To close the penultimate day of the Paralympic Games, the French blind football team had the opportunity to win the first gold medal in its history against the Argentinians, twelve years after the silver obtained in London. And France won on penalties (1-1, 3-2).
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The French, led by their number 10 Frédéric Villeroux and pushed by the Parisian public, were able to climb onto the top step of the podium, an unprecedented result, since the entry of blind football into the Paralympic GamesBrazil have won every time since Athens in 2004. But the Brazilians fell to their great rivals Argentina in the semi-finals.
Although the 2022 European champions are not favourites after their eighth and final place in Tokyo in 2021, they have been gaining momentum since the start of the tournament and have the heavy responsibility of saving the honour of French team sports by avoiding zero points during these Paralympic Games.
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This evening, it is therefore an unprecedented winner who must impose himself at the foot of the Eiffel Tower, in the Parisian night, while Brazil left with the bronze medal after its victory against Colombia (1-0). We are a group of amateur friends, we all work, we do impossible hours, we take our holidays, no one expects us there. “, savored Frédéric Villeroux after the match against the Colombians in the semi-final, while the two big favorites of the competition, Brazil and Argentina, are made up of professional players.
Frédéric Villeroux, star of the French team
At 41, he opened the scoring in the first half, with a low left-footed shot (12th). But the French team, which had not qualified for Rio in 2016, was caught out just a few seconds later. Maximiliano Espinillo took advantage of a concentration error on the French team’s restart to equalise (12th). France, which has never won a single match against the Argentinians, must be kicking themselves before the break. But nothing is decided yet.
After the break, neither team took the lead and it was a penalty shootout that saw the gold medal. And the Blues won in front of more than 11,000 cheering spectators who sang along in unison ” we are the champions! » With this result, France obtains its 19th gold medal. Above all, the Blues achieve the feat of becoming the first country to succeed the Seleçao. However, Argentina initially started with a psychological advantage after eliminating the Brazilian ogre in the semi-final on penalties.
Villeroux, considered one of the best players in the world, will remain one of the great stars of this fantastic epic, which he concluded himself by scoring the winning penalty.
Also readThe medal table