A defeat that builds Greece’s self-confidence

Greece played a brave game in Paris against World Cup finalist France and lost 1-0 to a penalty kick before being reduced to 10 men on Monday, for the Euro 2024 qualifiers.

The Greek players stood up to their famous rivals at the Stade de France, but three lapses of concentration by Konstantinos Mavropanos cost the team of coach Gustavo Poyet dearly.

France was frustrated for the first 50 minutes of the match in Paris, with Greece dealing rather easily with everything the hosts tried.

However a clumsy challenge by Mavropanos on Antoine Griezman shortly after the start of the second half led to a penalty for France. Superstar Kylian Mbappe took the spot kick, but Greece keeper Odysseas Vlachodimos denied him - only for the kick to be repeated as the VAR showed Mavropanos has entered the penalty area too early.

Mbappe made no mistake in the second time,...