3rd Place Match: France vs. Sweden

France (#7) vs. Sweden (#5)
Sinsheim (11:30 am eastern)

Last Meeting: Sweden 3, France 1 (March 14, 2007)

France
Coach: Bruno Bini
WC Matches: Defeated Nigeria 1-0; Defeated Canada 4-0, Lost to Germany 2-4, Defeated England 1-1 (4-3 PK); Lost to United States 1-3.

Roster:
Goalkeepers: Berangere Sapowicz (4 gms, 1.34 gaa, 2 shutouts); Celine Deville (2 gms, 1.90 gaa), Laetitia Philippe.
Defenders: Laura Georges (5 gms, 1 goal); Laure LePailleur (5 gms); Sonia Bompastor (4 gms, 1 goal); Sabrina Viguier (2 gms); Ophelie Meilleroux (2 gms); Wendie Renard (2 gms), Corine Franco.
Midfielders: Elise Bussaglia (5 gms, 1 goal); Gaetane Thiney (5 gms, 2 goals); Camille Abily (5 gms, 1 goal, 1 assist); Louisa Necib (5 gms, 1 assist); Sandrine Soubeyrand (5 gms, 2 assists); Laure Boulleau (2 gms); Caroline Pizzala.
Forwards: Marie-Laure Delie (5 gms, 2 goals); Elodie Thomis (5 gms, 1 goal); Eugenie LeSommer (5 gms, 1 assist); Sandrine Bretigny (1 gm).

Sweden
Coach: Thomas Dennerby
WC Matches: Defeated Colombia 1-0; Defeated Korea DPR 1-0; Defeated United States 2-1; Defeated Australia 3-1; Lost to Japan 1-3.

Roster:
Goalkeepers: Hedvig Lindahl (5 gms, 1.00 gaa, 2 shutouts); Kristin Hammarstrom, Sofia Lundgren.
Defenders: Charlotte Rohlin (5 gms); Sara Thunebro (5 gms); Sara Larsson (5 gms); Annica Svensson (5 gms); Linda Sembrandt (1 gm); Lina Nilsson (1 gm).
Midfielders: Lisa Dahlkvist (5 gms, 3 goals); Therese Sjogran (5 gms, 1 goal, 2 assists); Linda Forsberg (5 gms); Caroline Seger (3 gms); Nilla Fischer (4 gms, 1 goal); Marie Hammarstrom (2 gms); Sofia Jakobsson (2 gms); Antonia Goransson (2 gms).
Forwards: Lotta Schelin (5 gms, 1 goal, 2 assists); Josefine Oqvist (4 gms, 1 goal); Jessica Landstrom (3 gms, 1 goal); Madelaine Edlund (2 gms).

Both of these two teams have to be disappointed that they are not playing Sunday for the World Cup, instead of Saturday for 3rd place. Sweden grabbed the early lead against Japan and were tied until the 60th minute, but just didn't look to be the same team that won their first four matches in Germany.

France tied their match against the United States in the 2nd half and certainly looked to be outplaying them, before giving up two goals in the last 15 minutes. France can take heart in that their two defeats in this tournament were to the two top ranked teams in the world heading in. They can also be proud in that this will be their highest World Cup finish ever.

One never knows quite how coaches will approach a third place match. Certainly the pressure is now off for Bruno Bini and Thomas Dennerby. Caroline Seger has been nursing an injury and sadly missed Wednesday's semifinal match. Her presence was greatly missed by Sweden.

It will be interesting to see if the two coaches try to play some of their younger players or if they attempt to get everyone into the match that hasn't played yet. Of course, everyone has played in at least one match for Sweden, save for their two backup goalkeepers, Kristin Hammarstrom and Sofia Lundgren. For France, third keeper Laetitia Philippe, defender Corine Franco, and midfielder Caroline Pizzala have not yet seen action.

For some of these players, it will be their last World Cup game. Certainly, that is the case for Sandrine Soubeyrand of France, who will be the oldest player for either team at age 37. She now has over 160 caps in her great career. Sweden's all-time cap leader, Therese Sjogran, will likely be playing in her last World Cup match as well. Probably the same could be said of defender Sara Larsson.

It is very surprising that these two European powers have not met since the 2007 Algarve Cup, over four years ago. Sweden won that meeting 3-1. Josefine Oqvist scored the first goal in that match.

Another prize up for grabs is the Adidas Golden Boot award. Heading into this weekend's matches, Marta and Homare Sawa are tied with four goals. Sawa has one game remaining. Just one goal behind them is Sweden's Lisa Dahlkvist with three. Both Gaetane Thiney and Marie-Laure Delie have two for France and are certainly not out of the running.

While third place is the prize for this match, the two teams will really be playing more for pride than anything else. The winner will finish third and can claim to be the top finishing European team in the tournament.

