Carried by a Melvine Malard XXL, the French women’s team largely dominated Belgium (5-0).
In the midst of the preparation of Euro-2025, the Bleues, led by Melvine Malard author of a hat-trick, easily beat Belgium (5-0) in a friendly match on Friday and continue to gain momentum from the start of the competition.
It is from this summer watch evening at the Hainaut stadium in Valenciennes (nearly 14,000 spectators) that everything starts for the Blue. And everything went perfectly for the Habs, with full confidence.
This easy success against the Belgians, without the typical team, is the penultimate match before getting to the heart of the Euro (July 2-27). Next Friday in Grenoble, they will also face in friendly, Brazil, which eliminated them in the quarterfinals of the Olympic Games last summer.
For the players of Laurent Bonadei, who are gaining power, serious things will start at the start of the euro with two shocks in the group phase: July 5 against England, reigning European champion, and on July 13 against the Netherlands, winners of the Euro in 2017. Despite the fatigue of successive sessions, they played everything in control and effectively pressed red flames, qualified for the euro but and physically.
Malard treats a hat -trick
Too slow and too far in duels, they allowed the teammates of the new Captain of Bleues Griedge Mbock to chain a seventh victory in seven matches (six successes in the League of Nations).
Easy and comfortable on the right (in the first period) and on the left (in second), Melvine Malard marked a hat -trick (right, left and head) and precious points, a few days to reach Switzerland. After the opening of Kelly Gago’s score (1-0, 17th), the Manchester United attacker, recalled in the French team by Laurent Bonadei, doubled the set to half time (2-0, 42nd). Served by the captain, Malard deceived the Belgian goalkeeper with a pivot strike from the right foot.
Close to scoring again (53rd), she also had a goal refused for offside (74th) but scored her double from a left shot five minutes later, used intelligently by Clara Mateo (4-0, 79th). At the end of the match, the attacker scored a third goal, on the head, on a center of Kadidiatou Diani (5-0, 85th).
Before that, Melvine Malard, very much loved by the group, had combined subtly with Sakina Karchaoui, a fans of an easy strike from the left (3-0, 59th). Defender Maëlle Lakrar, resumed after being spared after a long season at Real Madrid, entered for about twenty minutes, unlike Sandy Baltimore, the formal attacker, who was absent from the match sheet because of Genoa on the knees.
The last meeting between the Blue and the Belgians dates back to 2022 (2-1 victory) in the Euro group phase in England, where the Habs had reached the semi-finals, eliminated by Germany. The Bleues have not reached this competition stadium since then, eliminated in the quarterfinals during the World Cup in 2023 and during the Olympic Games last summer.
