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That close miss went unpunished
in Maps Discussion Wed Jul 18, 2018 4:29 amby zxlbxj1 • Farseer | 487 Posts | 4870 Points
SALVADOR, Brazil -- France is striking at the World Cup again, this time in a way the fans back home will approve of. Four years ago to the day, Frances players shamed the nation by going on strike at the last World Cup. On Friday, the team put on a striking attacking display, blowing Switzerland away with a 5-2 win on Friday to take total control of Group E and put themselves in position to avoid a showdown with Lionel Messis Argentina in the next round. "We were all magnificent tonight," said goalkeeper Hugo Lloris, one of only four holdovers from the shambles of Frances last World Cup. "We cant let ourselves get flooded by emotion and must stay calm. But were going to savour this." Karim Benzema, Olivier Giroud and winger Mathieu Valbuena alls scored one goal and created another to underline both the newfound team spirit in this team and the lethal versatility in attack. "When you score five goals, its ecstasy," Valbuena said. "It was a great night for us. We hurt them with our quick attacks and with the variety of our play," France coach Didier Deschamps said. Giroud and Blasie Matuidi scored a minute apart and Valbuena added another before halftime. Benzema made up for a first-half penalty miss with a poachers finish in the 67th, and then turned provider for Moussa Sissoko, who made it 5-0 in the 73rd. "Karim is confirming that hes in very, very good form," Deschamps said." Hes in great shape athletically." Switzerland pulled two consolation goals back as Blerim Dzemaili scored with a free kick in the 81st and Granit Xhaka slotted in the second in the 87th. Benzema thought he had scored his second -- and the goal of the night -- but his curling, first-time strike was ruled out because Dutch referee Bjorn Kuipers blew his whistle for full time just seconds before the shot. "I didnt hear the whistle," he said. Friday marked the fourth anniversary of Frances infamous World Cup training ground strike four years ago in South Africa, when the players shamed a nation back home. How different things look from 2010. "We have to carry on this way and to keep this strength, this irreproachable team spirit we have," Valbuena said. France has scored eight goals in two games in the tournament and Benzema could even afford to miss a penalty. "Its a huge satisfaction within the team but were not going to get carried away," Deschamps said. "We shouldnt think were prettier than we are." Switzerlands demise came rapidly, after centre half Steve Von Bergen came off with blood pouring down from under his left eye after Giroud kicked him in the face in the sixth minute. He was replaced by Philippe Senderos and things went from bad to awful from then on for a makeshift defence against the ferocious pace of Frances breaks from midfield and the slick movement of its interchanging forwards. "They can go very far in this tournament," Switzerland coach Ottmar Hitzfeld said through a translator. "We have seen Frances potential. They had an explosion of power." Deschamps had dropped midfielder Paul Pogba, who was lucky not to be sent off against Honduras for aiming a wild kick at Wilson Palacios, warning him that he needs to control his temper better. After coming on as a substitute, Pogba sent an exquisite pass with the outside of his right boot that had Senderos kicking at air, and Benzema finished confidently for his third goal of the tournament. The Real Madrid forward then instigated a move and waited for Sissoko to break down the right, serving him with an inch-perfect pass. The Swiss conceded far too easily. Giroud jumped above Behrami from near the back of the penalty area to head powerfully under the crossbar in the 17th minute. Then, Valon Behrami gave the ball away to Benzema, who fed Matuidi sprinting down the left, and the Paris Saint-Germain midfielder slotted neatly inside the near post. The Swiss had only one shot on target in the first half, with goalkeeper Hugo Lloris diving low to keep out Mehmedis drive. Shaqiri picked up the rebound and scuffed a low shot that rolled just wide. That close miss went unpunished by Benzema, who missed from the spot after being tripped by Johan Djourou in the 32nd. Yohan Cabaye hit the crossbar from the rebound. It mattered little as Giroud galloped into space down the left and picked out Valbuena at the back post in the 40th with a classic counterattacking goal. Jessie Bates III Jersey . Then he got back at the team that released him five days before the start of last season, hitting a tiebreaking double in the ninth inning of the first game at Fenway Park since Boston won the World Series last October. Billy Price Bengals Jersey . Venus Williams advanced to the ASB Classic final in Auckland on a walkover when fellow American Jamie Hampton withdrew from their semifinal Friday with a right hip