Group A Preview: France

France (#7)
Region: UEFA
Coach: Bruno Bini
How They Qualified: Won UEFA Group Stage, then defeated Italy in playoff.
Prior Cups:
2007: DNQ
2003: Group Stage
1999: DNQ
1995: DNQ
1991: DNQ

Roster (Average Age: 26.41)

Name	Pos	Club	Age	Caps/Goals
Celine Deville	GK	Montpellier	29	41/0
Laetitia Phillippe	GK	Montpellier	20	1/0
Berangere Sapowicz	GK	Paris St. Germain	28	16/0
Sonia Bompastor	DF	FCF Lyon	31	126/15
Laura Georges	DF	FCF Lyon	26	96/2
Laure LePailleur	DF	Paris St. Germain	26	26/2
Ophelie Meilleroux	DF	Montpellier	27	42/0
Corine Petit-Franco	DF	FCF Lyon	27	45/8
Wendie Renard	DF	FCF Lyon	20	5/0
Sabrina Viguier	DF	FCF Lyon	30	84/1
Camille Abily	MF	FCF Lyon	26	73/18
Laure Boulleau	MF	Paris St. Germain	24	12/0
Elise Bussaglia	MF	Paris St. Germain	25	79/18
Louisa Necib	MF	FCF Lyon	24	56/9
Caroline Pizzala	MF	Paris St. Germain	23	13/0
Sandrine Soubeyrand	MF	Juvisy	37	159/18
Sandrine Bretigny	FW	FCF Lyon	26	17/8
Marie-Laure Delie	FW	Montpellier	23	18/16
Eugenie Le Sommer	FW	FCF Lyon	22	32/9
Gaetane Thiney	FW	Juvisy	25	46/19
Elodie Thomis	FW	FCF Lyon	24	50/14

Recent Matches:

Date	Opponent	Competition	Result
6/18/11	Belgium	Friendly	W 7-0
6/15/11	Belgium	Friendly	W 2-1
5/18/11	Scotland	Friendly	T 1-1
3/9/11	Scotland	Cyprus	W 3-0
3/7/11	New Zealand	Cyprus	W 5-2
3/4/11	Holland	Cyprus	L 1-2
3/2/11	Switzerland	Cyprus	W 2-0
11/19/10	Poland	Friendly	W 5-0
9/15/10	Italy	UEFA Playoff	W 3-2
9/11/10	Italy	UEFA Playoff	T 0-0
8/25/10	Serbia	UEFA WC Qualifier	W 7-0
8/21/10	Iceland	UEFA WC Qualifier	W 1-0
6/23/10	Estonia	UEFA WC Qualifier	W 6-0
6/20/10	Croatia	UEFA WC Qualifier	W 3-0
5/5/10	Switzerland	Friendly	W 2-0

The French team is known for their technical skills. It will take every ounce of technical skill and then some to advance out of what might be the toughest group at the World Cup. Germany might be the best in the world right now, Canada is a very tough side, and Nigeria has the ability to upset any team that takes them too lightly.

The French have not been as busy as some of the other teams entering the World Cup. Outside of the Cyprus Cup, they have played only a handful of matches since they qualified last September. They’ve only faced one other team that will be at this World Cup in the last 20 months, that being New Zealand. One has to wonder if they have faced enough top competition to prepare them for what they will be facing in Germany.

Most of the French team is in their mid-20’s and in their prime. This includes players like Camille Abily, Gaetane Thiney, Louisa Necib, Laura Georges, Corine Franco, Ophelie Meilleroux, Elodie Thomis, and Elise Bussaglia. They are used to playing together, all coming from four teams in the French league. This team has the ability to make some noise in this tournament.

Sandrine Soubeyrand is the elder statewoman of French soccer. At age 37, she has 160 caps to her credit, making her debut in 1997. She is one of five players on this team that were on the French 2003 World Cup squad, the only other time France has made it this far.

Another one of those five is former WPS star Sonia Bompastor. Fans here in the states will remember her displaying her talent for the Washington Freedom. She was one of the best all-around players in the league in her two years here.

Berangere Sapowicz was also on that 2003 team when she was just 20 years old. At the time, she was the goalkeeper for the U-19 team, but made only one appearance on the senior team before being named to the French World Cup team. She did not appear in any matches in that World Cup, nor for the national team over the next six years. But as qualification began in late 2009, she took over as the number one keeper and hasn’t looked back. She will be facing world class strikers in Group A such as Inka Grings and Christine Sinclair.

But with all of the veteran talent on the French team, the player to watch could well be Marie-Laure Delie. At 23, Delie made her debut with the senior French team just two years ago. She is averaging a goal every 36 minutes played since then. After two recent matches against Belgium, she has scored 11 goals in her last five matches, including three hat tricks.

This team is solid enough to advance into the quarterfinals and maybe beyond. But getting out of the group stage will be quite a task to start with. They open against Nigeria on June 26, a match in which they must post a victory if they are to have a solid chance of advancing. If France can open with two strong matches against Nigeria and Canada, they would relieve a lot of pressure that the third match against Germany could bring.

Note: Some information for this article was obtained at www.fifa.com and www.statfootofeminin.fr.