I’m a big fan of the current team, but to be winners, we need a little bit more quality from these players.

Did anyone catch the England-Spain friendly? The 1-0 England victory runs counter to my point, but I won’t let that stop me. Spain looked brilliant (other than not scoring), and England looked just about as poor as they’re typically described in the English press (aside from winning the match). Spanish players tended to have a brilliant touch and fantastic ball control, English players tended to blur the line between attempted close-control and short-range passing. (I exaggerate. Slightly.)

France is somewhere in between right now. Yes, we could win something like England in that friendly, or Greece in Euro 2004, with solid defending and a goal against the run of play, but our probability of success would be greatly increased, I believe, if the players could up their game just a little bit, and bend the ball to their will.

For me, the issue is ball control. Everything else is in place: great athleticism, commitment, spirit, intelligence, discipline, formation, tactics. The one thing that wasn’t in place against Belgium tonight was mastery of the ball. For every great touch, there was a poor one. We just weren’t sharp enough, but the optimist in me believes we could be. We have been, at times: our own friendly against England, the qualifier away to Romania when the pitch was falling apart. I had the impression, at least, in those matches that we’re much closer to the Spanish technique than we were tonight against Belgium.

I’ve thrown out “5%” as the required improvement to represent my view that we’re close to being a team that looks like a potential winner, and to represent my view that Blanc is doing his part.

Here’s how we lined up:

Benzema
Ribery Martin Remy
M’Vila Cabaye
Abidal Sakho Rami Reveillere
Lloris

M’Vila went off injured, carried off on a stretcher with his neck in a brace. It looked like they were being really cautious. Blanc said afterwards, according to L’Equipe, that the issue is with the neck, and that early reports are that it’s not too serious. It was a bad fall, but if anyone can recover quickly, I would expect it to be Yann.

Maxime Gonalons was a like-for-like replacement for M’Vila, and he did ok.

Sakho had a great game – his first for France. He was the pick of the defenders.

Martin was a little disappointing, which he acknowledged after the match (again from L’Equipe). Getting the best out of him is one issue for Blanc to ponder. It can’t have as much impact as the players spending every free moment refining their loving first touch and magnetic ball control, but it’s at least something for Blanc’s list of things to do.

Remy and Menez have a healthy competition for that right-forward spot. The formation was like this at times:

Ribery Benzema Remy
Martin Cabaye
Abidal M’Vila Revelliere
Sakho Rami
Lloris

Abidal and Reveillere appeared to be under instructions to play high up the pitch. They were trying to release Ribery and Remy. This often cut Martin out of the play. Remy’s goals should guarantee him a spot in the team for the big tournament in the summer, and Menez looked lively when he came on. Several players have auditioned for that spot on the right – it looks like it’s down to two, or maybe three with Nasri, who missed this match and the USA friendly through injury.

While the tactics, and the broken down moves, took Martin out of the match, Cabaye was still able to see a lot of the ball, and played well. Cabaye, Remy, Menez, and Sakho are all players who seem to be improving quickly. It’s enough to give me some optimism for the Euros. Debuchy, Koscielny, and Jeremy Mathieu all looked promising against the US. Sagna and Mexes are still to come back from injury. Gourcuff could force his way back.

And Ribery and Benzema seem to like playing together, so that’s also promising.

That might be it for France blogging for a while. The next match is a friendly against Germany in February, I believe. If a lack of posting is having any negative repercussions for anyone, let me know in the comments, and I might chime in with something. I’ll throw up something if I see any interesting news of relevance, or if I’m in my cups, but otherwise, lurkers, enjoy your winter holidays, and Allez Les Bleus.

For this match, Blanc tried a 4-4-2, basically, with Gameiro up front with Benzema. Honestly, it is a very subtle difference to the standard 4-2-3-1 formation. It’s 4-4-2 if Gameiro is staying next to Benzema, and a 4-2-3-1 if he’s usually behind Benzema. Because Gameiro and Benzema both play the lone-striker role for PSG and Real Madrid, respectively, it felt like a 4-4-2, even if Gameiro would sometimes take up a position in the “hole” behind Benzema.

