The champion has not just found peace in the last week of the World Cup. Every day, in the Al Sadd camp, where the blues are installed in Qatar, they live pending the thermometer. That the mercury does not rise too much every time a footballer does not feel completely fine. They have been almost nightmare days. And this does not seem like the best way to prepare an entire World Cup final; Of course, with a team like France, more than used to avoiding bumps in their path, anything is possible. In addition, Pelé's Brazil, the last to repeat the title 60 years ago, awaits the final in Lusail in case she has to leave a place at her side for the Gauls.
The obscurantism that exists around the flu-tinged virus that is plaguing Didier Deschamps' team has even given rise to a certain sensationalism. “I know that it is a matter of interest, I understand it, but I prefer not to give details. We are doing everything necessary together with the doctors to face this situation and we prepare the game in the best way we know how", the French coach settled in the previous one, just as sparing in explanations as Hugo Lloris, his eternal companion in the press rooms. : "I have no news, I had breakfast alone, very soon, and I have not seen anyone." Nobody wanted to give a single clue too many to the Argentines.
The truth is that after a few very busy days and full of alarming news, with footballers even having a fever, the 24 French players that Deschamps has at his disposal -it should be remembered that Lucas Hernández was injured in the first game and that Benzema left the concentration and He was not replaced – they jumped to the green on Saturday to train with a view to the duel against Messi's Argentina. Up to five players thus rejoined the discipline of the group: Varane, Konaté, Coman, Theo Hernández and Tchouaméni. The first three, hit by the virus that already left two regulars in the eleven such as Rabiot and Upamecano without playing in the semifinals against Morocco. While the last two returned from the gym after two blows.
The center of defense thus emerges as the first focus of concern for Deschamps. "Obviously, we would have preferred not to have to deal with these types of problems before a final but we are preparing it as best as possible," insisted the French coach.
The road to the World Cup has not been easy for the French team, which was losing important troops as the appointment in Qatar approached. Deschamps ran out of pieces like Kimpembe, Pogba, Tolisso, Kanté (all of them World Cup players in Russia) or Nkunku before giving his list. Already in Doha, he lost Benzema, first, whom he decided not to replace, and Lucas Hernández, later. And, facing a duel like the one in Argentina, losses of so much weight can be noticed. “A final must always be prepared a little differently from other matches. There are many emotions and each one can be affected differently. It is about managing these emotions because some players do not know what to expect ”, Deschamps pointed out.
With two stars on the shield, France will seek to leave behind Uruguay and Argentina (who will have the same goal) in the list of winners and get closer to the big ones. She will do it with a healthy Mbappé and in full power, but pending the mercury. It doesn't sound too bad either.
