World Cup 2022: Didier Deschamps claims England 'do not have any' weaknesses ahead of quarter-final in Qatar
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Published 09/12/2022 at 12:32 GMT
Didier Deschamps has spoken to the media ahead of France's World Cup quarter-final against England on Saturday. The France head coach claims that Gareth Southgate's side have no weaknesses and is wary of the pace which the Three Lions possess. Deschamps also addressed concerns about his side's defensive record, with Les Bleus yet to keep a clean sheet after four matches at the finals.
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Didier Deschamps claims that England do not have any weaknesses ahead of Saturday night’s World Cup quarter-final at Al Bayt Stadium.
The France head coach praised the qualities of Gareth Southgate's side and believes pace is one of their key attributes.
Asked about England’s weaknesses in his pre-match press conference, he replied: "They don't have any. All teams have strengths, not all have many weaknesses, but slightly less strong points.
"England have seen us play four games. At the end of the day, you need to identify areas where you think you can attack them.
“Pace is often one of the keys to the match. When quick, the opponent has less time to be organised. You need more than just pace to score goals. You can stop a lot of things but it's very difficult to stop someone who is very quick, especially in transitions.
"England team very strong in that area though and scored lots of goals with quick counter-attacks. They also have many other qualities in terms of technical ability, capacity to score goals and being dangerous on set pieces. It's not by chance they are facing us in the quarter-finals."
France have yet to keep a clean sheet at this year’s World Cup and their vulnerability from set-pieces has been highlighted as a chink in the reigning champions’ armour. However, Deschamps was keen to refute those suggestions.
"I don't agree set pieces are one of our weaknesses but I'm not here to tick boxes. We have had to focus on certain things and if you need to focus on certain aspects of game where you can make a difference, that's something I add to training sessions.
"We were perhaps stronger on set pieces in other years but we can still show we are dangerous and I think we're stronger in certain areas. Set pieces remain one of the strengths of the England team."
Much of the pre-match focus is understandably on Kylian Mbappe, who leads the way in the golden boot race with five goals.
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His superb brace in the 3-1 win over Poland got tongues wagging even further, and he next faces an intriguing potential battle with Kyle Walker down the left-hand side for France.
While Deschamps emphasised that his team’s chances of success are not solely down to the Paris Saint-Germain man, he stressed that Mbappe’s star quality makes him stand out from the rest.
"England will have prepared for Kylian, but he is in a position to make the difference. We have other players, but Kylian is Kylian and he can make the difference."
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