It was as a double winner of the Champions League – with OM in 1993 then AC Milan the following year – and double Italian champion with the Rossoneri that Marcel Desailly, then aged 29, approached the final of the 98 World Cup between the France team and Brazil. However, the defensive rock of the Blues has never felt such pressure as before the legendary meeting which offered the very first world title to France.
“We were in France, the adrenaline was at its peak. I have never felt so much stress before a football match as I did at that time. We were never afraid of playing against Ronaldo or losing against Brazil. We believed in it, we were in the right dynamic. Losing at home in front of millions of people was simply unthinkable. We were ready to die, you know? And we were all at the top of our game at the same time. It was impossible to lose.”assures Desailly to the Italian site
ultimouomo.com.
On July 12, 1998, at the Stade de France, Aimé Jacquet's team obviously won 3-0 against Auriverde thanks to a double header from Zinédine Zidane and a third goal from Emmanuel Petit. “The Rock”, the nickname he earned at Chelsea after his arrival in 1996, was sent off after the hour mark, leaving his team outnumbered for the end of the game.
Desailly has “never experienced anything like this”
Desailly adds on the unbearable wait ahead of this France-Brazil in Saint-Denis: “We knew how important it was for France to win this World Cup. It was a great opportunity and therefore enormous pressure. The days before the match were terrible: calls from family, journalists… We wanted to play this match as quickly as possible, because it was too much. I have never experienced anything like this. »
Buoyed by immense popular enthusiasm, the French team experienced a dream final. Aimé Jacquet's defensive tactics slowed down the Seleçao's prodigies, especially since Ronaldo, victim of illness during the day, was announced as a forfeit before starting the game. Fabien Barthez responded and if Stéphane Guivarc'h, the center forward of the Blues, missed his opportunities against Claudio Taffarel, two corners taken by “Zizou” brought happiness to an entire people.
