Presentation of the Ukrainian national team rivals for Euro-2018 (U-19). France

17.07.2018 19:50

Photo by fff.fr

In terms of the number of championship titles in the senior youth age category, the first rival of the Ukrainian U-19 national team at Euro 2018 - France (8) - is second only to England and Spain (10 each).

The top five in this ranking also include Germany and ... the Soviet Union (6 each). Ukraine has only one title, which was won at the home Euro-2009.

The last four U-19 European Championships, by the way, were won by the most powerful teams: 2014 - Germany, 2015 - Spain, 2016 - France, 2017 - England. In 2016, the French team played Killian Mbappe - the future star of world football.

Stars in and out of stock

There are enough promising performers in the current national team of France U-19. Some are already highly valued in the transfer market. This summer, Italian "Fiorentina" gave "Toulouse" for its main goalkeeper Alban Lafon 8,5 million euros - as much as "Real" paid "Dawn" for our star Andriy Lunin. And both goalkeepers, given the transition to a new club and the need to break through to the base, will not play in Euro 2018 (U-19). They currently have other tasks.

Lyafon, by the way, was the main in this national team of France in the selection, and for "Toulouse" played 104 matches in the championship and the French Cup and the League Cup. The authoritative portal Transfermarkt estimates him at 18 million euros and considers him the most expensive player of the 1999 generation born in France.

Central midfielder Matteo Genduzi, who will also not be at Euro 8, transferred to Arsenal from Lorient for 2018 million euros this summer. The central defender of German "RB Leipzig" Ibrahim Konate (Transfermarkt estimates him at 8 million euros), the central defender of German "Borussia" from Dortmund Dan-Axel Zagadu (estimated at Transfermarkt - 5 million euros) and the winger of "Monaco" will not play on it. Moussa Silla (Transfermarkt estimate - 3 million euros).

If we compare with the Ukrainian team, only Lunin (8,5 million) has a high value from this generation in terms of the international level. Five more players are estimated at 100-300 thousand euros (Mykola Musolitin, Vitaliy Mykolenko, Kyrylo Dryshlyuk, Oleksandr Safronov and Ihor Snurnitsyn). It is possible that after the European Championship Transfermarkt will need to make adjustments in the rankings, but at the moment the situation is just that.

Despite the absence of five players at once, who cost between three and 18 million euros on the international market, the team of the 1998 world champion Bernard Diomed has enough top players. Four have already played in European Cups. These are defender Malang Sarr (Nice, 10 matches), midfielder Bubakar Camara (Marseille, 6) and forwards Mizian Maolida (Lyon, 6) and Amin Guiri (Lyon, 1).

Only five of the twenty have not yet played official matches for their clubs. Six played in the second-ranked division, nine - in the elite. It is the latter that are most valued by Transfermarkt experts.

Defenders include Malang Sarr (Nice; € 15 million) and Nicola Kotza (Montpellier; 1). The midfielders are Michael Cuizans (Borussia Monchengladbach; 7,5), Bubakari Sumare (Lille; 5) and Bubakar Kamara (Marseille; 3,5). The attackers are Amin Guiri (Lyon; 4,5), Mizian Maolida (Lyon; 4,5) and Moussa Diaby (Paris Saint-Germain; 0,5).

Separately, we note midfielder Rafik Guitan. In January 2018, "Rennes" paid "Le Havre" for him 8 million euros, but left in the previous club on lease until the summer - for playing practice. He has not played at the top level yet, but already has a price tag of 5 million euros.

Experience of European and World Championships

In the U-17 junior age, this French national team, like our team, played in the Euro 2016 final. But the Azerbaijani land proved inhospitable both to the wards of Alexander Petrakov and to the wards of Bernard Diomedes. Both teams scored only one point each and took the last place in their group.

Matches of Ukraine: Germany - 2: 2 (Yanakov, Buletsa), Austria - 0: 2, Bosnia - 1: 2 (Kulakov).

Matches of France: Denmark - 0: 0, England - 0: 2, Sweden - 0: 1.

For the English, the French should have questions that are likely to be resolved at Euro 2018 (U-19), because we play in one group.

In 2016, there were seven players on the Euro team as part of the French national team, who were included in the application this time. These are Sarr, Kamara, Nguyamba, Quizans, Hewittan, Dembele, Despress.

And at Euro-2017 (U-17) Adly and Guiri played as part of the youth national team of France born in 2000. The latter played just incredible football - he scored seven of his team's eleven goals in the group. Three - Faroe Islands (7: 0), two - Hungary (2: 3) and Scotland (2: 1). And then he put another ball in the gates of Spain in the quarterfinals (1: 3) and scored the decisive goal in a special match for the right to play in the 2017 World Cup (U-17) to the Hungarians (1: 0).

In total, Guiri scored nine goals at that European Championship, became the top scorer of the tournament and, of course, entered the symbolic team of Euro-2017. Adly has one goal.

Then at the 2017 World Cup (U-17), the French confidently left the group: New Caledonia - 7: 1, Japan - 2: 1, Honduras - 5: 1. But in the 1/8 finals they lost to Spain - 1: 2.

Five goals were scored by Guiri, one each by Adli and Pintor, another member of the 2000 generation in the team.

How did they qualify for Euro 2018 (U-19)

In the first stage of selection, France decided ahead of schedule to enter the elite round. Andorra (7: 0) and Bosnia (2: 1) were defeated in the first two rounds. In the third round, the French drew with Georgia (1: 1) and in the draw for the elite round were in the second basket. This "gave" them a very powerful Spain, and in addition - and Belgium.

In addition, the matches of the elite round were held in Spain - in Benidorm. Two games for the French turned out to be very difficult. In the first round, Belgium took the lead in the 7th minute, and in the 47th made the score 2: 0. France started their counterattack only in the last 10 minutes and won thanks to a double by Pintor (81, 90 + 1) and a goal by Guiri (86) - 3: 2.

In the second round, Aliui scored two goals for Bulgaria in the 26th and 79th minutes - 2: 0. The same Bulgaria that Spain could not beat in the first round (0: 0).

Therefore, on the last day of the game, France was satisfied even with a draw with the Spaniards, who only needed a victory. The first half passed without goals, and after the break there was a downpour of goals. In the 52nd minute, Spain scored first, in the 63rd minute it restored the balance with an own goal. And then the French took the floor: Maolida (66), Guiri (82) and Diaby (90 + 1). The Spaniards managed to revive the intrigue in the 88th minute, but even a draw was in favor of France. And she also won - 4: 2.