World Cup 2010: France v South Africa full time report
France 1 South Africa 2
Both France and hosts South Africa are out of the World Cup, despite the Bafana Bafana registering their first win of the competition in Bloemfontein.
Uruguay’s 1-0 win over Mexico in Rustenburg ensures that both of those sides progress, but South Africa at least exit their own competition with their heads held high.
That can’t be said for the French though, and their shambolic campaign took a turn for the worse in the first half, when goals from Bongani Khumalo and Katlego Mphela saw South Africa race into a commanding lead and Yoann Gourcuff seeing red for the French for an apparent elbow on MacBeth Sibaya.
Substitute Florent Malouda pulled a goal back for France midway through the second half, but neither side could force another goal, with the South Africans becoming the first World Cup hosts to exit the competition at the group stages.
For Raymond Domenech – who dropped captain Patrice Evra and again didn’t start with Thierry Henry – his France career is over and the hapless coach will be replaced by Laurent Blanc, to the delight of the French fans, many of whom booed the team throughout the match.
It was a slow starting contest, but Djibril Cissé tested South African goalkeeper Moeneeb Josephs with a header from new skipper Alou Diarra’s cross, before Sibaya blazed high and wide at the other end.
It wasn’t long before Bafana Bafana took the lead though, as centre back Khumalo rose to head in a Siphiwe Tshabalala cross after goalkeeper Hugo Lloris had come for the corner and missed.
France responded, and André-Pierre Gignac fired narrowly wide before Cissé’s effort went even wider, but back at the other end Mphela’s strong run ended in a shot that was driven wide.
The moment that summed up France’s campaign was just around the corner though, and Gourcuff saw red for appearing to elbow MacBeth Sibaya in the face, despite replays showing that it was probably accidental.
If France thought that was the worst that it could get, then they were to be mistaken, and it wasn’t long before Mphela scrambled in a Tsepo Masilela cross following yet more shocking French defending, particularly from Gaël Clichy.
There was still time in the first half for Mphela to have a goal disallowed and for Lloris to make a sharp save from the forward, before Tshabalala’s clever pass set him up again shortly after the break, only for Mphela to hit the outside of the post with Lloris well beaten.
Cissé curled an effort just over the crossbar before being immediately replaced by Henry, before Mphela was at it again at the other end, his 25 yard drive turned away by Lloris.
The previously anonymous Franck Ribéry clipped an effort over the bar when he should have passed to Henry, but the ever-present threat of Mphela was always worrying the French, and he just overran the ball before it deflected off him into the side-netting, before Steven Pienaar drove straight at Lloris.
Les Bleus’ goal came out of the blue, and Bacary Sagna’s through ball found Ribéry, who squared for half time substitute Malouda to sidefoot into an empty net, giving France their first goal of the competition.
Tshabalala almost grabbed another for the hosts in stoppage time, but Lloris saved well, one of few things that the French did right in the tournament.
They exit meekly, while South Africa bow out in a blare of vuvuzelas, but they bow out on a win.
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