For a few years now, criticism has been flying against Didier Deschamps and the French team. And even if there was a lull with the World Cup in Qatar, the less than complimentary remarks about DD have been flying after a completely failed Euro despite a semi-final at stake. Inevitably, several consultants are having a blast and trashing the Blues at will. While former teammates of the 1998 world champion do not hesitate to criticize Didier Deschamps, others are stepping up to show their discontent with the way the Blues are playing. This is particularly the case for Jérôme Rothen. On RMCthe former midfielder is often the first to openly criticize France’s play. Ahead of Monday’s match against Belgium, Rothen added another layer:
“On the contrary, players often take the opposite view of this speech. It bothers me. I tell myself that he has lost control of this group, that all the signals sent are really negative and that we had to move on. I am talking about the behavior, already, on the field. I hurt myself but I watched the match again this morning because I heard a lot of criticism about certain players. Before talking about the performance of some, were these players focused on the collective? He recalls old Digne, Guendouzi and calls up three youngsters who shone at the Olympics a month ago. In fact, you didn’t anticipate anything. Hop, here Olise, we’re going to take him because he signed for Bayern. Today, the results are no longer there. This is the first time that Didier Deschamps has lost two (official) matches in a row, including this slap at home, for a return match, with all these problems of behavior, attitude, statements, communication.»
