Kounde calls for speed to unsettle Morocco
France defender Jules Kounde has said that speed and intensity will be key for France in their FIFA World Cup semi-final against Morocco.
The defending champions face the tournament’s surprise package in Wednesday night’s second semi-final and Kounde said that France will need to move the ball quickly against opponents with a superb defensive structure.
Morocco have conceded just one goal en route to the semi-finals and the Barcelona defender told FIFA: “It will be a difficult and intense game. They’re a team that have had an exceptional journey and have knocked out some big nations so they’re an opponent that we will take seriously.
“We’ll need to be more intense, with or without the ball, so that we can move their well-organised defence around.” In their knockout-stage wins over Spain and Portugal, Morocco have ceded possession to their opponents yet defended brilliantly without the ball.
Against Spain, Walid Regragui’s men had 22 per cent of the ball and spent 39 per cent of those long passages of play without it in a low defensive block.
Spain managed just one attempt on target before, with the game goalless, Morocco prevailed on penalties. The same formula was seen in last Saturday’s quarter-final against Portugal. Morocco had 23 per cent of possession. They spent 34 per cent of their time without the ball defending in a low block. And they limited Portugal to three attempts on target in their eventual 1-0 win.
To underline their defensive excellence, in five games so far in Qatar their opponents have managed just 10 efforts on target.
Morocco coach Regragui questioned the value of dominating possession when he told reporters before the semi-final: “It’s amazing how journalists love these figures but what’s the point if you have no shots? If we can keep the ball we will, but if they don’t let us so be it. We’re going to fight with the tools we have.”
Whether he will have defenders Romain Saiss and Nayif Aguerd fit remains to be seen after both went off with muscle problems during the Portugal match.
Whoever is fit for the game, Kounde reiterated the need for speed from France.
He added: “We’ll need to be quicker in transitions, make few ball touches and try to harm them as much as we can by both building attacks and our counter-attacks.”
