Luca Bruno / AP

LEGENDS >>>> France's Patrick Vieira and Zinedine Zidane celebrate the 3-1 win.

Web Exclusive | The World Cup | Match Report | Spain v France Have We Witnessed The French Renaissance? Les Bleus rekindle hopes of World Cup victory with a win over the Spanish almost as good as they used to be By BRUCE CRUMLEY subscribe to TIME Printable Version email this story Zinedine Zidane: Assessing Zizou's Legacy Blog: Now Comes The Hard Bit

Posted Tuesday, June 28, 2006; 15.09BST
So France is through, having not only managed to lift its previously disappointing level of play to that of Spain, but quite possibly find its true footballing stride in the process. If that is indeed the case — and if France can maintain or even step up that new-found gait — its quarter final against Brazil may wind up looking like a final played a week before the Cup's end.

France's past domination of Spain in official international matches has been so total that some (hindsight-enhanced) observers now contend that les Bleus 3-1 win in Hanover made utter statistical sense. Spain is 0-For-History against France in such games. The problem with that is, statistics haven't been playing for French sides that have under-performed in nearly every match since France won its European title in 2000. Due to fatigue, over-thinking, or adapting play to the quality of their different opponents du jour star-studded French teams have usually looked like they'd been playing someone else's game in someone else's shoes.

With very few exceptions, that has left French sides assuming unnatural rhythms and paces, experiencing severe difficulty in scoring (despite having some of the best offensive players in Europe), and adopting the self-defeating strategy of total defense once they'd managed to get up a goal. As witnessed in its group match against South Korea — or knockout loss to Greece in the 2004 European Championship — that hunker-down mode has almost always resulted in France suffering late goals spelling defeat, or draws that feel a lot like losses.

Buoyed by its qualification for the playoff round with its 2-1 victory over Togo, French players attacked their Round of 16 game against Spain with something fans hadn't seen in yonks: clear and focused determination to win — or go down hard trying. Though they fell behind in the 27th minute on a penalty by Spanish striker David Villa, les Bleus showed no sign of the frustration, befuddlement, and even panic frequently demonstrated during their under-achieving funk of the last four years. France bounced back in Hanover by equalizing in the 41st minute, then went up for good with two more goals in the 81st and 92nd.

There was also some symbolism involved (for those prone to reading deep meaning into amorphous and chaotic sports action). The first goal was scored by newcomer Frank Ribéry, around whom many believe future French sides will be built — just as former coach Aimé Jacquet assembled the 1998 and 2000 champion sides around the soon-to-retire Zinedine Zidane.

"The sign of a great player isn't one who scores all the time," Jacquet told Time in 2004, "It's the one who you can count on to come through in the do-or-die situations." Ribéry's life-restoring equalizer against Spain did just that, and was followed up by a magnificently-headed goal by Patrick Vieira— and an equally masterful goal by Zizou himself.

So what's that all mean for the France-Brazil rematch of their 1998 final? Only time will tell, but if the French can build on the quality of plan against Spain — and use the momentum garnered from that victory — there's absolutely no reason to consider another French win over Brazil as impossible. Of course, the Brazilians will have their word to say on that matter, and have also been doing a getting-into-full-stride act of their own since their rather flaccid playing earlier this Cup. Plus, Brazil will be seeking pay back for the pantsing it took by the French in 1998.

Unlike then, meanwhile, the Seleçao will have a Ronaldo in fine fettle. Just prior to the final in the Stade de France, Ronaldo was floored by a mysterious illness that provoked extreme nausea, dizziness, and according to some reports, caused him to lose consciousness. Though he wound up contesting the final, Ronaldo's performance was clearly diminished, and that cost Brazil dearly. This time around, the only malady plaguing the World Cup's new all-time scoring leader is a case of stomachis oinkus — a swelling of the gut that hasn't prevented Ronaldo from racking up goals in the last two matches. Which of two apparently surging sides will prevail? Don't ask me who to lose your money on.

Speaking of finals before their time, Germany-Argentina also sounds a lot like a Big Enchilada billing, and England-Portugal is not likely to get the needle on the shab meter jumping, either. About all this Cup needs to be complete is a dark horse team that fans of ousted nations can adopt as a proxy — and here come the Ukraine set to take on the eminently upset-able Italians. That all adds up to a all very good reason for both die hard and casual fans to stayed tuned awaiting a July 9 final that's still anyone's for the taking.

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