The label has been with it for so long that it was thought impossible to take off. It will take more than a failed Euro and a successful autumn to get rid of it, but in his speech as on the ground, Didier Deschamps is gradually operating a paradigm shift. He, the pragmatist who had been criticized for winning the World Cup without playing as many would have liked, has continued in recent months to move the cursor forward.
Maybe it was the logical next step. After the trial and error and the doubts that accompanied the Blues to the Euro, evolving was necessary. The 3-4-3, however, was anything but obvious, despite the return of Karim Benzema. Deschamps had tried it, several times, without the graft finally taking. The crushing blow suffered last summer could have convinced him that the best jams are made in old people.
Friendly matches
Clauss, Kimpembe, Ben Yedder: Opportunities to seize… and places to take?
3 HOURS AGO
Suffer less, assume the risks
His merit will have been to be stubborn. The arrival of Théo Hernandez has changed everything and during the last outings of the Blues, until last Friday’s match against Côte d’Ivoire, the French coach made tactical choices which, from afar, contrast quite clearly with the past. They are assumed.
Giroud, the goal that changes everything? “Even if he scores 6 against South Africa, it doesn’t change anything”
Why stay behind if we have the ball?
With his offensive trident and two extremely dangerous men in the corridors, Deschamps knows that his device is a solution for the Blues and an equation for the opponent which, itself, must be resolved to reverse the balance of power. No small feat. Four years ago, the day after the title won in Russia, the discourse was much less proactive. “Me, I prepare my team to put the opponent in the most difficultyjustified the selector in the columns of The Team. But if you don’t have the ball, you also have to be able to adapt to this situation. We do not decide to defend for the sake of defending. It is the adversary who obliges us to do so.”
Best middle of the year: why Tchouaméni put Rabiot in the retro
At the time, Deschamps was still defending an asymmetric 4-2-3-1 where Blaise Matuidi provided extra security on the left side. Today, it no longer even imposes compensation for the two lane players. “Why stay behind if we have the ball?he asked at a press conference. They are there to use the width. If one is high, you can have a little more security on the other side and that’s what Kingsley did on Friday. But otherwise, we go out at three [défenseurs centraux] and it’s up to them [les pistons] to occupy the width.”
The coach would even make his players look like the most fearful. In any case, he replied, with a smile, to Raphaël Varane’s little remark about one-on-one duels: “I know that the more the defenders are protected, the quieter they are…“.
Friendly matches
From Lille to Doha: Mbappé, eight months to take power
3 HOURS AGO
Friendly matches
Great first for Saliba and Clauss, a doubt in attack: the probable composition of the Blues
7 HOURS AGO