Nothing to be done, Didier Deschamps continues to use the Mbappé catchphrase, a week after the captain’s nose broke on the first day against Austria. Will he play or not play tomorrow night against Poland? The France coach doesn’t provide clarity, he skates over the questions, he says neither yes nor no, he answers more or less as he did on the eve of the match against the Netherlands: “Every day it’s getting better and better, the hematoma has been reabsorbed and he has done the habit of wearing a mask. Kylian wants to play, the same one he had a few days ago before the Netherlands.” Deschamps introduces a new element, imperfect vision, due to face protection: “The mask does not impact nasal breathing, but it does impact vision, it limits it laterally, narrows the angle of vision”. Is it better to play centre-forward or on the left? “The contacts are everywhere, in all the duels. He has to get used to it, it seems like he has 3D glasses.” It is difficult to understand from these statements whether Mbappé will start tomorrow.
griezmann
—
Deschamps does not even confirm the possible exclusion of Griezmann, the negative protagonist of the first two matchdays. In fact, he defends him: “He’s had a challenging season and it’s not easy. Against the Netherlands he improved, he had two big opportunities: if he had made at least one of them, you would have judged his game differently.” On the need to beat Poland by more goals to finish first in the group and enter the round of 16 on the best side of the table, the side without Germany, Spain and Portugal: “It’s our objective. Poland is already eliminated, but we can’t they will give nothing away, they will be motivated.”
Kante
—
N’Golo Kanté is pushing for Mbappé’s return: “We all know Kylian Mbappé’s ability to score – says the midfielder -. With his return, he can help us score and win matches. It’s a great advantage to have Kylian back.” On the understanding with Tchouameni: “Against Austria, in the first match, without Tchouameni I had to stay “lower”. In the second, against the Netherlands, with Tchouameni at my side I was more free. We are complementary.” Kanté is almost an attacking midfielder, at times: “These are things I have learned over the years at Chelsea. Today I have the maturity to advance at the right times. It works well, I hope it continues, but the understanding with Tchouameni is fundamental.” On the need to finish first in the group: “We need a victory to reassure us, we have to score the goals we haven’t scored so far, first place is fundamental.”
LEWA SAYS IT’S HARD
—
Robert Lewandowski, captain of Poland, wore the face mask in 2015, when he played for Bayern Munich, and he doesn’t have good memories: “It’s quite annoying. In the penalty area I didn’t react as usual, I couldn’t see well, my field of vision was limited. It’s a few milliseconds, but it can slow down a player. I know what difficulties Mbappé will have to face.” Lewandowski denied retiring from the Polish national team: “I have a fire inside me and I will carry on until that flame goes out. One day I will wake up and tell myself this is the end of the journey. The decision is up to me and my family.”
