Paris (AFP)

Appointments for the Games: winners in three rounds of a very strong Slovenian team Friday in Gdansk (Poland), the French volleyball players will play the clash at the top against the Poles, double world champions in title, Saturday (15:00), crucial for the ticket to Tokyo.

As expected, the introduction of the Blues had absolutely nothing of a walk health, unlike the match of the Poles against Tunisia (25-15, 25-19, 25-19), recent champion of Africa but much less strong than the three European nations engaged in this TQO.

The looks of the French, throughout a first set hung but finally won 26 to 24, as the smiles despite the start of a second set failed (led 7-4), however, say the length of the serenity of this team.

"It was not a gift to play them first in this tournament, it was not the best game we could do, but there was also tomorrow's match in our heads against Poland," he said. explained the French striker, Earvin Ngapeth, at the microphone of the channel L'Equipe after the meeting.

Under the eyes of the Polish coach Vital Heynen, come to take the last information on the game of the French, Stephen Boyer (11 points) and Ngapeth (14) have been very valuable to contain the Slovenian assaults.

The arrival of Kévin Le Roux, with his attacks (2) and his winning services (3) at the end of the third set, also reassured the staff tricolor, while the central Beijing has been stopped in recent weeks and could only participate in training in the last two days.

- The show Le Roux -

It was he who allowed the French to avoid the loss of a set, chaining services to win 25-23 while the Blues were behind the score (18-12 and 23-19).

"We wanted to put him in the rhythm + Kéké + Le Roux, it's monstrous what he did, I have no other words," enthused Laurent Tillie at the microphone of the channel L ' Team.

The Blues have completed the meeting in just over an hour and a half, and will have to recover as quickly as possible, while the Polish program allowed the hosts to play at 17:00 and to prepare in the best conditions for the shock at Mountain peak.

With this first game, the Blues were able to have a taste of what will wait for them Saturday against a Poland that evolves at home, since the public of the Arena Gdansk, came in number for the game Friday night, took done and cause for the Slovenes.

Saturday, it is the biggest challenge that awaits this team from France trained since autumn 2012 by Laurent Tillie. Champion of Europe in 2015, she will face Poland, winner of the last two Worlds and is reinforced by the arrival of the naturalized Cuban, Wilfredo Leon, considered the best player in the world.

© 2019 AFP