By removing four players at half-time against England last night (6-4), Didier Deschamps sent a strong message, that playing for the France team is worth it even when the stakes are not there. Like all French people stuck to their sofa, the now ex-coach of the Blues was dismayed by the first period of his men, without soul or revolt and scattered by the English who had made, by force of circumstances, this third place an objective.
The Blues did not show the same feeling, and most already seemed to have their minds turned to their vacation since the elimination against Spain on Tuesday in the semi-finals (2-0). Théo Hernandez would not have hidden his low motivation before the match, and the former AC Milan player undoubtedly obtained what he wanted by being replaced at the break by Lucas Digne, much more interesting, once again. Rayan Cherki, with whom the tone rose during the cool-off break, Ibrahima Konaté, but also Désiré Doué, were also replaced after only 45 minutes.
Regrets for having made certain choices
In a post-match press conference, Didier Deschamps seemed to have regrets regarding certain choices, without going into details. “It was better to finish third, unfortunately that was not possible after the disastrous first half. I got a little angry. With hubris and pride, we almost toppled an unsinkable mountain. The image of the second half corresponds more to the French team, to what this French team was able to do in this World Cup.confides DD.
Questioned about the comments of Adrien Rabiot, who had denounced a few minutes earlier “unacceptable behavior”Deschamps added: “I’m not going to settle scores today. The players know well. I’m not going to point fingers. On the other hand, I always tell them. It was me who was wrong, I should have made other choices from the start of the match, you can say that, and it might have gone better.”he commented, before wishing them all the best. The pride and responsiveness displayed by the entrants in the second half ultimately pleased him. “They have that pride and character. Fortunately. I could have changed eight at half-time, but I’ve already changed quite a few. It’s good that the team had this reaction.” And this is how the last chapter of 14 years of history was written.
