Football. The Bleuets launch their preparation for the Olympic Games with a victory against Paraguay

A big win to get them started on their way to the Olympics. Thierry Henry’s French team got their Olympic campaign off to a perfect start by beating a tenacious Paraguay team (4-1) on Thursday evening in Bayonne, in their first preparation match.

Led quickly on the score with a goal from Juan Salcedo (3^e), the French lacked realism in front of goal but got back into the game thanks to a double from Jean-Philippe Mateta (45^e51^e sp) who, at 27, is one of the players over 23 years old with Alexandre Lacazette (33 years old).

The entrants were decisive

With the changes made at half-time, the Bleuets took control of the game and in the last twenty minutes, Rayan Cherki (72^e) then Arnaud Kalimuendo (86^e) each scoring a goal. “They worked, I saw a lot of good things and also some bad things, it’s normal for a preparation match,” commented coach Thierry Henry on the L’Équipe channel. “It’s still a friendly match, the guys got their minutes, no one got injured,” he added.

The French team will play its second preparation match next Thursday (July 11) in Toulon against the Dominican Republic and against Japan on Wednesday, July 17. The Bleuets will launch their Olympic campaign on July 24 against the United States at the Stade Vélodrome, before facing Guinea in Nice three days later and New Zealand on the 30th again in Marseille.