Philippe Tournon with Antoine Griezmann, during his last press conference on July 13, 1998. -
FRANCK FIFE / AFP
Philippe Tournon was the loyal press manager of the France team from 1982 to 2020, apart from the Domenech years.
From the top of his six World Cups and as many European championships, the former journalist of the Team has seen nine coaches and the best players in French history.
He recounts his memories in Un rêve Bleu, published on January 6 by Albin Michel editions.
Philippe Tournon made an appointment with us at his home, five minutes by metro from the headquarters of the French Football Federation, where his wife, former assistant to Aimé Jacquet, still works.
In his living room, a magnificent red rooster farting - a sculpture - does not overshadow the room of choice: a padded seat in France 98 terry cloth, with the footix mascot running after a ball to warm the buttocks.
The eternal press attaché for the Blues, 337 selections between 1982 and 2020 excluding the Domenech parenthesis, has just published his great souvenir book with Albin Michel.
A Blue Dream
tells the story of the players and coaches who made the French team great from Platini to Mbappé, from Hidalgo to Deschamps.
Interview with Madeleine de Proust.
Philippe Tournon in charge of the class photo.
- FRANCK FIFE / AFP
The Day Cantona Told Reporters "I Piss You Strip" (1994)
“We are a few months after the trauma of Bulgaria and the relationship with the media is delicate.
The general tone was quite suspicious, as is often the case around the France team.
There was no Deschamps affair in 2018 as there was a Jacquet affair in 98, but the press was not overflowing with monumental enthusiasm when we went to Moscow, for example.
In short, at the time some players no longer wanted to speak to the press, so Aimé Jacquet asked me to organize a conciliation meeting.
The points of view were not easily reconciled.
It's a little tight, then my Canto, who stands up, proud as Artaban, "Gentlemen, I piss you off, goodbye".
He wasn't angry, but let's just say after this meeting, the reports weren't so frequent.
My first match as a press attaché, in 1982 in Portugal, the twenty or so French journalists awaited the green light from Michel Hidalgo to enter the locker room at the final whistle.
He said to me "Wait wait, there is nothing urgent, let the players recover".
The cursor moved well then.
"
The day you sent a coach to media training (2003)
“It was poor Jacques Santini, who finds himself in the apartment of TF1 journalist Jean-Claude Narcy to work on his diction.
Jacquot with his Franc-Comtois accent and the other face a little desperate, it was a great moment (laughs).
There was nothing to do.
Aimé Jacquet was not very fluent in his vocabulary or the terms to be used either, it certainly hurt him at one point, before 98.
But the most complicated was Roger Lemerre.
Not quite a tribune but he could speak clearly, it was dynamic, it was alive, but then he had this conception of righteousness and loyalty… For more than two years he remained without giving an interview in person, he was the first coach to cut ties with the media.
The relationship with the press is working.
Deschamps is a good example.
As soon as he arrived at the Nantes training center, he did media training, he familiarized himself with that.
He masters the exercise to perfection.
"
The day Aimé Jacquet banned cellphones at the table (1998)
"There have always been unspoken codes of good conduct in the France team, but with the prospect of the World Cup at home, Jacquet asked that I notify a number of rules, such as fines for delay and the ban on cell phones at the table.
This rule has always persisted, even if some cheat on the secret.
The uses have evolved, so the staff have adapted.
After the matches in the locker room, once Didier has said a little word, two minutes maximum, everyone does their thing and can take out the phone.
The only sprain was Hatem Ben Arfa with Laurent Blanc.
He picked up his phone during the chat when we had lost, and with his natural naivety, he didn't feel like he was making a mistake.
At the same time, everything became more sensitive, but basically not much has changed in group life.
The atmosphere in the locker room, the minutes before entering the field, the noise of crampons, the sentences we exchange, these are the same moments of solemnity from Platini to Griezmann.
"
The day when the arrival of the wives of gamers became a problem to be anticipated (1996)
“For Euro 96, the question had been raised among others, the wives had been added to a displacement of some executives of the federation.
