Why are you (perhaps) going to die of boredom in front of Uruguay-France

B … U … T … What do these three strange letters mean? Do they make sense if we pronounce them together? Will anyone venture to do it Friday from 4 pm? Uncertainty reigns, before what could well become the most soporific match of the world, even to remove from their throne the two masterpieces of its kind, the endless Spain-Russia and the inhuman France- Denmark

"Uruguay is a compact 4-4-2, where they all defend together. It will be totally different than against Argentina, it will be a boring match " already warned Antoine Griezmann in press conference, Sunday 1 ^and July. "Grizou" knows what he's talking about. By dint of rubbing Uruguayans, the native of Mâcon came to drink mate and get up in the middle of the night to watch Penarol-Nacional, the boiling derby of Montevideo. And by "boring" the striker may also think of the four previous meetings between the two selections.

Four 0-0 in a row between the two countries

The last competitive match between the Blues and Celeste, in the group stage of the 2010 World Cup, ended in a depressing 0-0. Exactly the same score as the sterile France-Uruguay 2002. That the best French World Cups, note

In fact, it is even five whole meetings, that the Blues are shooting blank against Uruguay. For four 0-0 and a 0-1 defeat, the last, at a friendly in Montevideo in 2013, and as many meetings remained in the memory for a number of faults inversely proportional to that occasions. In November 2008, there was at the Stade de France the return of Steve Savidan, for the sole selection of the old idol of Valenciennes and Caen. In viewer's memory, this is the most notable action seen in the last three decades in a France-Uruguay.

In all, the Blues have not scored against their South American bête noire 486 minutes. The event dates back to the final of the late Intercontinental Cup of Nations, a prestigious match between the winner of the Euro in 1985 and 1993 to the winner of the Copa America. That year, Michel Platini's Bleus won 2-0 and the second striker was José Touré

Since then, nothing. Thirty-three years that France expects the successor of the FC Nantes striker, and that his name is Griezmann, Mbappé or Adil Rami (and why not?) On a goal gag, we wish him good luck to triumph of the impressive clear blue wall

A Madrid base lapped

From the beginning of the competition, Uruguay is with Brazil the best defense, with a single goal conceded. Only the Portuguese Pepe, head, deceived the vigilance of Fernando Muslera in the round of 16. A small event: the goalkeeper of the Celeste remained in 2018 on 595 minutes of unbeaten, forgive the little

At the origin of this impressive tightness, the pair of central defenders José Gimenez and Diego Godin, club partners at Atlético Madrid, one of the most difficult teams to maneuver in Europe coached by Diego Simeone, a native of Buenos Aires, who is only two hours away from Montevideo ferry

Antoine Griezmann, who is at the forefront of the Madrid club's attack, knows these players well. "Diego is a great friend, I am with him every day in Madrid. It's the godfather of my little girl. It's going to be a very emotional match for me. (…) He knows everything about me as I know everything about him and Gimenez [l’autre défenseur central de l’Uruguay].

But to hear that Griezmann was the most Uruguayan French, Luis Suarez dryly returned to his civil status on Monday. According to the striker of the Celeste, is not Uruguayan who decreed it.

"He does not really know what it feels like to feel Uruguayan. He does not know the gift and the effort that must be made, child, to succeed in football with such a small population. We know that. He may well take the habits or the way of speaking Uruguayans, but feel Uruguayan, it is not the same.

A collective DNA

Questioned at the beginning of competition by The Guardian Godin claimed more broadly this fierce defensive philosophy, which in his eyes constituted the identity of Celeste:

"You can not turn your back on your collective DNA. We have always been very good defensively, fast in our transitions to our center-front, but I think we have improved on the in-between: we are better in the conservation, the young players have brought us that. But Uruguay has lost none of its involvement, this fight, this sacrifice and solidarity, this determination to overcome adversity.

Guy Stephan, Didier Deschamps's deputy, is already preparing for a very complicated game. And he would tear his hair well if his skull was perfectly glabrous. "Big volume of play, big intensity, big solidarity, lines very close to each other … It will be necessary to be patient, to find the intervals, warns it It's a team made for those games, with a compact block. Too bad if it does not always please the opponent or viewers, France was indeed world champion in 1998 after a 0-0 (against Italy) in the quarterfinals. Maybe get ready for a possible goal shoot just before 7 pm Friday.