Pressure off for Euro Hosts France After an Unconvincing but Winning Start

Hosts France are the only team at the 2016 UEFA European Championship to have won two matches so far. With six points, four goals scored and only one conceded, things are going well—on paper at least—for Didier Deschamps’ men.

After almost two full years without a competitive fixture, it was imperative that Les Bleus readjusted after nearly 24 months of uninspiring friendly action. The players have done just that.

Even if the French are yet to truly impress on home soil, they are winning. At this stage, that is all that should matter, and that is all that will have counted in the eyes of Deschamps to this point.

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Now that the pressure is off after winning their first two Group A games, the two-time Euro titleholders can go into their encounter with Switzerland at Stade Pierre-Mauroy in Lille on Sunday free to express themselves.

So far, the only player who has truly looked in his element for France is West Ham United’s Dimitri Payet. The 29-year-old has come up big with superb late strikes for the hosts against both Romania on the opening day at Stade de France in Paris and against Albania at Stade Velodrome in Marseille.

Payet started wide on the left against the Romanians and in his preferred playmaker role against the Albanians, and the former Olympique de Marseille, Lille OSC, AS Saint-Etienne and FC Nantes man was crucial in both victories.

Les Bleus’ No. 8 has not only scored two of the team’s four goals so far, he has also worked tremendously hard to create chances for others—even if they have been mostly wasted—and been the side’s most consistent performer.

Speaking with journalists after the 2-0 win over Albania in Marseille on Wednesday, Payet revealed his delight at playing such an important role in both opening victories and said he was representing his island of birth—Reunion—within the squad:

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Once again I made the difference and I've known for a while that my island (Reunion) is right behind me and there is fervent support for Les Bleus. They're very proud that France have made it through to the last 16. What's great is that the late goals are nothing new. Since March, when we played the Netherlands, we've shown that we can go out and win games late on. We had to be patient.

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What is perhaps most positive for the French so far is that they are yet to show their best but are still winning.

Against Romania, the 1984 and 2000 champions were every bit as rusty as you would expect from a team that have not kicked a ball competitively in almost two years. That ineptitude could be forgiven, but the laboured win over Albania was more concerning.

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There is no question that France are feeling the pressure of being tournament hosts. Despite being backed by a vociferous—albeit expectant—home crowd for every match, Deschamps’ team have looked shy, awkward and burdened by the tag of pre-Euro favourites.

Even with all of that weighing down on them, though, Les Bleus are winning their matches and have progressed to the latter stages.

Although the Albania victory took a mighty fight, Deschamps’ players ultimately came through and made sure that the home side were the first to book their berth to the knockout rounds.

However, despite advancing, the French do have some concerns. Patrice Evra’s poor form is one such worry, while Blaise Matuidi’s exhaustion and Olivier Giroud’s inefficiency in front of goal are all bothering topics for Deschamps.

The 47-year-old tactician came in for harsh criticism after deciding to leave Antoine Griezmann and Paul Pogba out of his starting XI against Albania.

The 1998 FIFA World Cup- and Euro 2000-winning former captain was vindicated in his choices, though, after both came on to help France turn the tide.

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Evra, at 35 years old, is the most experienced outfield player in Deschamps’ squad, but the Juventus left-back is playing like one of their most inexperienced.

Paris Saint-Germain’s Matuidi has been run into the ground by club and country, so he looks burned out. Meanwhile, Arsenal’s Giroud is simply missing too many good chances to score prolifically at present.

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Deschamps has tried his regular 4-3-3 formation and a modified 4-2-3-1 shape, and while both have yielded the same results, the latter should allow him to play more of his star players in their strongest roles.

The 4-2-3-1 enables Payet to occupy his favoured No. 10 role behind a lone striker, while Pogba could be deployed in his favoured left-central midfield berth over Matuidi and Griezmann could start instead of Giroud at the tip of the attack—if Deschamps chooses.

With the pressure now off, the former Marseille boss has the chance to experiment and try these new ideas in the final Group A encounter with Switzerland before moving into the latter stages.

AS Roma’s Lucas Digne could come in for Evra after an impressive season in Serie A, which would give the veteran left-back something to think about ahead of the knockout rounds, while Tigres UANL’s Andre-Pierre Gignac, Bayern Munich’s Kingsley Coman and Manchester United’s Anthony Martial are all interesting squad options in attack.

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France have not been poor so far, but they have been a little underwhelming. With that said, they have still won both of their two opening matches and are in good shape going into the latter stages.

As hosts, with plenty of pressure on them from both the media and expectant home supporters, they are faring better than some other teams, and many sides would have accepted an offer to make a similar start to Les Bleus' if offered pre-tournament.