DOHA (CATAR), 29 Nov. (STATS Perform/dpa/EP) –
The France coach, Didier Deschamps, was somewhat puzzled by the possible return of Karim Benzema to the French concentration in Qatar, already recovered from his thigh problems, a return that the coach is “not” thinking about.
This Monday, RMC Sports reported that the French team, badly hit by injuries, could turn again to a Karim Benzema who left the concentration before the start of the tournament due to a thigh injury, but who was still in the call for the world Cup. However, Deschamps pushed that possibility away.
“I’m not sure, that’s not something I’m thinking about,” he said at a press conference in the Tunisia-France preview this Wednesday (4:00 p.m.). “Who is saying that?” the technician wondered before such information.
Deschamps spoke to Benzema “after he left the team” and warned the media of the time “it will take him to recover.” “It’s up to you if you want to speculate and imagine scenarios, that’s not what I’m focusing on right now,” said the coach.
In addition, the French coach denied that striker Kylian Mbappé’s “ego” could have a negative influence on the French squad, supposedly demanding to also start against Tunisia. “His physical condition of him is good, so we don’t need to manage that. Are you saying we have to manage his ego? Kylian doesn’t have a big ego, that’s not true,” he asserted.
“He is a key player, but he is a team player. Of course, he is a star, but he is no longer 18 years old, he has more experience. He wants to play tomorrow, but not everyone can start the game, that is normal”, he explained before the possibility of Mbappé being a substitute to rest the PSG player.
And it is that Deschamps knows that he must supply the minutes thinking about the qualifiers, after certifying his pass to the round of 16. “We’re through, so we don’t need to go for the win, and it looks like we’re going to win the group. But this is a World Cup game against an opponent who needs a result to go through, and Australia and Denmark are also playing for his classification. We will try to obtain the best possible result”, he analyzed.
“I’m going to have to manage the squad, I have many things to take into account. I have a little more time to make my decision, but yes, there will be changes. I won’t say how many”, he settled.