In the fifth round of EURO 2024 qualifying, France with home advantage easily defeated the Republic of Ireland 2-0 to monopolize the top spot of Group B with 15 absolute points, thereby getting close to the ticket to Germany in the summer next year.
Goals: Tchouameni (19′), Thuram (48′)
With the support of a large number of home fans at the Park of the Princes and the outstanding quality of the squad, France quickly flooded into the Republic of Ireland field after the opening whistle.
In the 19th minute, the blue shirt team opened the scoring with a super long shot from young midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni. Receiving the ball from Kylian Mbappe, the Real Madrid star swung his leg to cut his heart and put the ball into the far corner, making the visitors’ goalkeeper unable to save even if he flew to his full height.
Having an early goal, the easier it is for France to kick. In the next period, coach Didier Deschamps’ army continued to dominate with continuous attack situations. However, it was also necessary to wait until the beginning of the second half, specifically in the 48th minute, for France to find a goal to double the difference.
After a smooth coordination in the middle, the ball was brought down to Theo Hernandez’s position on the left wing. The player wearing shirt number 22 passed inside for Mbappe to finish, but was blocked by the Republic of Ireland defense. Marcus Thuram was in the right place at the right time and powerfully hit the net for the away team.
In the remaining minutes, both France and the Republic of Ireland had opportunities to score but failed to take advantage, in which Les Bleus had a shot bounce off the post by Ousmane Dembele.
In the end, France defeated the Republic of Ireland 2-0 to bag their 5th consecutive victory in the EURO 2024 qualifiers. They currently own 15 absolute points and are very close to getting a ticket to Germany next summer. On September 13, France will have a friendly match with Germany at Signal Iduna Park – Dortmund’s home stadium.
Line ups:
France: Maignan; Kounde (Pavard, 89′), Upamecano, L.Hernandez (Saliba, 73′), T.Hernandez; Tchouameni, Rabiot; Dembele (Coman, 73′), Griezmann (Camavinga, 89′), Mbappe; Giroud (Thuram, 26′)
Ireland: Bazunu; Collins, Duffy, Egan; Browne (O’Shea, 68′), Cullen, Stevens (McClean, 46′); Ogbene (Ebosele, 84′), Idah (Keane, 68′ – Connolly, 83′), Knight.