Joël Bats is forever linked to June 21, 1986, the date of the unforgettable France-Brazil contested in the quarter-finals of the World Cup in Mexico. The French team may well be the reigning European champion after reaching the last four of the previous World Cup, the Seleçao is the favorite. However, the Blues will win at the end of an unbreathable meeting, concluded with a penalty shootout.
By stopping Socrates’ attempt and forcing Julio Cesar to shoot at the post, Joël Bats was obviously one of the heroes of the qualification, just like Luis, the decisive shooter. And all the more so since he had already stopped a Zico penalty at the start of the last quarter of an hour.
But when talking about this legendary meeting in the columns of France Football, Joël Bats especially pays tribute to his teammates. Notably Michel Platini who brought to the Blues his
“winning mentality”developed at Juve. “The smallest game in training, he wanted to win, even at cards he had become hellish. He also talked a lot, which allowed him to convey his messages with a smile. I was also greatly inspired by it later when I became a coach,” he explained in the columns of
France Football.
Too many emotions
His half-time speech also had an impact on him. “Michel Platini spoke just before leaving, and everyone listened, he confided. Because he had this aura, this leadership, this confidence, this winning mentality. But also because, systematically, he gave an indication of play, a weakness to exploit that he had noted. It wasn’t just encouragement, there was always something relevant. I liked Michel, he was a superstar but not a diva, he gave everything for the group. »
Joël Bats is equally complimentary about Jean Tigana. “It was a Tigana monster, capable of the last thrust when everyone was done”he said about him before asserting that he had been just as decisive as him on the Zico penalty saved. “I jump on the right side, I push her away and Tigana prevents the recovery of a Brazilian. I always say that this peno, I stopped it with Jeannot”, he pointed out.
And the former goalkeeper has the same for Alain Giresse or Luis Fernandez, other heroes of the famous magic square. “The changes in positions theorized today when we see the teams of Guardiola or Luis Enrique, we already did it in our own way forty years ago, he assured. It’s like the Magic Square, Platini moved everywhere and the other three, especially Giresse and Fernandez, changed space according to his movements. It was intelligence in its purest form, without a blackboard. »
Joël Bats has only one regret: the celebrations which followed this historic qualification and which undoubtedly weighed heavily in the defeat conceded against Germany in the semi-final. “I always thought that we celebrated too much emotionally this match even though the tournament was not over, he indicated. At the Euro, just before the final against Spain (2-0), Michel Hidalgo created a mountain with the different opponents. Adding: “If we don’t plant the flag at the top, all of this will have been for nothing. » In Mexico, we haven’t found this thing. Perhaps because we had the impression that this France-Brazil was the real World Cup final. »
