In its first participation in the tournament, France qualified for the round of 16 of the Futsal World Cup in Uzbekistan, after beating Venezuela 7-3, fulfilling its objective. They did better this Friday, September 27 in Bukhara, by beating the Thais (5-2), although they are used to reaching this stage of the competition and ahead of the blues in the world rankings.
Facing a team that was quick on the counterattack and prone to regrouping in a low block, the French team started the game well, opening the scoring in the eighth minute, in two halves. Arthur Tchaptchet first saw his shot saved by Arut Senbat, but Sid Belhaj, well placed, recovered the ball on the edge of the area to move Steve Bendali to the right, whose left-footed shot found the back of the net, well assisted by a hand. Thai goalkeeper error.
The rivals then rushed to retaliate: Muhammad Osamanmusa fired a shot that the Blues goalkeeper saved with his chest. After Thailand’s complaint, the video arbitration – each team has a request for time – considered that Francis Lokoka’s stop was legal.
The Blues showed their best side since the start of the competition in this first half marked by a ball on the Thai crossbar, deflected by a header from the leader Ayoub Saadaoui and an excellent performance by the Blues goalkeeper, impassable.
Upon returning from the locker room, the French team confirmed its form by taking a break from the start (23my). Taken from Abdessamad Mohammed on the left side, Mamadou Touré scored a great goal in the opponent’s goal. It was enough for the Thais, who saw their chances of qualifying for the quarterfinals, a stage they had never reached, seriously slipping away and rebelled.
In a free kick, they first opened their counter (25my), with a goal from Suphawut Thueanklang (2-1), before Narongsak Wingwon reduced the deficit (3-2) with less than eight minutes remaining. But it was first Souheil Mouhoudine who relieved the Blues with a long shot, thanks to excellent defensive work from his team (38′).my), then Ayoub Saadaoui, who finally added the score, in turn from his own half, two minutes before the end of the match (5-2).
France will face Paraguay on Monday, September 30 at 2:30 p.m. in the quarterfinals. Although Les Bleus clearly beat the Thais, they have not yet emerged from the chaos, who were accused of having adopted unsportsmanlike behavior and will be transferred to the bottom of the table. “more affordable” and avoid Morocco.
They obtained second place in their group after being defeated by the Iranians (1-4) on Sunday, September 22. Several teams had complained to FIFA, including Thailand and Paraguay. On Thursday, September 26, Iran was eliminated from the competition (3-4) by the Moroccans.
