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France-Croatia Hosts France beat Croatia, advance to finals |
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France ended Croatia's historic World Cup journey Wednesday and made some history itself. For the first time, it will play for the championship of the tournament it invented almost 70 years ago.
A pair of second-half goals by defender Lilian Thuram gave the French a 2-1 semifinal victory before a cheering, chanting crowd at the national stadium just north of Paris.
"It is truly the most beautiful day in the history of French sport," French President Jacques Chirac said.
Reaching the final against Brazil didn't come easy.
Following a scoreless first half, France found itself behind just 26 seconds after intermission, and - after quickly rallying for the lead - had to play the last 17 minutes a man short when defender Laurent Blanc was ejected for shoving an opponent in the face.
The victory was not assured until goalie Fabien Barthez tipped a last-gasp shot over the crossbar less than 30 seconds before the final whistle.
"I don't think we had a wonderful game tonight, but we played our hearts out and that made a difference," French coach Aime Jacquet said. "Croatia played a very strong game and it was hard to move their defense around."
Croatia is a country just 8 years old and in its first World Cup. No other rookie had gone so far since Italy won the soccer championship in 1934.
That was the second of the 16 editions of what has become the biggest single sports event on Earth, the brainchild of French sports officials in the Roaring '20s. Never before in nine tries had France made it past the semifinals.
But now it will return to the Stade de France on Sunday night to play for the title against Brazil, which is trying to extend its record of four championships. The Brazilians beat the Netherlands in a shootout Tuesday in Marseille.
It will be the first time the defending champion and the host nation meet for the championship.
Jacquet, who has been criticized for a lackluster attack despite the team's success, said the championship "will be a wonderful game, a festival of football. Brazil is the defending champion and the best team in the world."
France has been the tournament's chameleon, scoring bushels of goals in the first few games, then hiding among the rocks. It had just one goal, a sudden-death winner by Blanc against Paraguay, in the second round and quarterfinals, and needed a shootout to beat Italy.
This one was a shootout, too, but it never made it to overtime or the penalty kick.
A Croatian goal woke up France, as striker Davor Suker broke free and put the ball past the baldheaded Barthez just 26 seconds into the second half. It was only the second goal France has allowed and the first in the run of play. The other was a penalty kick by Denmark in the first round.
Stunned from their shell, the French attacked, and - in keeping with their defensive strength - they evened the score a minute later off a defensive gem.
Thuram, playing on the right, stripped the ball from Croatian star Zvonimir Boban just into the penalty area. He nudged the ball to striker Youri Djorkaeff, then twirled and took the ball on a great give-and-go and tied it from 18 yards.
"What was fatal was to concede a goal within the same minute," Croatian coach Miroslav Blazevic said. "They drew all their strength from that."
Thuram scored the winner in the 70th minute, this time with the help of playmaker Zinedine Zidane.
The star midfielder nicknamed "Zizou" sent a cross to Thuram's right foot. The 26-year-old defender then spun his man around, with what looked like the help of a grabbed jersey, and sent in the winner from 18 yards.
He was stunned. His teammates and fans were overjoyed. And France was on its way to a World Cup title game at last.
They will go without Blanc, who automatically gets at least a one-game suspension for his foul on Slaven Bilic in the 74th minute.
"Of course we will miss Laurent Blanc," Jacquet said. "His sending off was very unfortunate."
This was a game all of France wanted to attend, and 77,000 got inside, along with about 300 Croatian fans in red and white, packed into a corner that looked like a bloodshot checkered flag.
Even the moon, rising from the Seine, peeked in on the game through a slit in the south end late in the first half. And just like the tides, its passing brought a shift in direction.
France dominated the early going, from the fourth minute when Zidane unleashed a shot from just above the penalty arc off a nifty back pass from Djorkaeff. It zoomed wide.
The nightwatchman's son from Marseille was back five minutes later with a shot from 30 yards that sailed over the bar, and it was Zidane again at the 10-minute mark, this time with a header off a cross from Emanuel Petit. It, too, was high.
Captain Didier Deschamps and Djorkaeff got in shots at Drazen Ladic, the Croatian goalie stopping them all. It was a familiar pattern: Although they were controlling the game, the French gunners could not finish off the play. And as the lunar visitor rose about 35 minutes into the game, Jacquet made a move to put that killer touch into the lineup.
He took out Christian Karembu, who started in order to add midfield defense, and inserted Thierry Henry, the team's leading scorer with four goals. And Croatia seemed to notice, because its offense suddenly came live.
After hardly crossing midfield, Croatia filled the final 10 minutes of the half with scoring chances, the best a left-foot shot from 10 yards by Aljosa Asanovic in the 36th minute that was just wide. There also was a 15-yard volley over the bar by defender Bilic four minutes later.
That momentum carried into the second half with Suker's quick strike before the French defenders did the job once more.
