Although long inferior to the Belgians, the Blues achieved the feat this Monday of winning against the Red Devils in Brussels. They even resisted 10 against 11 for around twenty minutes at the end after the expulsion of Aurélien Tchouaméni. A double from Randal Kolo Muani allows them to aim for the Final 8 of the Nations League in a month. Didier Deschamps, the national coach, was at a press conference after the match.
What is the analysis of this success?
DIDIER DESCHAMPS. What I didn’t like was what we did for 30 minutes. I expected this aggressiveness from Belgium and when we got the ball back, we lost it. We didn’t hold him in front. We got shaken as they say. We finally managed to play forward fifteen minutes from the end. In the second period, we controlled better. The match could have gone one way or the other. Everything is not perfect but we must recognize the solidarity and merit of this less experienced group. It’s good to go through matches like that.
Do you have any advice for Luis Enrique, PSG coach, to use Randal Kolo Muani?
I have no advice to give. I’m very happy for him. He gives solutions in depth, he is clever with his back to goal, he confirms that he has a very good heading game. He has good timing, in particular. He shows that he has confidence with us. This is felt in his game. I hope it will help him in the club.
Is he cooler in the French team?
I always found him to be quite cool, even too cool sometimes. I sometimes told him to put more intensity into his game. At PSG, he perhaps has more demands, the price of his transfer also plays a role. Maybe he is more confident with us because he has playing time. The first match against Israel was useful to him. In the game with his back to goal, which is not his first quality, he was good.
Is it a founding success?
These are passages. You have to win them. The group has less experience. Adversity was high. This will help us. There are things to correct. The high level is very demanding. We must not make the mistakes of the first thirty minutes. This is an important victory in this group with a possible qualification to the quarter-finals. Even if everything is not rosy, we took six points during this rally.
Did Lucas Digne score points thanks to his crosses, notably the victorious one for Kolo Muani?
He has this quality of centers. But I don’t think Théo Hernandez doesn’t have this quality. He had one hell of a client with Doku.
Will you go to Italy to win first place in the group on November 17?
Already ? Everything in its time. We will first secure second place. We are not going to go to Italy to visit Milan even if it is a beautiful city. First place will perhaps be at stake after Belgium – Italy.
