Clairefontaine-en-Yvelines (France) (AFP)

Delighted with an adaptation "made super fast" and an "easy" relationship with Kylian Mbappé, the Ballon d'Or present "in the back of his mind", Karim Benzema feels a positive "atmosphere" around him since his return to the France team, he said on Friday in an interview with AFP.

Q: Finding the locker room and the jersey of the Blues on Wednesday against Wales, how was it?

A: "A lot of emotion, the joy of coming back to the France team and playing football. The emotions are rising. I'm happy to arrive on the pitch, to feel good and to play ball. had a lot of emotions, whether it was the Marseillaise, putting on the France team jersey again, being on the pitch with my friends and having fun. "

Q: We saw you multiply the winks and the smiles with your partners.

Were you a bit on an integration or reintegration internship?

A: "No, no integration. Of course, it's been a while since we've played together, well, I haven't played with that group. But I knew a lot of players. , practically all the staff. It was done really quickly and there I feel really good (smiles). "

Q: Among the famous faces, there is that of Antoine Griezmann.

Was the fear of stepping on his toes with him in the field real?

R: "I think that at this level, you cannot step on your toes, it is not possible. He plays for Barça, I play for Real, we have enough technique and vision not to Of course, we like to have the ball in our feet, but we can go deep too, we can move. The most important is not to be both in the same place. step on it, no. "

Q: Is that the "beautiful football" you mentioned?

A: "Yes, put a lot of movement, move, play with a touch or two, be decisive, be present in the box to score goals, have chances, help the team to defend, do everything!"

Q: Was the penalty he lets you shoot a poisoned gift?

A: "No, everyone misses penalties. Find me a player who is not going to miss one! It's nothing, it's a friendly match, I'm going to work on them more and more. Not a problem. What can be a problem is not having chances and shooting zero times on goal. Creating chances, being in the tempo, that's what it takes. "

Q: Did you find your bearings early on?

A: "I felt good. In any case, on a soccer field, we don't have much time to think about benchmarks. You have to play, in the right tempo. The goalkeeper was on all my shots, but at in the end we won 3-0. "

Q: What do you remember from Kylian Mbappé's discovery?

A: "He's a very good player. For his young age, he can do everything. These are the players I like, who know how to play with one touch, take depth. Agile, fast, efficient. We don't. hasn't played a lot together but in training we look for each other, it's easy. He knows how to play football and it's very important to have him. "

Q: After two seasons at the highest level, is the idea of ​​the Ballon d'Or stuck in your head?

R: "Always. It's always in my head. After, how to win it? That's what you have to put as a question in your head. It goes through major competitions, through big matches. Having it in a corner of his head it's good, it allows you to motivate yourself even more on a field. "

Q: You feel more peaceful, more peaceful, more joking.

Why ?

A: "Already, I'm not the same age quite simply. I'm a father. It's different. For me, the most important thing is to be good on the pitch, calm, in the right place. mood, always. "

Q: Were you surprised by the popular support for your return?

A: "Of course it went very well. I had very good feedback, and I can feel the atmosphere, what is going on around me, it's perfect. It allows me to be very focused on what I need to do on the pitch, because that's the most important thing. "

Interview by Jérémy TALBOT and Antoine MAIGNAN.

© 2021 AFP