France entered the SheBelieves Cup as the lowest-ranked team of the four involved, ranked sixth while the others were all in the top three. But thanks to a blistering goal from Amandine Henry for France vs. Germany, Les Bleues ensured they didn’t finish last in the tournament, beating Die Nationalelf 3-0.
By recent standards, France didn’t have a great showing in the SheBelieves Cup, though much of that was down to the level of competition. An embarrassing 4-1 defeat to cross-channel rival England (ranked No. 3 in the world) in the opening match overshadowed a 1-1 draw with top-ranked U.S. But Les Bleues salvaged a bit of confidence against Germany, the second-ranked team in the world.
The France vs. Germany match was a de facto third-place game on Wednesday afternoon in Orlando, Florida. Neither side went into the match able to win the tournament but, pending results in the later match between the U.S. and England, both were within striking distance of second place.
France took a step toward the silver medal early in the match. In the 10th minute, Eugénie Le Sommer deftly laid the ball off for Henry, who thumped her shot past a helpless Almuth Schult in goal for Germany.
Late entry for goal of the tournament comes from @amandinehenry6, a familiar face to @NWSL fans! pic.twitter.com/S7ZP8akJk6
— U.S. Soccer (@ussoccer) March 7, 2018
Fellow Frenchman Thierry Henry would’ve been proud of that powerful strike from Amandine Henry.
The first half, however, was marred by a nasty leg injury suffered by Aïssatou Tounkara, who had to be taken off on a gurney. The French center back was kicked inadvertently by Dzsenifer Marozsán, who was trying to take a shot before Tounkara’s leg got in the way. A loud, audible crack was evidence of the gruesome power of the collision.
A brutal leg injury to Aïssatou Tounkara marred the France vs. Germany SheBelieves Cup match. Photo: @equipedefrance | Twitter
Not long after Tounkara was taken off, in the ninth minute of first-half stoppage time, France’s Viviane Asseyi nearly pulled off a goal to one-up Henry, but her attempted bicycle kick flew just wide. In the end, the first half ended 1-0 after 12 minutes of stoppage time.
Les Bleues doubled their advantage in the 55th minute through Le Sommer. The France No. 9 got her head on the end of a cross from Gaëtane Thiney for her 66th career international goal — and her first ever goal against Germany.
Le Sommer, who scored against the U.S. on Sunday, picked up her second assist of the night when she got in behind the defense and laid the ball across for Valérie Gauvin to smash home in the 68th minute.
2019 @FIFAWWC hosts running away with it in Orlando. Now 3-0, .#SheBelievesCup // #FRAvGER pic.twitter.com/cAdIWqIfrq
— U.S. Soccer (@ussoccer) March 7, 2018
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