By Elton Gomes
A goal each from Raphael Varane and Antoine Griezmann gave France a 2-0 victory over Uruguay in the first quarterfinal match of the FIFA World Cup 2018. Raphael Varane’s header in the 40th minute gave France the lead. A goalkeeping blunder from Uruguayan goalkeeper Fernando Muslera gifted Griezmann a goal.
With this France becomes the first team to qualify for the semifinals and will face either Brazil or Belgium.
Uruguay started the match without star striker Edinson Cavani, who was ruled out after he was injured in a match against Portugal. Cristhian Stuani replaced Cavani in the starting lineup but failed to make an impression. Cavani’s absence was felt, and the Uruguayan team lacked a focal point while moving forward. The team’s other star striker Luis Suarez barely found space against a disciplined French defence.
France looked strong from the start. The Les Blues displayed a multi-faceted attack, which allowed them to breach the Uruguayan defence that had only conceded one goal throughout the tournament. Unlike in the match against Argentina, Kylian Mbappe was unable to find space to exploit the Uruguayan goal. France then attempted to play through balls to Mbappe, crosses to Olivier Giroud, and whatever suited Griezmann. Uruguay rarely had answers to the French attacks.
France earned the lead courtesy a header from defender Raphael Varane, with free kicks haunting Uruguay again. Griezmann stepped forward before delivering an inswinging free-kick that seemingly caught Uruguay by surprise. Varane began a perfect run, got behind Cristhian Stuani, and sent a superb header into the far corner.
In terms of Uruguay’s strikers, France had only Suarez to worry about. French goalkeeper Hugo Lloris made only one difficult save by parrying away a Martín Cáceres header before halftime. France dominated the game, and Uruguay’s performance began dipping as the second half was underway.
France’s second goal was a horrible mistake by Uruguayan goalkeeper Muslera. After receiving a square pass from midfielder Corentin Tolisso, Griezmann struck a left-foot shot from 25 yards out in the 61st minute. Although Muslera managed to get his hands on the ball, it somehow dropped into the back of the net.
Mbappé found himself getting booked after going overboard due to slight contact with winger Cristian Rodríguez. Other than that, France, led by coach Didier Deschamps, look like serious contenders for the trophy. Either Brazil or Belgium can stop the Les Blues from claiming the FIFA World Cup.
Elton Gomes is a staff writer at Qrius