LANDOVER, Maryland, March 29 (Reuters) – Desire Doue scored twice as France showcased their attacking firepower and strength in depth with a 3-1 friendly win over Colombia on Sunday, in their final outing before coach Didier Deschamps names his World Cup squad.
Fielding an entirely different lineup from the first-choice side who beat Brazil 2-1 on Thursday, Les Bleus still proved too strong for Colombia, with Doue’s double and another goal from Marcus Thuram sealing a comfortable victory.
Jaminton Campaz pulled one back for Colombia, who were quickly overwhelmed despite a decent start.
Sometimes criticised for favouring cold calculation over flair, France — over the course of two warm-up matches — combined style with efficiency and head towards the June 11-July 19 World Cup with growing certainty ahead of Deschamps’ final tournament in charge.
“What we’ve produced over these two games is really interesting. We can’t wait to be in June,” said Rayan Cherki, who looked comfortable in France’s 4-2-3-1 formation.
Deschamps was equally positive in his assessment.
“A very positive sporting assessment against two very strong South American teams,” he said. “We gave a lot of players opportunities… the quality is there.”
After a lively opening spell, France took the lead through Doue, who fired a low strike into the bottom corner in the 29th minute to score his first international goal.
Five minutes before the break, Thuram doubled the advantage, powering a header in off the underside of the bar after meeting a superbly curled cross from Maghnes Akliouche.
Any doubt was effectively removed before the hour mark.
Breaking quickly from the midfield, Akliouche began the move before Cherki released Thuram on the right, and the forward squared unselfishly for Doue to apply a clinical finish.
Just as Kylian Mbappe was about to come on as a late substitute, Campaz reduced the arrears with a precise angled shot.
Mbappe, as well as fellow substitute Hugo Ekitike, went close to adding a fourth in a frantic finish.
France will fine-tune their World Cup preparations against Ivory Coast in Nantes on June 4 and against another, as-yet-undetermined, opponent on June 8.
Deschamps will name his squad for the World Cup on May 14.
(Writing by Julien Pretot in ParisEditing by Toby Davis)
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