injury. http://www.bengalsrookiestore.com/Bengal...fferson-Jersey/. Pikul Khueanpet scored early in the second half and Kanjana Sungngoen made it 2-0 in the 65th minute of the playoff. Tuyet Dong narrowed the margin with goal four minutes from time. The win gave Thailand fifth place at the Asian Cup and the last of the continents qualifying spots for the 2015 Womens World Cup in Canada. Mark Walton Jersey .5 million. The 25-year-old Varlamov is thriving under first-year coach and Hall of Fame goaltender Patrick Roy, posting a 26-9-5 record with a 2. Logan Woodside Jersey . -- Downcast before the final game of what had been a difficult road trip, the Ottawa Senators found a way to dig out a little momentum in the desert before heading home.On Tuesday morning, Steve Yzerman, Mike Babcock and the rest of Team Canadas management unveiled the names of the 25 men who will wear the Maple Leaf next month in Sochi as Canada looks to defend its Olympic gold medal. The roster is comprised of Stanley Cup champions, World Junior champions, numerous winners of individual NHL awards and eleven returning members of the team that struck gold in Vancouver in 2010. The resumes of these 25 players speak for themselves, but that doesnt mean that these selections come with universal acclaim. Many very deserving candidates will be watching the Games at home with the rest of Canada after being left off the final roster. So with armchair general managers from Victoria to Charlottetown dissecting the list of those going to Russia and those staying put, who do you think was the biggest snub for Team Canada? Starting in net, a pair of incumbents from the 2010 gold medal-winning team didnt receive the call. Now 41 and with his career winding down, it doesnt really come as a surprise that Martin Brodeur wont be heading to Sochi, but what about Marc-Andre Fleury? The Penguins goalie leads the league with 24 wins and holds a 2.23 GAA which is level with that of Roberto Luongos and higher than both of Mike Smiths and Carey Prices marks. Yes, Fleury has won a Stanley Cup, but did his reputation for floundering in big games negate his chances of once again wearing a Team Canada sweater? Montreal native Corey Crawford is coming off a Stanley Cup championship with the Chicago Blackhawks and, though having missed 10 games due to injury, is once again putting up stellar numbers for a team also looking to repeat. Is Crawfords success viewed as a byproduct of the stellar team in front of him? What about Josh Harding? Arguably, the most inspirational story of the year in the NHL, the 29-year-old has emerged as Minnesotas unquestioned starting goalie for the first time in his eight-year NHL career and completely run with the ball, all the while undergoing treatment for Multiple Sclerosis. Harding leads thhe league with a miniscule 1.dddddddddddd3 GAA, has a .933 save percentage (third in the NHL,) three shutouts and 18 wins. Moving to the blue line, turnover was expected with two stalwarts in Scott Niedermayer and Chris Pronger no longer playing, but Brent Seabrook, another member of the Vancouver 2010 squad, finds himself on the outside looking in. Seabrook is top-five in scoring among defencemen, is joint league-leader in plus/minus and plays over 21 minutes a night for the Blackhawks alongside Duncan Keith, who is headed to Sochi. With Babcock pushing for an eight-man defensive corps made up of four right and four left defencemen, Seabrook found himself behind the likes of Drew Doughty, Alex Pietrangelo, Shea Weber, and P.K. Subban on the right-sided depth chart. Still, is it wise to look past Seabrooks past Olympic success and the fact that his partnership with Keith, the blueliner likely to log the most minutes for Canada, is arguably the NHLs most steady? How much of a factor were injuries in the overlooking of Marc Staal of the New York Rangers and Pittsburgh Penguins D-man Kris Letang? Two more defencemen who toil for Canadian teams who play heavy minutes also didnt receive the call, Torontos Dion Phaneuf and Mark Giordano of the Flames. Are there any more blueliners who you would have liked to see head to Russia? The debate about Canadas forward contingent will likely be the most hotly contested with several significant names not getting picked for duty. For starters, the NHLs assist leader isnt going to Sochi. A member of the 2006 and 2010 Canadian Olympic teams, Joe Thornton (43 assists) was not named on Tuesday morning. Martin St. Louis is leading the Tampa Bay Lightning with 17 goals and 21 assists while Claude Giroux tops the Flyers squad with 12 goals and 26 assists. Eric Staal is his usual reliable self with the Carolina Hurricanes with 35 points in 42 games. Who else deserved to be named to the Olympic team and didnt? And as always, its Your! Call. Cheap Jerseys Free Shipping Wholesale NFL Camo Jerseys NFL Jerseys From China China NFL Gear Cheap Jerseys Free Shipping Wholesale Jerseys Stitched NFL Jerseys ' ' '
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