European preview to be posted later today. Should have a rough injury report up as well.
3 games yesterday in pre-tournament action. Recaps below:
Japan def. Cyprus 1-0 in Saitama, Japan
France def. Norway 4-0 in Paris, France
USA def. Azerbaijan 2-0 in San Francisco, CA, USA
Not much for any of the 3 victors to complain about in their matches, all picking up shutout victories over weaker opponents. Japan and the US controlled possession of their games for the most part, peppering the opposing goal with shots throughout. I felt the US was sloppy and disorganized at times but were tinkering with formation throughout against an Azerbaijan defence comfortable to sit back and repel any attacks.
France were the team of the day though as they ran away with their first pre-tournament game against a solid opponent in Norway. In the 2010 lead-up, France looked disastrous and had all sorts of issues scoring. That doesn't appear to be a problem right now though. Olivier Giroud scored twice in the second half, in a game where top striker Karim Benzema did not play. France were fortunate with their group draw, if they can build on this performance, they'll have a shot at making a run.
Today's Games
7:00 a.m. (EDT) - South Korea vs. Tunisia in Seoul
3:00 p.m. - Nigeria vs. Scotland in London, England
9:30 p.m. - Mexico vs. Israel in Mexico City
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