The players of the France under-20 team qualified for the quarter-finals of the 2022 World Cup in Costa Rica on Wednesday evening thanks to their 1-0 victory over South Korea in the third and final round. day of group C. The French, who finished 2nd in the group behind Nigeria with six points (2 v. 1 d.), will face Japan, defending champion, on Sunday. Crowned in the last edition played in France in 2018, the Japanese finished first in Group D, undefeated, with three successes (six goals scored and only one conceded). They will therefore be the favorites of the meeting.
Wednesday, at the Estadio Nacional in San José, in a decisive match, the tricolors had to be patient before succeeding in bending their opponents. The French had the best opportunities in the first half, notably on a 20m strike from Strasbourg midfielder Mégane Hoeltzel, the ball ending its course on the left post of the South Korean goalkeeper. After the break, they only owed their salvation to a reflex save by Ruthenian goalkeeper Marie-Morgane Sieber, on a point-blank shot. Deliverance finally came in the 74th minute on a counter quickly led and concluded with a header spiked by Montpellier striker Esther Mbakem-Niaro, who entered the game 20 minutes earlier (1-0).
The quarter-finals will begin on Saturday evening (night from Saturday to Sunday in France, editor’s note) with a Spain-Mexico. The final is scheduled for Sunday, August 28. This Under-20 World Cup traditionally takes place every two years, but this edition scheduled for 2020 in Costa Rica and Panama had to be postponed due to the emergence of the Covid-19 pandemic. Co-organizer, Panama then withdrew.
Quarter-final schedule:
Saturday August 20
Spain – Mexico (Sunday 0:30)
Colombia – Brazil (Sunday 04:00)
Sunday August 21
Nigeria – Netherlands (Monday 0:30)
Japan – France (Monday 04:00)