While we’re on the subject, I should say that it didn’t really click for Gameiro.

Other than that, everything else seemed to work.

Playing Menez worked. He stood out, especially in the first half. Menez is a type of player that I love watching, but I don’t know if everyone does. His runs remind me of Diaby. I see a player beating opponents and creating opportunities. Others often see a player wasting opportunities. “He held onto it too long, and ruined everything,” is a typical response. For me, it’s fantastic to incorporate this type of element into the team, but the other players have to put themselves into positions to take advantage.

Here’s how they lined up:

Benzema Gameiro
Ribery M’Vila A.Diarra Menez
Mathieu Koscielny Rami Debuchy
Lloris (C)

That “C” by Lloris is unofficial confirmation that Blanc’s armband rotation is over. Lloris is the captain. This should come as absolutely no surprise to anyone. Previously, when Alou got a start, he got the captaincy. Alou was in a pretty foul mood ahead of the match in his press conference. Maybe Blanc had just told him that Lloris would be captain.

But Alou did ok in this match, and France had control of midfield.

One argument against the 4-4-2 is that there can be an annoying vacant space between the block of two in midfield and the block of two up front. Menez used that as his running track at times, but Gameiro and Alou never found a way to use that space. There’s an argument to be made that Nasri, Cabaye, Martin or Gourcuff could have played better in either position (Alou’s or Gameiro’s). They like that space between midfield and striker. We have a lot of options. Cabaye and Nasri were out injured. They’re both probably first choice right now.

Overall the rest of the team looked good. Mathieu had a lot of the ball, making forward runs from left back. There’s no reason to drop him based on that performance. Evra is still a bit of a train wreck right now. Even his mother must struggle to love him at times, and I say that as one of his biggest supporters/apologists. Abidal is probably still first choice, but Mathieu is worthy of consideration. He’s a good player to watch.

Koscielny, Rami, and Debuchy were great. Kos nearly earned a second yellow card in 2nd half stoppage time, which would have put a really negative reflection on his match, but at times in the match he played some great football, breaking up play. These three played tenacious, stingy defense. Rami is automatic first choice, with good reason. Debuchy and Koscielny looked to be at a similar level. We were playing with three new defenders, and we looked as good as ever at the back, so Blanc is going to have to think through this one. Debuchy looked great at getting in blocks, even higher up the pitch he defended with real intensity.

I always note M’Vila’s mistakes to try to temper my enthusiasm for the player, and he had some giveaways, but his long passing was so good – he does a decent impersonation of Marvin Martin with some of his passing.

Of course it took Martin himself to set up the goal, with a ball over the top to Remy. Remy did really well, held off his defender, and scored the winner. Brilliant, and great fun for a friendly.

Giroud had a chance to score a late 2nd, and 2-0 would have been the right result. He sliced it wide.

Ribery and Benzema both looked fine. There’s no threat, I hope, of them losing their spots. They’re our two best attacking players.

If we’re making snap judgments, we could say that Gameiro up front with Benzema didn’t work. He didn’t suddenly transform into the #10 playmaker. This was coupled with Blanc also playing Alou, so build-up on the ground to set up strikers was not happening.

The chances seemed to be coming from runs from Mathieu and Menez, and balls over the top from M’Vila.

The US rarely threatened. They (we) (I’m a dual citizen) were missing Donavan, and Dempsey couldn’t get a touch. The player I really like is Altidore. He makes up for limited technical ability with endeavor. He can hold up the ball and bring other players into the attack. It’s a completely legitimate approach, and even though he doesn’t look likely to score, he still looks like the danger man. I don’t know what his personality is like, but on the pitch, he’s all heart. I like that guy.

France had almost all of the ball and almost all of the attack, so the US defended well. It was heading toward a 0-0 draw.

Martin and Remy were a couple astute substitutions from Blanc.

The stadium was packed. There was a turnout from some Americans – there are plenty living in Paris – but it was all French flags in the air when France scored. The boos at halftime were cheers at full time.

