France 4-0 South Korea
Les Bleues are off and running! The Women’s World Cup hosts got off to a flying start tonight at the Parc des Princes with a resounding 4-0 win over South Korea to storm ahead in Group A.
Two goals from Wendie Renard and one each from Eugenie Le Sommer and captain Amadine Henry made it an emphatic victory to kick off the flagship tournament.
The Women’s World Cup 2019 betting tips have been backing Les Bleues from the off, and with home advantage they have every chance of emulating France’s men’s team which lifted the Russia 2018 World Cup in such breathtaking style.
Their opponents had been cast as Korea’s ‘Golden Generation’, hopeful of going deep into the World Cup but on their first half showing that looks a little ambitious!
Highlights of the game
Corine Diacre set her team up to attack and it was all France in the early exchanges, with Amandine Henry having the first shot of the tournament, curling her effort just wide of the left hand post. Eugenie Le Sommer was lively from the off, and she had a shot blocked before forcing a save from Min Jung Kim who got down low to save in the corner.
The early pressure soon told and on nine minutes Les Bleues were ahead, Le Sommer was first to react to a loose ball and she lifted it expertly over Kim and into the net. The France striker had been a handful in the opening minutes and she’ll be a regular feature in the Women’s World Cup highlights as the tournament progresses.
France almost went 2-0 up on 27 minutes when the two centre backs combined following a corner. Wendie Renard headed a ball across the box and Griedje Mbock Bathe volleyed the ball superbly home. They players celebrated but then were sopped in their tracks by VAR which eventually ruled that Bathe was marginally offside. It was matter of inches but the correct decision.
But Les Bleus did go two up on 37 minutes when the 6ft 1 Renard rose unmarked to head the ball down and into the net. By this time France had taken 15 shots at the Korean goal in a completely one-sided first half. And the score became more reflective of that just before the break with the same scorer, Renard rising highest to meet a corner and looping a well placed header beyond Kim into the corner of the net.
The second half began as the first had ended, with France on the attack, and Le Sommer had a shot blocked before Henry had a long range effort saved.
It was a better second half for the underdogs and Korea finally had a shot, on 70 minutes, but Kang Chae Rim fired well over. France seemed happy to settle for the three goals but skipper Henry had other ideas. She scored the goal of the game, to make it 4-0, with a lovely curling effort into the far corner.
Henry said, before the tournament, that she wanted her team to enjoy themselves. Well they certainly did that tonight!
Key Statistics
At fourth in the FIFA World rankings, seven places above South Korea, Les Bleues were expected to win, but they simply blew Korea away in a brutal first half, winning ten corners and having 16 shots, six on target, while the Koreans failed to register a single one.
After that embarrassment Korea woke up and did have a better second half. They eventually registered four shots to les Bleues 21, but sadly none to trouble the hosts’ keeper.
Centre back Renard is as prolific up front as she is dependable at the back and has now scored 22 goals for the international side.
And that’s now three to nil to France in the head to head clashes, while South Korea has won just one of eight World Cup games, drawing one and losing six.
What’s next?
There’s plenty more action on the way for SBOBET football fans, and in the Women’s World Cup, tomorrow’s big game is Germany against China. The Germans are ranked second in the world and will be determined to assert themselves early in the tournament, but need to be wary of a dangerous Chinese attack.
And these two teams are in action again on Wednesday, when Korea takes on Group A long shots Nigeria, while France has a more testing encounter against Norway.
Korea needs to justify its ‘Golden Generation’ tag while we can expect another attacking exhibition from the French.
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