‘It was a crazy match!’ Kounde on France’s World Cup win
Kounde #Kounde
Barcelona duo Jules Kounde and Ousmane Dembele are into the semi-finals of the 2022 World Cup after helping France beat England 2-1 on Saturday.
The defending champions won thanks to goals from Aurelien Tchouameni and Olivier Giroud, although they were also helped by a Harry Kane penalty miss late on.
Kounde reflected on the match afterwards and explained why he feels his team had the edge over the Three Lions.
“I think it was a crazy match, with lots of twists and turns. And in the end, there is the victory, so it’s even more beautiful. We certainly didn’t do everything well, but we put so much heart, so much desire, there was so much solidarity, a whole group that really wanted to go to the semi-finals,” he said.
“We gave everything […] The difference was in the state of mind. I think that since the start of the competition, we have underlined how close this group is on the pitch, and off it too.”
“I think that in matches like that, where you play against a very good England team, which surely have as much talent as us, you need that extra soul, that little something, that little bit of luck like the missed penalty.”
France now face a Morocco team who have been the big surprises of the tournament so far, knocking out Spain and Portugal on their way to the last four.
Kounde knows his team will face a tough test reaching the final for a second straight tournament.
“This is where we wanted to be. Morocco are doing a very good job, they have eliminated very big teams, so it will be a very complicated match,” he said.
“We expect it. It’s a team that also gives everything, that has a lot of heart, with a lot of talent.”
Source | beIN Sports
France face Morocco on Wednesday, while the other semi-final sees Croatia take on Argentina on Tuesday.