For his first gathering at the head of the France team, Zinedine Zidane opened the group to many newcomers. Andy Diouf, Jérémy Jacquet, Lucas Da Cunha, Lenny Yoro, Esteban Lepaul and Guillaume Restes were thus called up for these first four matches of the Zidane era and thus experienced their first selection(s).
In a left-back position lacking solutions, where Lucas Digne and Théo Hernandez alternated during the last World Cup, the new French coach preferred to innovate by retaining Adrien Truffert and Andy Diouf. Having received a pre-call, Matthieu Udol nevertheless thought he would see the door of the Blues open at 30 for the September and October matches against Turkey (0-1), Belgium (0-1, 4-1) and Italy (1-1).
The announcement of his absence came three hours before the match against Monaco on September 18. Holder and decisive scorer, the Sang et Or expressed all their frustration in their celebration. “It happened three hours before, I had this potential to be selected, it was not an easy day emotionally speaking”, he confided to
The Team.
“Additional motivation”
“The fact of having this hope and a disappointment at the end, it gave me additional motivation, and I released all that on my goal, he continued. I had a lot of rage inside me, but I was simply disappointed. There’s an upcoming break soon, we have a series of very high-level matches between now and then, it’s up to me to perform well to knock on the door again. »
Far from resigning himself, the former Messin intends to convert this bitterness into a source of motivation and draws on his experience to support his CV: “ Today, with the Champions League, my status has evolved further. There is also an opportunity compared to the competition to find a place in this team. It has become a goal, but I have no pressure because I am also aware of where I come from, he insisted. If it happens, it will be great. Otherwise it won’t be a regret, just a shame because I wouldn’t have been far. I also know that I am 30, not 24, and that the more time passes, the more opportunities will be difficult to seize. There may be a window, and my versatility can help me. I’m a piston but I can play on the left in a four-man defense, left axis too. »
