It’s an enormous day for goalkeepers with massive reputations when defending champion France faces Poland within the spherical of 16 on the World Cup on Sunday.
Hugo Lloris will tie a nationwide crew document for Les Bleus 4 years after lifting the trophy as captain. Reverse quantity Wojciech Szczesny is a penalty-saving, wise-cracking No. 1 who appears to be having fun with the match greater than another participant.
Each get a stage to shine at Al Thumama Stadium making an attempt to disclaim two of probably the most feared forwards in Qatar — Kylian Mbappé and two-time FIFA participant of the 12 months Robert Lewandowski.
“The important thing to stopping Mbappé? It’s me,” Szczesny quipped when Poland’s place within the knockout bracket was confirmed.
Lloris will face Lewandowski in a world recreation for the primary time when he matches France’s document of 142 appearances held by Lilian Thuram, the best again within the 1998 world champion crew.
“It’s fairly one thing and I’m very honoured,” Lloris mentioned Saturday. He was in the identical France squad as Thuram as an uncapped 21-year-old in 2008 although was by no means performed with him.
France coach Didier Deschamps, who performed typically with Thuram and was captain within the 1998 closing in Paris, paid tribute to them.
“They’ve proven exemplary professionalism for the nationwide crew,” Deschamps mentioned Saturday.
Lloris is a naturally quiet and courteous chief of this gifted France crew and he praised Szczesny, who he beforehand confronted at reverse ends of the north London rivalry between Tottenham and Arsenal.
“He’s taking part in an impressive match,” Lloris mentioned. “Poland need to be right here at this stage and so they’ve obtained an awesome goalkeeper as effectively.” Szczesny is the one goalkeeper this World Cup to have saved two spot kicks — one towards Saudi Arabia and the second towards Lionel Messi.
Szczesny himself conceded the latter one for brushing the Argentina nice’s face together with his glove when stretching for a cross. It was scoreless on the time in a recreation Argentina gained 2-0 on Wednesday.
Szczesny’s advised the story of how he guess Messi throughout a prolonged video evaluate that the penalty wouldn’t be awarded, solely including to his quirky time in Qatar.
The character of the 32-year-old Juventus goalkeeper, who is ready to play his seventieth recreation for Poland, isn’t any shock to long-time teammates.
“It’s not that Wojciech Szczesny began to be such an awesome goalkeeper on this match — he’s been an awesome goalkeeper for years,” ahead Arkadiusz Milik mentioned Saturday by means of an interpreter.
“It’s not a coincidence that in his profession he performed for fantastic golf equipment.” Poland probably will want Szczesny and Lewandowski to excel in its first knockout recreation at a World Cup since 1986. Since that 4-0 loss to Brazil, France gained each its world titles and in addition was a crushed finalist.
Deschamps highlighted Lewandowski’s qualities as intelligent, technically gifted and is aware of methods to use his physique intelligently towards defenders.
“He didn’t get plenty of the ball within the group stage, however with only one likelihood he could be very harmful,” the France coach mentioned.
Giving Poland some hope is that France misplaced within the spherical of 16 final 12 months on the European Championship towards Switzerland. Mbappé had the decisive penalty saved in a shootout after a 3-3 draw.
“We talked about that lots,” mentioned Lloris, who couldn’t cease any of the 5 Swiss spot kicks that evening in Bucharest.
“You must be assured, but when a penalty is effectively taken, then the goalkeeper has no likelihood of stopping it.” In Qatar, Szczesny could be simply the one to show that mistaken.