane Plea who had never played for France previously and Lyon’s Ferland Mendy who made an impression after having only played a few minutes in previous matches. 

After a dream year and securing their place as World Champions for the next four years, Les Bleus now have to focus on the European Cup taking place in 2020, in a noble goal to not only be world champions but to hold both simultaneously.