France-Italy – D. Deschamps: “A burning desire to get past this obstacle”
The quarter-final between FRANCE and ITALY at the Stade de France in SAINT-DENIS, Friday 2 July at 16h30, won’t be the moment to bask in the warmth of friendship…The luck of the draw in these qualifying matches means that players from the same European club side will be facing each other in this 31st FRANCE-ITALY match: the French players Didier DESCHAMPS (7) and Zinedine ZIDANE (10), and the Italian players Angelo DI LIVIO (15) and Moreno TORRICELLI (8) all, in fact, play for Juventus. The nub of this match between brother enemies: a glorious exit from this World Cup, or a place in footballing legend. A moral burden which weighs heavily on the shoulders of Didier DESCHAMPS: “Collectively and individually, we all know each other inside out,” said the captain of the “Blues” during the press conference at Clairefontaine (south-west of PARIS) on I July. ” Our opponents’ strengths and weaknesses are as clear as day to us. But we have a burning desire to get past this obstacle.” Strong words from Didier DESCHAMPS, reflecting the FRANCE team’s determination to win. ” Tactically, the game is going to be very tight. The game will turn on individual feats, and dead ball situations will be of overwhelming importance,” he went on to say, emphasising that the defensive line of his team is every bit as solid as that of the Squadra Azzurra.
A few hours from the kick-off to this historic match, everything is calm at Clairefontaine. The training session on Thursday morning was cancelled because of bad weather – grey skies that actually gave a welcome respite to the players, enabling them to recover further from their exertions against PARAGUAY (1-0) and to familiarise themselves with their next opponents’ game on video. It’s a time for concentration and meditation in Aimé JACQUET’s camp. He has recovered all his players except Christophe DUGARRY and Thierry HENRY, it still being uncertain whether the latter will be playing against ITALY.
“Mentally, the team is fully aware of its potential. There are some top-flight players in both teams’ ranks. The vital difference will lie in the players keeping a cool head and being patient,” says the French coach, confident of the solidarity and concentration of his team. And JACQUET concludes, “My only concern is that the team play to the best of their ability.”