A satisfying group stage, followed by a solid win against Croatia in the round of 16. On Wednesday, however, France are going to need to reach perfection, or very close to it. In their way, Spain.
Between France and Spain, there has always been a special little spark of dislike and tension. The short-tempered, hot blooded Spaniards have always been known for a little dirty play, the ever determined French, who constantly seemed to fall short against this side, be it Eurobasket, World Cup or Olympics, are always a little more intense and brutal than usual. Prime example being last year’s dramatic EuroBasket semi-final that saw France finally beat Spain in an international competition, allowing them to go on to win the tournament. A crazy game, to say the least, where Tony Parker’s 32 points carried his team to an overtime win. The game, incidentally, witnessed 49 overall fouls…
France Preparing for Pivotal FIBA Quarter Final
Approximately a year later, that semi final is still in everyone’s mind, but the circumstances are far from being the same. For France, the task is much harder this time around; no Tony Parker or Joakim Noah, a rather hesitant tournament so far and most of all the heavy defeat conceded to Spain about a week ago in the group stage are clear signs that this quarter final will be areal handful for Boris Diaw’s side.
To exacerbate the problem, Spain look stronger than ever. A faultless tournament so far, with their passionate crowd carrying them to limitless heights, and that strong taste of anticipated revenge for last year’s loss. For the Spaniards, this game is a question of pride. Firstly in order to set right last year’s loss, but also because losing in the quarters in front of their home crowd is not even a liable option.
For all the reasons, it seems very hard to imagine France advancing to the semi-finals of the competition. yet that might be just the reason why the European champions have a chance. The argument revolves mainly around pressure.
Pressure. Pressure can sometimes fire up a team, make them fulfill their whole potential. But when pressure is too heavy, and it is mixed with expectation, it can become a real burden for any team or player. On Wednesday night, the hosts will have to carry that burden throughout the whole 40 minutes of play. Strong favorites, and a whole nation to satisfy, Spain are obliged to win this game. And that might just be their downfall.
Especially considering France have, nonetheless, a very talented side. More importantly, have a side that can, on a single side, potentially play some incredible basketball. When your starting five contains players like Nicolas Batum and Boris Diaw, anything can happen. France will be playing with no pressure at all, which is more than likely to relax all the talent in their roster, consequently allowing them to play natural and beautiful basketball.
So yes, France are far from being expected to win, but it is far too early to count them out of this contest. In addition to their underdog status, France could rely on a more ambiguous boost- Yesterday it was announced that France would be hosting the EuroBasket 2015. With French basketball being on such a high, and the whole French population supporting them, yet not expecting to see their side win, Vincent Collet’s men have a real chance to create the biggest upset of the tournament.
It will be electric, it will be intense. Whatever happens on Wednesday night, this quarter final will have a unique taste for both Spain and France, and an absolute divine taste for the winner of the two.
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