About ten women had been transplanted and once arrived in England, there was Mrs. Djorkaeff and Mrs. Leboeuf in the blow, nobody was able to tell them if they had the right to come to the training, then in in good faith they had come.
Aimé Jacquet got angry which surprised us a lot, especially the husbands concerned!
"You have flouted the team spirit, it's unacceptable", it was a little exaggerated but at least it helped to clear things up for 98.
The women of French players in 1998 at the Elysée.
.
- PATRICK GELY / SIPA
This remains a thorny subject.
In Brazil in 2014, it had been hot.
The hotel was not ready, the standard was not the right one.
In 1986 in Mexico, women were not there, but the hotel was open to the four winds, with Marseille supporters and a few pretty tourists traveling, it was a constant back and forth.
Afterwards there is no truth.
I always quote Euro 92 in Sweden, where the Danes were drafted while they were on vacation with women and children.
So they spent the whole competition as a family, and they were European champions anyway.
"
The Day You Allowed Yourself to Boost Players Before a Press Conference (2013)
“It was after the return from the play-off in Ukraine (2-0).
The general atmosphere was so despondent on the way back from Kiev, the guys had their noses in their socks.
So I sent the message to the players: "You have to come to a press conference with flashes in your eyes, without lowering your head, in commando mode".
If the journalists leave having seen the same faces as those they saw in Kiev, it is certain that we will not mobilize anyone again.
Otherwise I don't allow myself to "brief" them, apart from checking that they are not landing the hat askew.
Some, the first time, I don't know the catastrophe that awaits me when they open their mouths (laughs).
Others are applicants.
Lloris, Giroud, Lizarazu in his time, they like that we sweep the news a little before, and that I give them some information on tricky questions that can happen.
Deschamps sometimes said to me "Him, leave him alone, he's going through a bad patch".
He is the only coach who validates each time that goes to a press conference or not.
"
The day Deschamps decided to boycott an interview because of Benzema (2018)
“We are before the World Cup in Russia, Didier agreed to the program“ Au Tableau ”on C8 to answer children's questions.
Until the day when he got wind through his huge network of informants that Jamel Debbouze in the previous show gave a nice little wink to say "Didier, it would be good to take Karim".
But for him, it was already too much.
"You saw what Djamel said, we cancel everything".
With Benzema, the red line was crossed when his wife calls him in Clairefontaine to tell him that the word “racist” had been tagged on his house.
Didier Deschamps with Karim Benzema on October 7, 2014. - FRANCK FIFE / AFP
Guy Stéphan, who knows him very well, saw that he had tears in his eyes when he returned to the table.
It is certain that it will remain a huge paradox that when Benzema reaches his full potential at Real Madrid he is no longer in the France team.
Because Didier has always defended it.
At one time, even inside the staff, some said "Benzema is enough".
He did not score, he did not weigh on the game, he seemed to drag his misery, Didier maintained him against all odds.
But the Basque is resentful.
"
The day you felt from the inside that France would be world champion
“It would be presumptuous to say that.
For example the 2002 World Cup I was convinced that we would be in the last four.
Internally, we did not have the perception of a group that is going to waste.
Euro 2016, I didn't think he could escape us.
It switches to three times nothing, maybe a day off less.
No doubt that old trick "don't play the final before your final".
In 1986, after the quarter against Brazil, we had our jubilee, in the semi-finals we were no longer there.
Raphaël Varane, July 15, 2020 in Moscow.
- FRANCK FIFE / AFP
In 1998, we can see that the group is responding, that there is indeed a perfect communion between the boss and the group, you cannot ignore the outside environment which was very skeptical.
And then we can also turn it around by saying that if we go to penalties against Paraguay de Chilavert, we never pass.
In the semifinals, Thuram has never scored in his life and he leaves us two goals.
It was only Deschamps who said that in Russia two or three days before the final he was filled with total serenity because he was convinced that it was going to do it.
Not me !
"
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