The Atlético Madrid striker announced on Monday that he was retiring from international football.
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A decade in Blue. At 33, Antoine Griezmann announced, Monday September 30, that he will no longer wear the Blues tunic, after more than ten years of very good and very loyal service. The opportunity for franceinfo: sport to look back on six dates which marked the adventure of “Grizou” with the French football team.
March 5, 2014: the first selection
Antoine Griezmann was called up for the first time at the end of February 2014 by Didier Deschamps for a friendly match against the Netherlands (2-0). A selection that he owes in part to the lifting of his suspension by the French Football Federation (FFF), for an unauthorized night trip to a nightclub, while he was with the Espoirs. Scrutinized by the staff of the France team for some time, the 23-year-old player then brought joy to Real Sociedad.
And this Wednesday March 5 sounds like a little revenge for the one who was snubbed by certain French clubs because of his small size. Didier Deschamps does not hesitate to start him straight away. His performance is not dazzling, but the player is already making an appointment. “I know my potential, I can do much betterhe confided after the match. A first selection is not a match like any other. I had 10-15 minutes where I had a little trouble getting into the game, but after that it got better and better. If I have the chance to come back, I will give even more.”
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July 7, 2016: Euro 2016, its Euro
First major competition in Blue and first final. France was beaten in the final match by Portugal (1-0), but Antoine Griezmann made a very strong impression. With six goals scored and two assists on the clock, the native of Mâcon was named player of the competition, ahead of a certain Cristiano Ronaldo.
But if we have to remember his best match during this Euro, it will undoubtedly be that of the semi-final. On July 7, 2016, the French team faced a big player: Germany, the reigning world champion. Heroic that evening, number 7 opened the scoring with a penalty in added time of the first period and doubled the lead 15 minutes from the end of the match. In addition to sending France to the final, he became the second highest scorer in the history of a Euro behind Michel Platini, who scored nine in 1984.
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July 15, 2018: Griezmann the essential
Twenty years after the Blues’ coronation against Brazil, the French team is once again world champion, this time against Croatia (4-2), in Russia. Antoine Griezmann has not scored a double like Zidane before, but he alone was involved in three of the four goals scored by the Blues in this final.
He first leads the way on a free kick deflected by Mario Mandzukic in the 18th minute of play. He restarted the Blues on a penalty before the break. Then at the hour mark, with his back to goal, rather than turning around and shooting, the French number 7, who places the collective above all else, chooses to serve Paul Pogba. Rightly, the midfielder scored the third French goal. France wins 4-2 and Antoine Griezmann lifts the World Cup.
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March 2023: the disappointment of the vice-captaincy
After the 2022 World Cup and the international retirement of Hugo Lloris, the question of the captain’s armband arises for Didier Deschamps. The Blues coach decides in March 2023 in favor of Kylian Mbappé and inducts Antoine Griezmann as vice-captain. A decision that number 7 has difficulty digesting, he confided at the time in the Téléfoot show: “It was hard, difficult. I’m 32 years old, even if I still have the canes, I’m still at the end. I had one or two days to digest badly.”
The Colchonero pulls himself together and puts the French team over his moods: “When I’m on the pitch, I’m happy, that’s what matters most to me. Now, I’m completely with Kylian who is our captain. I’m not going to change anything, because that’s how I am.”
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March 23, 2024: injury and first non-selection in seven years
Antoine Griezmann is also a record for longevity in the French team. His right ankle weakened after a sprain, the best passer in the history of the Blues must give up the Blue tunic for the first time in seven years. The Madrilenian therefore remains on a series of 84 matches in a row since 2017, a record.
“With Antoine’s qualities in his register, we will not be able to find a player with his characteristics. If he has this record of consecutive matches, it is because he has taken up a lot of space. When we know its influence, replacement position for position is impossible or very, very difficult. We will arrange it differently”, Didier Deschamps then analyzed at a press conference. The Blues lost this friendly match against Germany 2-0, before beating Chile (3-2).
July 9, 2024: Griezmann on the bench against Spain
Wandered from position to position during the Euro in Germany, Antoine Griezmann spent a few matches on the bench. First against Poland, during the third group match, then in the quarter-finals, especially against Spain, their second country, in the semi-final of the competition. The Blues coach chooses to start Ousmane Dembélé in his place.
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This is the first time since the 2014 World Cup that the vice-captain is not lined up for a knockout match for the France team. “Grizou” ended up entering on the hour mark to the right of the attack. But France cannot find the solution and loses 2-1.