The coach of the Blues was questioned at length about the return of Olivier Giroud during the press briefing at Clairefontaine.
At Clairefontaine
The reasons for Olivier Giroud’s recall to the France team
“The most important thing for me, even if there is what I tell you and I make sure to have a line of conduct and to stick to it, but I want to be consistent and fair in relation to the speeches towards the players. Whether it’s Olivier or another, in this case it’s the case (that he’s coherent). Olivier doesn’t have to do more or less, he knows that very well. The France team performed well with and without him, he’s still a player who can be selected, he’s one of the 23 for these matches, don’t ask me about the future. I’m not going to pay particular attention to Olivier more than the others. »
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If it is easier, in human management, to have Giroud without Benzema and Benzema without Giroud in selection?
” Good question. It’s not a question of relationships, it’s not the fact of “if it’s Karim, it’s not Olivier” it goes further than that. From the history that there may have been, it is always the great difficulty, when a player has a status, if he no longer has the same and he is still, there it is difficult, or even impossible. It’s human. It’s not specific to Olivier, there have been others before, it’s humanly very difficult to live with. When you have something that has become a given, that the player has deserved, it’s very complicated. It’s not simpler for me but in relation to the collective good. I don’t take it either to tell him “you will have 30/40%” and see how you will react. I don’t want to make a special case with Olivier. A player who has a status, having less, psychologically, is very hard. (According to him) The player who has a status must have an important role to play. »
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His vision on the change of status of Giroud in Blue
“Status and hierarchy must be separated. A status is not linked to a hierarchy, but in relation to the role that the player plays or not. (He recovers) He had a status, he had it for many years … It’s not compared to Karim, X or Y, but it’s compared to the competition and his playing time.
“This gathering is not Jonathan’s party, let alone his jubilee”
Deschamps on Clauss
His expectations after the arrival of Jonathan Clauss
“I’m not on the networks, I watch little, beyond his pleasure and his immense joy, I’m not here to give gifts. If Jonathan is here, it’s because I think he deserves it. Humanly, he does not have a classic trajectory, he arrived late at the very high level, this gathering, it is not Jonathan’s party, even less his jubilee, he should not consider that as an end, but say, like all players, that it’s a stage. He will have playing time too, it is not easy to ignore the emotional side for all internationals, those who become internationals, but after all the only truth is that of the field. He deserves to be there. »
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The increasingly strong leadership of Mbappé in the France team
“Kylian is Kylian, he will always be on top of what he does. He is still young, but he has always had a lot of maturity through what he does on the pitch, he is an offensive and decisive leader. His speeches, even if they are not frequent, have weight. If you talk to me about Kylian Mbappé today and the one who arrived in Blues a few years ago, his place is now important, even very important. Afterwards, he is not someone who claims things outside the field. »
The advice he gives to new
“You will know when you are selected (laughs). I want to put them at ease because it’s never easy to get here. The context is new, the moment very strong emotionally, they must not change their habits, they must remain as natural as possible and obviously there are tomorrows and they must be anticipated. When they become international, the gaze of opponents and the media changes. If they do something good it will be very good and if it’s the opposite, it will be really less good (smile). The exhibition is no longer the same, we discuss it, the future is not always very happy, it requires confirmation. »
The reasons for the arrival of William Saliba, who replaced Benjamin Pavard
“We have been following him for a while, he is with the Espoirs generation, I talk a lot with Sylvain (Ripoll, coach of the France Espoirs team)), to be completely frank, I was waiting for confirmations in relation to Benjamin (Pavard, affected by the Covid). I could have recorded his arrival on Sunday afternoon, but I waited until this morning (Monday) to make it official. He’s a good defender, quick, technical, good at heading, exudes serenity, he’s one of those young players we follow, but he’s the one who is here today. »
His objective on this rally with two friendly matches
“I could not achieve all the objectives, but the common objective is that the French team continues to be efficient and competitive, in the face of quality adversity (Côte d’Ivoire on Friday and South Africa on Tuesday) . I also have to take into account the physique of the players who play matches at a high pace. Without going into detail, obviously only between the first and the 2e match, it will not be the same team. Physically and psychologically, to concern everyone, it will go through player changes from one match to another. »