Update: I did not realize how much press coverage the “US Men’s National Team” received. I apparently omitted a key element of the match: the US midfield was reportedly dreadful, to the point that people are questioning Klinsmann’s competence for selecting some of them. These reports tend to restrict discussion of France to “European powerhouse with no losses in 16 matches,” as part of the explanation for how terrible the US was. The US midfield, in particular, is being skewered, with player ratings ranging from 3 to 4.

Congratulations to Maxime. I have not watched Lyon this season, which is disappointing. I will try to catch up so as to be less blind-sided by which of their midfielders gets called up.

France play friendlies against the US on Friday and Belgium on Tuesday, both in Paris’s Stade de France, the venue, of course, for the 1998 World Cup final. The crowd there has seemed more up-beat since Blanc took over, and attendances, from what I remember seeing, have been fairly strong.

These friendlies, though, do not generate a lot of interest. It is key for France, and the support of the team, that they play well and score goals. A 0-0 in a tense game, I can enjoy. Not so much in a friendly. Of course it should be treated as a training match with the same formation, etc. that Blanc would use in a competitive fixture, but the players need to give us something to be excited about with their brilliance on the pitch.

I hope at least a few of them are up for it.

I’ll update later, but here’s the squad to face the USA and Belgium:

Goalkeepers
Cedric Carrasso (Girondins Bordeaux)
Hugo Lloris (Olympique Lyon)
Steve Mandanda (Olympique Marseille)

Defenders
Eric Abidal (Barcelona)
Matthieu Debuchy (Lille)
Laurent Koscielny (Arsenal)
Adil Rami (Valencia)
Anthony Reveillere (Lyon)
Jeremy Mathieu (Valencia)
Mamadou Sakho (Paris St Germain)

Midfielders
Yohan Cabaye (Newcastle United)
Alou Diarra (Marseille)
Yann M’Vila (Stade Rennes)
Marvin Martin (Sochaux)

Attacking Midfielders
Franck Ribery (Bayern Munich)
Jeremy Menez (PSG)
Samir Nasri (Manchester City)
Florent Malouda (Chelsea)

Forwards
Karim Benzema (Real Madrid)
Kevin Gameiro (PSG)
Olivier Giroud (Montpellier)
Loic Remy (Marseille)

Update: Jeremy Mathieu of Valencia has made the squad – a fullback in form. He can put in a mean cross. Congratulations to Jeremy. He benefits from Evra being dropped, but he’s also been making the highlights for Valencia, so he’s earned it as well, I believe. Blanc said Evra was dropped because of his “personal drama.” Clichy is still frozen out. What is the back four going to be? It looks like Abidal will move back to the left. Who starts with Rami???? Koscielny has been in form for Arsenal, and Sakho has looked ok (from the little I’ve seen) for PSG recently.

Update: I have now seen video (on lequipe.fr) of Blanc explaining his decision to include Giroud: “Good start to the season, like his club,” and “atypical for his size.” According to Wikipedia, he’s 6 foot 3.5 inches tall. So that would mean that he’s especially mobile for a big guy, I gather. This is what Blanc was looking for with Hoarau – a tall center forward to give the team another option. Will Giroud take his chance?

Update – Dropped: Evra is joined by Valbuena and Kaboul. That’s harsh on Valbuena. Kaboul has lost out to Koscielny and Sakho. Matuidi and Gourcuff have been overlooked. Hoarau lost out to Giroud. Who am I still missing? Diaby and Mexes are still out injured.

Match: Champions League Group Phase Away to the Arsenal

Result: 0-0

Standings after this 4th match
1. Arsenal FC – 8
2. Olympique de Marseille – 7
3. Borussia Dortmund – 4
4. Olympiacos FC – 3

France Players Involved
Olympique de Marseille: Alou Diarra, Steve Mandanda, Loic Remy, Mathieu Valbuena, Andre-Pierre Gingac, Rod Fanni

No France players were involved for Arsenal. Koscielny(1) was on the bench. Sagna(2) and Diaby(3) are out injured. Squillaci(4) didn’t make the bench – he has lost his place in the squad to German Per Mertesacker. Arsenal also have Francis Coquelin(5): a young, but up-and-coming, France U20 holding midfielder. That’s less France players than previously at Arsenal now that Clichy and Nasri have gone to Manchester City.

