Australia captain Mat Ryan said on Tuesday they were not worried about facing France’s superstar players after losing to them in the group stage in the last World Cup, and has been telling the younger Socceroos players to respect but not be in awe of the world champions when they meet.
Australia opened their 2018 campaign with a 2-1 loss to France in a tight match decided by a deflected Paul Pogba shot nine minutes from time.
The coach said at a news conference on the eve of the Group D clash, “We almost obviously got a great result there against France in picking up a point or getting a win…and we felt we were quite unlucky. Something that I learned that day (is) you’ve got to have the right amount of respect for the opposition, but don’t be in awe of them or be overwhelmed too much.”
Australian Coach Graham Arnold said he had also tried to do his bit to put his players at ease by not mentioning the names of the likes of Kylian Mbappe and Antoine Griezmann, or even the team.
“It’s not being disrespectful at all, but I’ve hardly mentioned the word ‘France’, and I’ve hardly mentioned any of the players names because the players know who they are,” he said.
“It’s one against one, it’s 10 blue shirts against 10 yellow shirts, and it’s a fight. That’s what it is.”
Arnold said key midfielder Ajdin Hrustic was still not ready to start the match at the Al Janoub stadium after recovering from an ankle injury.
Nevertheless, he thought his youthful midfield, several of whom he coached at the Tokyo Olympics, would be up to the challenge of taking on players of proven international class.
“I know their mentality,” he said. “They don’t step back from anybody they only know how to look forward and go forward, and it doesn’t matter who’s in front of them.”
Ryan said he had not considered joining the captains of seven European nations, whose plan to wear a “One Love” armband during matches was ditched on Monday after FIFA threatened them with sanctions.
The Socceroos players criticized Qatar’s record on human rights and same-sex relationships in a video released last month.
The World Cup defending champions
Nothing is going to disrupt France in their opening World Cup game against Australia – not Karim Benzema’s absence, and especially not the ‘One Love’ armband row in Qatar, captain Hugo Lloris said on Monday (November 21).
The defending champions start their campaign in Group D on Tuesday, looking to beat the Socceroos just like they did to kick off their 2018 journey in Russia.
They have been hit by a series of injuries, which ruled key midfielders Ngolo Kante and Paul Pogba, and most recently Ballon d’Or winner Benzema, who left the squad in the early hours of Sunday (November 20) after withdrawing with a thigh injury, and centre back Presnel Kimpembe.
“We still believe in our chances, in our squad. The last-minute withdrawals, especially Karim’s, did not help,” Lloris told a news conference.
“But I want to think that the team will move on.”
Asked whether new leaders are emerging with the absence of key players like Pogba and Benzema, coach Didier Deschamps said many are naturals at encouraging the group, but leadership “doesn’t happen from one day to the next.”
Several teams – England, Wales, Belgium, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Germany, and Denmark – had planned to wear the One Love armband against any form but, in a joint statement, backed down hours before England’s opening game against Iran on Monday.
According to FIFA rules, team equipment must not have any political, religious, or personal slogans, statements, or images, and during FIFA Final Competitions, the captain of each team “must wear the captain’s armband provided by FIFA”.
France had not planned any action, staying clear from controversy.
“FIFA organises the competition and it sets a framework, rules. Us players are here to play football and represent our country on a sporting level. I prefer to stay in my framework, that of a player and competitor,” Lloris said.
The defending champions have exited the World Cup at the end of the group phase in four of the last five editions.
“The first game is always extremely important to launch the competition. And obviously, as defending champions, the expectations are even higher for us,” Lloris said.
Deschamps needs to reshuffle his attacking line in the absence of Benzema, with veteran Olivier Giroud likely to start as a lone forward.
The 36-year-old has long been underestimated as he does not have the brilliance of Kylian Mbappe or Benzema, but he has proved reliable and is only two shy of Thierry Henry’s all-time goal-scoring record of 51 with ‘Les Bleus’.
“Lately he’s been adored. France is delighted, I’m delighted and so is Olivier,” Deschamps said of the AC Milan forward with a grinding smile.
At the back, Deschamps will be able to rely on centre-back Raphael Varane, who he says has shaken off a hamstring injury that had prevented him from training with the team last week.
