The second of these friendlies saw France U17 emerge victorious with a 2-1 win over Finland U17. Amiens’ centre forward Aly Traoré opened the scoring for the home team, 15-year-old centre back Miguel Yinkfu Chuye equalised for the away team in the 90th minute but French right winger Loan Merrifield snatched the win with a brilliant left-footed volley.
1. Tactically competitive
Finland managed to hold their own against one of the best academies in the world. Creating a 4v2 or 3v2 in midfield, Finland broke the French midfield with Juuso Mäkeläinen receiving the ball in the right half space. France had their own wing plays, with Lorenzo Kana-Biyik playing a one-two with right winger Dee-Shawn Jacinthe in their own third and midfielder Xavier Mandza running into the channel. Both teams struggled to find their winger in the 1v1 situation against the opposition full-back.
2. Physical differences
It became clear that French players were more athletic, had quicker reactions and were quicker on the ball compared to Finnish players. Some of them used their size or speed to dominate their Finnish counterparts. The first goal was a clear example – Aly Traoré outpaced Finnish captain Iivo Nybäck to finish past the keeper.
3. Technical differences
French players were taught position-specific techniques, for example, the full-back cutting inside, centre-back stepping up with the ball, wingers doing stepovers and are better at volleys as displayed in the winning goal. In contrast, Finnish players had simpler techniques and struggled with volleys.
The player who stood out in this match:
Xavier Mandza, France U17, Midfielder / Defender
Athletic figure to put pressure on smaller Finnish opponents. The left-footed midfielder carved open the Finnish defence with through balls on multiple occasions. Accurate with his switch of play and playing in tight areas. Needed development in wing rotations, perception when opening up the body to play and midfield presence in tackling. Played as a left-sided centre-back in the second half.
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