Adrien Rabiot, 27, readily admits having matured in recent years. Author of high-flying performances since the start of the World Cup, the Juventus midfielder is an essential link in the smooth running of the French team before the quarter-final against England (Saturday, 20 hours).
How have your relations with Didier Deschamps evolved since your return to Blue?
ADRIEN RABIOT. I’ve said it before, but we’ve always had a good relationship. Even before 2018 and what happened before the World Cup. Afterwards, it was two years where we had no contact at all before I came back in 2020. We talked when I got back and it went very well. I didn’t know what to expect at first, but there was a very good relationship right away. From selection to selection, we got to know each other better. He understands me better, he knows my personality better. Today we are closer.
Since your first selection in 2016, how has Didier Deschamps evolved in the relationship with his players?
He has his little habits, he is certainly more serene with time. He approaches certain subjects more easily with the current generation. It may also be easier to exchange with us. I find the coach very open, very relaxed, even during a competition like this. In 2016 I had another eye, I didn’t look at certain details, I was younger, but today I see its ease in the relationship. This is an important point which means that everyone gets along well and that we have a good understanding in the group.
Have you ever been so happy and fulfilled on a football pitch?
It’s true that I’m going through a very good period footballingly speaking, whether at Juventus or at this World Cup. It also comes with the fact that I have grown, that I have matured, that my football has grown as well. This is without doubt the best period I have had in my career.
How crucial is the physical aspect for you to be fulfilled on the pitch?
For me to really be able to use my full potential, I have to be really good physically. I have worked a lot on this since I have been at Juventus, for four seasons. I quickly felt this change. This allows me to be active for 90 minutes, not to slow down or very little over a whole match. This is what made me evolve too. Before I had some holes for several minutes. The fact of being physically well allows me to make the most of my technical qualities.
Is the praise you’ve received since the start of the World Cup slipping on you or is it making you happy?
A bit of both. I still try to stay focused on the competition, not to scatter too much. We know that it can go quickly on one side or the other. I have often experienced it. But it’s nice to be recognized, there was a time when I suffered a lot of criticism and I was not shot down. I’m not going to ignite but it’s still fun.
What touches you the most?
Journalists, because you are quite difficult to convince. I have often been criticized, sometimes wrongly in my opinion. (…) From that side it is a great recognition. I have not always agreed on what I heard, on the quality of my game, my performances which were considered not good or less good. We all have different opinions even if I was quite objective. I found that sometimes it was harsh. These are things that push me to give more to make everyone agree.
How much did your short experience in England (at Manchester City) help you?
It was a very good experience (Editor’s note: in 2008), even if I didn’t even do a year. I felt very good, I really liked the atmosphere there was around football there. We feel that it is really something other than France or even Italy. I have always said that I would like to play in England one day in my career. Will it be at the end of my contract at Juventus? I don’t know, but it’s true that I would like to play in the Premier League.
Which English club would you like to play for?
I don’t have a favorite team in England. There isn’t really a team where I say to myself “I would like to play there”. It is above all the level of the championship and the way of playing which correspond to my qualities and which attracts me.
Can the “Mbappé dependence” of the Blues be a danger?
No, we take it as an asset. He is focused on what he has to do, we do our best to put him in the right conditions. There is no dependency. He is a player with very high potential. We know that the goals will come from him at 80-90%. He is able to create, to accelerate, it is a very important weapon. We have other players who can make a difference but we have a big weapon with Kylian. Why deprive yourself of it?
What is the definition of maturity in Adrien Rabiot’s game?
In almost all sectors, even if I’m a rather technically comfortable player. You have to be focused, have less downtime over the duration of the match, be able to contribute offensively. This year, I scored a lot of goals, delivered a few assists. I have the qualities to do it. The fact of working more in training, of believing more in myself too, these are things that we develop over time and which make me gain in maturity.
How does Aurélien Tchouaméni’s work in the middle allow you to fully express yourself?
Aurélien has an important role in the sense that we play with a lot of attacking players. Griezmann is still an attacker at the start. We have Kylian (Mbappé), Olivier (Giroud) and Ousmane (Dembélé) who are attackers, Théo (Hernandez) is very offensive and I also like to project myself. He has this role of compensating, plugging the gaps, recovering the balls. It gives me the opportunity to project myself even if I have to adapt to Kylian and Théo. I can play as I like to do by going forward, towards the surface. He’s there behind us to provide cover. He really has a very important role in midfield for Antoine and for me.
Do you feel liberated by your positioning on the pitch? This is a subject that in the past has greatly animated the debates with you…
We talked about it, I talked about it a little. The media were talking about it too. It was a bit complicated and from the moment I stopped asking myself these questions I felt much better on the pitch. Even now, the way we play, I’m not really confined to a role where I have to stay in a position. I am quite free, I can go to the left because I have to deal with Kylian. I can project myself, do the offensive races. The coach sees that I can do it over 90 minutes, he trusts me, I trust him. Being freer on the pitch and in my head allows me to express myself better and bring the best to the team.
Shouldn’t we project ourselves less against England?
It’s a team that has a bit of the same characteristics as us. I’m not sure we should tell ourselves that we should do less and pay attention to them. They will also be very careful because we have the possibility of putting them in difficulty as well. It will be an open match with two teams who know how to counter and move forward quickly. What can make the difference in such important matches are set pieces. We know they are very good. They will have weapons, so will we. We must not make the same mistakes as against Denmark, for example, on a corner or a free kick.
Do you think the key will be in the fight in the middle?
We haven’t evolved much together with Aurélien, nor with Antoine in this positioning, but since the start of the competition we have found each other very well, we are really complementary. Even having played very little together, I find it really satisfying. In the middle of England, they have a bit the same characteristics, we were very efficient in the middle, too. They have players who can project themselves. They have Declan Rice who looks more like a player like Tchouaméni. They have important weapons, but one is not inferior. The midfield battle will obviously be important.
Tell us about the Al-Kass Cup that you won right here in Doha with the youngsters of PSG, in 2012.
We came to play here with Laurent Bonadéi (the coach) and we won in the final against Juventus. Already at the time I said that it was a goal to come back to play the World Cup in Qatar and it happened. There was Presnel (Kimpembe), Kingsley (Coman), Mike (Maignan). Quality players. I have very fond memories of it. It would be a nice nod to achieve something big here.
