French individuality succumbs to Swiss spirit

BUCHAREST • Kylian Mbappe missing the decisive kick in the shoot-out as world champions France were eliminated from Euro 2020 by Switzerland on Monday encapsulated the biggest lesson of an extraordinary night - you cannot rely on individual brilliance alone.

The Paris Saint-Germain forward, of all the Les Bleus players, could be expected to score a penalty but nothing is guaranteed.

The magnificent save from Yann Sommer in the last-16 clash denied Mbappe and the shock on French faces showed they did not quite comprehend how they had managed to lose the game.

Ranked on talent, skill and individual quality, France should have been in a different class to Vladimir Petkovic's hardworking Swiss side.

The 22-year-old Mbappe is the greatest young talent in the game, Paul Pogba and N'Golo Kante are two of the best central midfielders in the tournament and Karim Benzema, who scored twice, is one of the finest finishers around.

But it was only for 25 minutes of the 120 played that France looked like world-beaters and made the Swiss seem also-rans.

For the rest of the time, Didier Deschamps' men played without real focus, without the kind of steel and determination that need to be allied to flair and talent.

When Pogba scored a screamer to make it 3-1 in the 75th minute, many of those watching felt it was game over.

But from the way they played thereafter, the French made the often fatal mistake of underestimating the Swiss, who managed to draw level in added time.

"Nobody believed in us any more at that stage," said Sommer.

"We felt they had become a bit complacent and maybe thought they had already won it. So we used that to our advantage."

France, in extra time, were unable to rediscover the verve that had given them a two-goal lead and, for all their qualities, lacked the discipline and cohesiveness that had been so central to their success at the World Cup in Russia three years ago.

"The best team deserve to go to the next round and tonight, that is the Swiss," said former France midfielder Patrick Vieira.

"It was a poor French national team. There wasn't any togetherness, there wasn't any spirit. We didn't play as a team so we didn't deserve to go to the next round."

Switzerland had team spirit in abundance. Granit Xhaka, so often mocked for his performances with Arsenal in the Premier League, was a giant in midfield and Mario Gavranovic, who plays in the Croatian league, tormented the French backline after entering the field in the 73rd minute.

Above all, Switzerland displayed the collective strength that France lacked - they kept their shape, they battled and they worked while their opponents looked increasingly lost.

"We showed courage, heart, we left everything out there," added Sommer.

"When you come back from two goals down against the world champions, it is just unbelievable, and then to win on penalties, I could not be prouder of the way we did it."

The Swiss, into their first major football tournament quarter-final in 67 years, next take on Spain in St Petersburg on Friday.

Once again, they face opponents ranked higher than them in every category but will believe that in the department that matters most - teamwork - they can maybe pull off another upset.

REUTERS