It’s “D-Day” in New Jersey for the Blues, in search of a third star, and who will make their debut in the tournament at 9:00 p.m. (3:00 p.m. local) with a tough reunion against the Senegalese who beat them at the opening of the edition 2002.
Following the disappointment of Spain, another major contender for the crown unable to overcome (0-0) novice Cape Verde in the World Cup, the French team would be inspired to avoid such a scenario, so as not to let doubt intrude from the start of its campaign.
With a square, which we like to imagine magical in attack, with the superstar Kylian Mbappé, the Ballon d’Or Ousmane Dembélé, the sensation Michael Olise and the twirling Désiré Doué, the Tricolores seem armed to impose their game or, at the very least, score goals, as they have done all season in clubs in Europe.
For his last campaign, Didier Deschamps is so aware of the pressure generated by entering the World Cup – his fourth as coach of the Blues – that he called on his players “to be concentrated and relaxed”.
“This first match is very important but it is not decisive because there will be two other matches after (against Iraq and Norway). Starting with a victory in a group of four teams is ideal, it is always the objective when we approach this first match. But it is the emotional aspect that we cannot measure and quantify players can tense up due to the atmosphere of the match and the environment,” he anticipated at a press conference.
– “Not a revenge” –
As for the weather conditions on the pitch at MetLife Stadium, in the suburbs of New York where the French hope to return to the final on July 19, they will be hot but not unbearable with 25°C forecast.
A misstep from the first meeting would nevertheless be disastrous for a team with such high ambitions. It would also recall this 1-0 defeat of the reigning world champions during the opening match of the 2002 World Cup against the same Senegal, a prelude to a historic crash and a humiliating elimination in the first round, which no Frenchman wants to relive.
“We saw what happened in 2002. We want a victory today, not for revenge, but to start the competition well and go as far as possible,” said N’Golo Kanté, 2018 world champion who should be a substitute on Tuesday for the first match of this American World Cup.
The Lions of Teranga of Sadio Mané, African champions on the field but dispossessed of their continental crown on the green carpet to the benefit of Morocco at the end of a chaotic CAN-2025 final, only see a stutter in history.
“It would not be a surprise if we beat France who have world-class players. France is the favorite but our team was African champion, we qualified for the third time in a row for the World Cup,” argued Senegalese coach Pape Thiaw, who will be able to count on a group with complete, including defender Kalidou Koulibaly, recovered from a back injury.
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