The French team passed the round of 16 stage without worries after a victory (3-1) against Poland on Sunday evening in Doha.
Les Bleus seem to be guided by an inner strength that gives us great hopes as we look to the quarter-finals and the shock against the English.
The group life so dear to Didier Deschamps is going wonderfully so far, with newcomers who have found their place among the veterans.
From our Special Envoy in Doha,
Adrien Rabiot had already warned us after the first great victory against Australia that we should not "underestimate" this French team, even though all the tiles in the world seemed to have fallen on their frail shoulders.
Finally… Frail, that's what we thought when we were packing our suitcases and embarking for Doha, piss-cold wretches without ambitions that we were then.
Since then, sand has poured into the desert and the outlook has definitely changed when watching this group, after this round of 16 which Deschamps described as a "rocking match in the competition".
The one who draws the line between the failure of the resounding poc and the beginning of a possible something big.
Monday morning, after having taken out the Poles as one dusts the table after breakfast, the Blues are now two steps away from finding the peaks of the most beautiful of competitions, only four years after having conquered the world under the deluge of Moscow .
We are not there yet, of course, and the players will probably spend the five days that separate us from this thrilling shock against England saying that we must take the games one after the other and that, according to their mantra repeated many times by Didier Deschamps since the start of the competition, “you mustn't show off and put the rooster higher than it is.
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A group sure of its strength and no longer hiding
Nevertheless, for us, this morning, this rooster still has a hell of a rabid T.rex face.
And under their airs of not touching it, basically, they too how gently to believe it.
Finally no, believe it they have been doing it for a while now, always even, who knows.
But saying it is what has changed since the victory against Poland.
Unconsciously, they too have made the switch between this initial desire to play it low profile after the Bucharest fiasco at Euro 2021, and the buried certainty but there that this group is better than a quarter-final against the Three Lions .
You only had to listen in the mixed zone on Sunday evening to realize it.
Each in their own style:
Hugo Lloris, where the work value of the politician:
“It's a story that we want to make last, knowing that everyone is rewarded at one time or another by work.
We don't want to set limits, we want to continue as long as possible.
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Adrien Rabiot, where the serenity of a Zen master:
“We were serene, we mastered our subject.
There were no doubts.
We were aware at some point in the match that we had to do more, but we never doubted.
When we decide, that we want to, we really have this serenity, this solidarity, which makes it difficult for the opponent to pass us and create serious chances.
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Mbappé, where the poker player's cards on the table:
“To be honest, the only goal is to win the World Cup.
It's my dream, my only dream, that's why I came here.
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Beyond what we see on the pitch and everything we've talked about so far - the lethal strike force of this team, Griezmann's miracle repositioning, the system that puts all players in the best arrangements – there is an aspect that we have only touched on so far and which is nevertheless essential for a group that dreams of a starry adventure.
It is group life.
The same one that had been fatal to the “Euro 2021” vintage, between internal squabbles and a feeling of suffocation in the strict health bubble put in place by the staff at the time.
But Deschamps, who is renowned in the industry for being an outstanding group builder, knows better than anyone the importance of this factor in the final equation.
“There is what happens on the field and there is what happens outside, he recalled before the match against Denmark.
Social life is important.
This is not what will win you matches but I can tell you that it can make you lose some.
And for the moment, everything is going well, I could even say very well.
But it was already the case before arriving here, from the start of the rally in Clairefontaine.
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𝑼𝒏 𝒈𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒑𝒆 𝒒𝒖𝒊 𝒗𝒊𝒕 𝒃𝒊𝒆𝒏 😍#FRAPOL |
#ProudofBleus pic.twitter.com/yfbwmXXuIG
– French team ⭐⭐ (@equipedefrance) December 4, 2022
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Day and night with Euro 2021
This is indeed what emerges from each discussion with the players.
When asked on Sunday what had changed from this point of view compared to the last Euro, Adrien Rabiot did not think for a single second: “We feel this union more this year, this solidarity, whether on the ground but also outside, with the staff, with the players who are on the bench, those who enter during the match and those who do not play.
We feel that everyone is concerned, even at the hotel, in group life, it's really going on.
This is the big difference compared to last summer”.
Contrary to what could have happened during the European Championship, there are no clans in this workforce.
Griezmann and Mbappé put their grudges aside for the good of the collective, Giroud learned the lesson and did not make a scene to claim better balloons from Mbappé, and everyone is pulling in the same direction.
Not to mention the newcomers, who have integrated perfectly, bringing their freshness but without disrespecting the old hands of the house.
From the top of his 142 selections and his seven international competitions, we can trust captain Hugo Lloris when it comes to gauging the good health of a group.
And what does he say?
“That there is a very good mix with young players who are having their first World Cup experience and more experienced players.
Despite all these differences, there is a real connection between us.
I find that there is really a word to qualify all that, it is respect, respect between us.
You just have to see these post-match joys, we are one.
Another piece of furniture, Olivier Giroud speaks of a “beautiful alchemy”, but does not forget to prevent any excess of confidence.
“Obviously everything is all beautiful, all rosy, when you win, now you're not going to ignite or see yourself more beautiful than you are, even if there are a lot of reasons for satisfaction.
For his part, Deschamps assures him, in addition to a youth that seems to have understood its role and found its place,
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