Even “not afraid”, the Blues? The France team continued to be affected by a viral illness on Friday two days before the boiling World Cup final on Sunday (10 a.m.) against Argentina, with three sick players including vice-captain Raphaël Varane.
After Kingsley Coman, weakened by a “small viral syndrome” since Wednesday, it is the turn of Varane and Ibrahima Konaté, holders in defense in the semi-finals, to join the infirmary.
The hundreds of cameras and photographers who came to immortalize the training of the Blues, Friday at Jassim bin Hamad, could not capture the silhouette of the three patients, officially “spared” according to the Federation.
No official explanation was given on Friday for these three absences, unlike those of Aurélien Tchouaméni and Theo Hernandez, who remained “working indoors” after blows received respectively in the hip and knee, according to the information communicated by the FFF.
In this cloud of uncertainty, a clearing: Adrien Rabiot, ill and forfeited for the semi-final against Morocco (2-0) on Wednesday, made his comeback during a collective session opened the first quarter of an hour at the media.
Thursday, he had already resumed the race on the sidelines of the group. “Back… With a sweater!” “he even joked in a video of the FFF, showing his sweatshirt.
Didier Deschamps will cross his fingers that his other potential starters will be reinstated for Sunday’s grand final at Lusail. And that others do not in turn fall in between.
The hypothesis of a virus circulating among the world champions is no longer in doubt, other players having been sick in recent days. First there was Dayot Upamecano, who remained on the bench in half, then Rabiot and then Coman, who “also felt a little feverish” on Wednesday, according to the coach.
“There is a little flu that is spreading but nothing bad,” substitute striker Randal Kolo Muani told reporters on Friday. “Randal is not a doctor for the France team, we will give you a clarification later”, immediately nuanced the press chief of the Blues.
“Not afraid of the virus”
Varane had a little fever in the night from Thursday to Friday, he is “probably” affected like Konaté by the same illness as Coman earlier, concordant sources close to the Blues told AFP.
These three players “will have indoor activity”, simply communicated the Federation.
The coach will only have one last training session, Saturday (8:30 a.m.) in Doha, to judge the state of his troops before stopping his “eleven” of starters on Sunday.
Before putting on the crampons, Ousmane Dembélé chose humor at a press conference to try to play down the drama.
“We are not afraid of the virus. Dayot and Adrien had a headache, a little stomachache. I made them a little tea with ginger and honey and it was better, ”joked the Barça winger, known to be one of the entertainers of the France group.
Deschamps himself, however, acknowledged that Upamecano had experienced “three complicated days” after the quarter-final won against England (2-1) on Saturday.
“After a day I went to see him with my mask in his room, he was much better. It is solid, we just took precautions, ”said his friend Dembélé, who came like him from Évreux.
Those who are sick stay in their room.
The fear of being contaminated, with the high risk of missing the final, does not paralyze the French, according to the two players sent to the press on Friday.
“The doctors are setting up some sanitary areas, we can’t worry about that, it will be better,” replied Kolo Muani. And the Frankfurt striker develops: “Those who are sick stay in their room, we wash our hands, there is hydroalcoholic gel, we make barrier gestures, we shake hands with our fists, we are very strict about it. »