The French women’s team, shaken throughout the match, overturned Ireland on Tuesday in Dublin (2-1) for their first qualifying match for the 2027 World Cup, thanks to the decisive entry of Melvine Malard.
With this success, the Bleues lead their group before facing Poland on Saturday, despite not always delivering in Dublin.
There is a twenty-place difference in the FIFA rankings between the Bleues (7th) and the Irish (27th), but this gap was not clear on Tuesday night.
Grace Geyoro’s teammates – captained by Griedge Mbock’s absence – waited until the last twenty minutes to get into the game, the first of their six qualification matches for the 2027 World Cup.
To see Brazil in a year and a half, they will need to show the same intensity, coordination, forward movements, and precision in front of the goal as they did in the last twenty minutes.
– Two shots, two goals –
The Bleues waited until the 70th minute to have their first shot on target. However, thanks to a winning coaching decision by Laurent Bonadei, they showed great efficiency: two shots on target, two goals.
On her first ball, French forward from Manchester United, Melvine Malard, dribbled past Katie McCabe and Megan Connolly in the area to equalize (1-1, 71st). It was also her cross that led to Marie-Antoinette Katoto’s goal (78th).
Eight minutes later, it was again Malard who turned the match around following a series of deflected shots (2-1, 79th) and with a lot of luck. She had already scored a hat-trick in June against Belgium in a friendly match.
In contrast, French goalkeeper Constance Picaud – starting in place of Pauline Peyraud-Magnin – had to make saves from the start of the game, including a free-kick by the Irish (4th) and a shot on target (11th). She also made a crucial intervention for the Bleues with a timely exit (60th).
But the Fleury goalkeeper couldn’t do anything about Ireland captain Katie McCabe’s opening goal (1-0, 12th), perfectly set up by Emily Murphy.
Towards the end of the match, the Bleues were under pressure in the last minutes but resisted on different corners, partly thanks to Marie-Antoinette Katoto’s goal-line clearance (90+3), which was as valuable as a goal.
On a smaller pitch (64 meters wide instead of 68 meters) and without several key players (Mbock, Cascarino, Bacha), they showed a true team spirit, with substitutes making a difference. Coach Laurent Bonadei praised his players, feeling proud of their performance.
In 45 minutes and especially in the last twenty minutes, his speech changed. At halftime, he was “not satisfied” due to an “unacceptable” first period, showing visible frustration.
