At this rate, Didier Deschamps will have nightmares thinking about the alignment of his defense. In a system with three defenders or four (the choice made by the coach on Monday June 6), the France team fails to manage its back and the spaces it can leave there. It happened twice against Denmark, and once again against Croatia on Monday, in the draw conceded by the Blues at the Poljud stadium in Split (1-1), in the League of Nations.
As the Blues headed for a small arms victory after the goal of Adrien Rabiot (52nd), Benjamin Pavard failed twice on the same action, with two bad alignments in a row. In the wake of the action, Jonathan Clauss, barely entering the game, mowed down Andrej Kramaric in the box and the latter converted the penalty (83rd). Panic then took over at the end of the game in the French defense, which finally came out well with a draw.
From this match, Deschamps will have many elements to take away, such as the inability of his team, which could turn into a bad habit, to maintain their lead in the score. As against Denmark, the Blues scored on the return from the locker room after a very lackluster first period. On a skilful game with his back to goal, Wissam Ben Yedder found a left winger Adrien Rabiot, an unusual position for the midfielder and a consequence of the change to 4-2-3-1.
Defensively, the system tested during the World Cup in Russia did not really convince. The Blues have passed near the correctional on several occasions. Without a return from Presnel Kimpembe in front of Ante Budimir (18th) and two saves from Mike Maignan (71st, 87th), they could have lost for the first time in their history against the Croats. The clumsiness of Luka Sucic in additional time in front of the French goals was the last heat stroke of the evening (90 + 2nd).
In attack, the Blues have a new had too few ideas. A good Christopher Nkunku thought for a moment to open the scoring and his counter for the Blues, but his goal was refused for an offside position (31st). A few minutes later, Moussa Diaby, in a good position, came up against Dominik Livakovic (39′), before the latter deflected a long shot from Aurélien Tchouaméni (40′). In the second period, Antoine Griezmann, who came into play in the 62nd minute, tried it twice on the counterattack, without success (76th, 88th). It’s too little for a world champion team which had to react after its defeat against Denmark.
When the Kylian Mbappé-Karim Benzema duo is absent, like this evening, or out of inspiration, the fallback solutions are promising for the future but not yet decisive at the international level. It must be said that by making ten changes in his starting 11 compared to Denmark, for the second time in ten years, Deschamps has set up a team unaccustomed to the games of the selections (16 capes on average per player at the kick of ‘mail).
This inexperience was blatant on several sequences, with ball losses and gross technical errors against an opponent much more biting at impact. The Blues could have sunk against the 33,869 spectators of a Poljud stadium which made noise, and which could even have been much more boiling if Torcida, the group of ultras from Hajduk Split, the local club, did not sulk not the Croatian federation and the national team. But it is also by experiencing this type of encounter that new internationals will continue to grow.
Since the start of the rally, Deschamps has explained that he wants to see as many players as possible in the four games in June. He now has something to think about, with more or less encouraging answers depending on the position. On the other hand, France has lost the sense of manner acquired in recent months and already finds itself in a very complicated position in this League of Nations, a competition which it won last October. To keep her title, she will almost necessarily have to win Friday in Vienna, against Austria.