At the end of a match of unbearable suspense, the reigning world champions lost to the Swiss in the round of 16 on Monday 28th June 2021.
The France team lost to Switzerland (3-3, 4-5 tab), after a breathtaking match in Bucharest (Romania) this Monday 28th June 2021 during the knockout stages of the Euro 2021.
Both French fans and Didier Deschamps’ men suffered a lot during this interminable match, which only ended after a penalty shoot-out .
C’est terminé. Victoire de la Suisse lors de la séance de tirs au but (4-5) #FRASUI #FiersdetreBleus #FRA pic.twitter.com/QundnJWkoX
— Equipe de France ⭐⭐ (@equipedefrance) June 28, 2021
At kick-off, the French players left weakened, deprived of several of their teammates forfeited for injuries, including left-back Lucas Digne, striker Ousmane Dembélé and defender Jules Koundé. Also injured, Marcus Thuram, Thomas Lemar and Lucas Hernandez were on the bench.
The Blues led during the first period
The Nati opened the scoring shortly before the fifteenth minute thanks to a header from Haris Seferovic, facing a passive defence from Clément Lenglet , who trod the pitch for the first time since the start of the competition.
Very feverish on the defensive plan and lacking in precision in attack, the Blues were led throughout the first period.
The awakening thanks to a double from Karim Benzema
The first turning point of the match came shortly after the start of the second half. The firm hand of Hugo Lloris gave the French hope again in the 54th minute, as Switzerland threatened to score a second goal from the penalty spot.
Boosted by this unexpected stop on the part of their captain, the French all dressed in blue regained the advantage thanks to an incredible double from Karim Benzema in two minutes apart (57 ′ and 59 ′).
The third goal is signed by Paul Pogba (75 ′), the first since the final of the 2018 World Cup for the French midfielder who has shone since the start of this Euro.
The Swiss snatch the extension
But the evening was far from over, giving the French a cold sweat. While the latter led 3-1, the Helvetians returned ten minutes before the end of regulation time with a second goal from Haris Seferovic.
Then equalized in the 90th minute thanks to Gavranovic, who a few minutes earlier had already scored a goal, a goal denied because in an offside position. At the last minute, everything was put on the line, the Swiss snatching extra time.
Despite the entry of Moussa Sissoko and Olivier Giroud as well as several great opportunities, the Blues failed to reverse the trend during this extension. Enough to make the French supporters shiver with anguish!
Switzerland wins thanks to penalties
But at the end of a fight of exceptional intensity between these 22 warriors on the lawn of Bucharest, it is finally on penalties that the suspense ended.
After the successful shots of Paul Pogba, Olivier Giroud, Marcus Thuram and Presnel Kimpembe, it was the penalty missed by Kylian Mbappé that brought down France at the gates of the quarter-finals.
Euro 2021, therefore, ends in Romania for the reigning world champions, who had managed to finish at the top of the “group of death”, against Germany and Portugal – the reigning European champions who were also eliminated in the round of 16 Sunday night by Belgium.
Only around 1,700 French supporters were able to make the trip to support the Blues in the stands of the National Arena, just authorized by the public authorities to increase its capacity to 26,900 spectators, or 50% of the capacity.
In the quarter-finals, the Swiss will face Friday 2nd July in Saint Petersburg (Russia) Spain, victorious over Croatia after an equally crazy match (5-3 ap) a few hours earlier this Monday in Copenhagen. Two other posters are already known for the rest of the European competition: Belgium-Italy on Friday and Czech Republic-Denmark on Saturday.
