With the poor performance produced last Thursday by the Tricolores against Israel (0-0), we had to inevitably expect a burst of criticism against them but also towards Didier Deschamps. As is often the case, the French coach is criticized for his minimalist approach and lackluster football.
Faced with external attacks, DD has always stood firm. And that was the case again this time. At a press conference this Saturday and before the Nations League match against Italy, he declared: “I have my energy, I do everything to continue to maintain the French team at the level it has reached, with the demands and expectations that are there. Critics have always been a part of my life. Compliments too. This is not what will influence what I have to do, what I think I will do so that the French team is as efficient as possible.”
Deschamps defends his record
Deschamps says he is unsinkable, but he still took the time to defend his team’s balance sheet. “We are 2nd in the FIFA rankings, we were semi-finalists in the Euro, we are in a Nations League where I decided to put younger players with less experience. They are not going to have the influence of players with more experience. But we are here nonetheless. (…) Italy and France are qualified, they have the best place, we know what we have to do.”
Finally, the Bayonne technician also found mitigating circumstances for the poor form that his protégés can display. “ They are coming off three-game weeks. There is physical and psychological fatigue too. Some will say that we are not going to pity them. But travel and travel… The motivation is there. Luckily she’s there. But between having the motivation and transcribing it, there is the physical state that we can no longer measure, and the psychological fatigue that is sometimes more significant. And this is difficult to quantify.”
