A thoroughly professional performance earned France a place in the World Cup finals as they beat Belgium 1-0 on Tuesday night.
Samuel Umtiti headed in the game’s solitary goal from a corner in the 51st minute.
Here’s a look at how the Red Devils approached the game.
BASIC STATS
Goals – 0
Shots – 9
Possession – 64%
Tackles – 12
Dribbles – 15
30-SECOND REPORT
Roberto Martinez had everyone guessing before kick-off as his team sheet raised plenty of questions. In the end, he deployed a back four as Belgium set up in a 4-3-3 formation with Nacer Chadli playing right-back in place of the suspended Thomas Meunier while Jan Vertonghen was at left-back.
Kevin De Bruyne and Eden Hazard were played on either side of Romelu Lukaku up front while Mousa Dembele came into a three-man central midfield. Dries Mertens was brought on as Belgium chased the game in the second-half and made an impact as he provided more width but to no avail.
Kevin De Bruyne retained an advanced role.
TACTICAL TALKING POINT
Fellaini factor
While Belgium set up in a 4-3-3 formation, Marouane Fellaini took up an advanced role every time they had a prolonged spell of possession. He almost played as a striker, in line with the last defender, positioning himself for crosses. However, he also would drift wide, usually unmarked. That would help Belgium change the angle of attack, with Hazard often taking over from there.
Meanwhile, the space he vacated in the middle would be dropped into by De Bruyne who could help dictate play from the middle. However, the Manchester United midfielder’s positioning the final third may also have had an adverse effect on his club team-mate Lukaku who seemed stifled. The striker was unable to use his movement to good effect as Fellaini’s presence limited the space in the channels for him to exploit.
Tough night: Marouane Fellaini.
VERDICT
Martinez can hold his head up high. To lose the semi-finals of the World Cup on one set-piece is a bitter pill to swallow. However, for all their possession, Belgium only had nine shots compared to France’s 19. That does not read well.
Rating – 6/10