Olympique de Marseille also started Jeremy Morel, a young French full back who I think has not been called up for Les Bleus yet, like a number of other French players in the team. If you have nuggets of info on some of these French Marseille players, please share in the comments.

As an Arsenal supporter, I was hoping that the France players on Marseille would do well, but I was also quite worried about how much damage they might do. From that perspective:

Alou Diarra
From the point of view of an Arsenal supporter, I was not worried about Alou being the one to grab the winning goal, so overall, I wasn’t really worried by him. The match ended goalless, though, so maybe I should have been more concerned about what his presence was doing to clog the works.

Mathieu Valbuena
He looked really skillful. Silky smooth touch on the ball. He looked dangerous, but didn’t have a moment of magic.

Loic Remy
The recurring thought I had about Remy was that Arsenal’s Theo Walcott (England) looked more dangerous. (Was I blinded by my own bias?)

Steve Mandanda
Mandanda was playing so well that I was feeling some buyers remorse about my scathing comments after his last howler for France. He almost looked like the best kid on the playground who just chose to play in goal for the day. He clamped onto every Arsenal cross like he was 7 feet tall. It’s obvious why he gets selected. It looked quite easy for him to keep Arsenal out in this one.

Rod Fanni
He hasn’t been called up for a while – he’s behind Debuchy at right back in the pecking order, I guess. But Fanni is a decent player. I think he’s good enough for France.

Andre-Pierre Gingac
He didn’t get much time. Somewhat like Mandanda, Gignac looks like a serious athlete. I thought he looked in shape, and I would like to see him back involved with France. I would especially like to see him starting for Marseille in a match like this, so he has to get his form sorted, I guess. I honestly do not know what the story is. The last I heard, I think, was a rumor that he had to go to a fat farm.

Based on that match, Valbuena and Mandanda are the main France players to watch for Marseille, with honorable mention to Alou, Loic and some of the hopefuls. Overall, Olympique de Marseille is a fairly tasty side for France supporters.

Blanc insisted that he will not sign a new contract if the team performs poorly at the finals, and he almost predicts that we will perform poorly, so much was he trying to play down expectations.

I’m not having any of it.

I am expecting France to be huge.

I watched PSG today. Gameiro was lively. I watch PSG to see Gameiro and Menez, who got a goal today, but I’ve ended up with a pretty heavy crush on Javier Pastore. Luckily we will not have to face the dreamy Argentine in the Euros.

If we go into the Euros with players in form, this notion that we would be big underdogs is ridiculous, unless we’re talking about a game against Spain.

Gameiro is flying with PSG right now, and he’s our backup striker.

I would still love to see Menez and Ribery both start as wingers.

Benzema
Ribery Nasri Martin Menez
M’Vila
Abidal Mexes Rami Sagna
Lloris

Imagine that as a club team. Supporters of just about any club would welcome most or all of those 11 as signings.

When France needed a big player to fill the Benzema void, Samir Nasri delivered Euro 2012.

Well done, lad.

Not exactly a new Zidane, but equally effective in that final qualifier, salvaging a point.

He had me at “qualification secured.”

I heart Samir.

Nasri converted the spot kick. 1-1. France are through.

Remy had a clear chance to open the scoring and prodded it to their keeper.

M’Vila was great again.

Rami had some shaky moments.

Menez drew an astonishing 4 yellow cards, I believe.

Martin looked good when he came on.

Cabaye was a little off the boil.

Malouda was ok.

Alou looked a little shaky for a closer.

I was worried about us up front. Big Benz was a big miss.

Lloris was captain again.

Remy
Malouda Nasri Menez
M’Vila Cabaye
Evra Abidal Rami Reveillere
Lloris (C)

The absences of Mexes, Ribery, and Benzema were almost too much for this team.