GROUP 1 REVIEW: After securing their ticket on Thursday when Serbia beat Greece, France offered an attacking festival for their fans to enjoy on Sunday
Ahead of France's last match in the Men's EHF EURO 2022 qualifiers against Greece, Guillaume Gille had made the decision to rest some of his stalwarts, including Ludovic Fabregas, Dika Mem, Nédim Rémili.
The French national team coach wanted to use this opportunity to give some of his younger talents a chance to shine at the international level, and none of them disappointed in what turned into an impressive offensive display from the hosts.
GROUP 1
France vs Greece 46:30 (23:13)
- Greece kept up with France’s rhythm for the opening 15 minutes until signs of fatigue first appeared in the Greek ranks
- consequently, the hosts pushed even more on the accelerator, with Dylan Nahi giving his team an extra boost. Thanks to their left wing, the hosts were ahead by 10 at the break (23:13).
- France did not take their foot off the pedal in the second half and extended their advantage to 16 goals in the 48th minute, which allowed Guillaume Gille to give six newcomers their first minutes on the court in an international game
- three players scored at least seven for France: Hugo Descat (eight goals) was France's best scorer, while Nicolas Tournat and Dylan Nahi both netted seven. From the 14 French players, only one did not score: Adrian Dipanda
- France finished second in group 1, behind Serbia, while Greece finished third and are out of the race for the EHF EURO 2022
Six players make their international debut for France
Remi Desbonnet, Karl Konan, Aymeric Minne, O’Brian Nyateu, Theo Monar and Kevin Bonnefoi played their first international game tonight. And they showed that France have a bright future. Nahi, the Paris Saint-Germain left wing, made the best impression, scoring seven goals, while Desbonnet stopped eight shots in the first half.
TEXT:
EHF / Kevin Domas