“Football is going to explode”, “If people don’t like what they see, they change the channel”, “30 € is the price of a restaurant on a Friday evening”… The strong sentences of the Football year

Textor attacks PSG and the lack of competition

“Who will be interested in the French championship and watch it on TV if we know who will win? Everyone is fighting for 2^e place, it's the same team that wins every year. (Other clubs are) competing with a government, not with a private company.”
John Textor at a conference on the business of football on February 29. The owner of Olympique Lyonnais railed against the competition imposed by PSG which he considers unfair. OL were ranked 6^e of Ligue 1 after struggling to maintain it in the first part of the season.

Varane: “I damaged my body”

“My 7-year-old son plays football, and I advise him not to head. When I was in pre-training at the Espoirs center in Liévin, I remember that we had training where we only had to do headers, that's not normal. Even if it does not cause immediate trauma, we know that in the long term, repeated shocks are likely to have harmful effects. Personally, I don't know if I will live to be 100, but I know that I have damaged my body.
Raphaël Varane in the columns of The Team on April 2, a few months before announcing his retirement. The 31-year-old defender, world champion with the Blues in 2018, notably played at the 2014 World Cup despite a concussion that occurred a few days earlier.

OM “not for sale”, swears McCourt

“The club is not for sale, I am here for the long term, I am fully involved. Pablo (Longoria) and I talked again about the next steps for the club today, the upcoming investments. No, the club is not for sale.”
Frank McCourt, owner of Olympique de Marseille since 2016, in the columns of Figaro on May 29. The American businessman has often strived to quell rumors of a sale of OM, 8^e of Ligue 1 in 2023-24 after having had three coaches in a single season.

Deschamps responds to “the ch… in Dédé”

«No, it doesn't annoy me at all. This can be pejorative, or sum up my action and that of my staff as just luck. I start from the principle that once it can happen with luck and chance, when it happens again, there is less probability. […] Regarding this pet, I take this with derision and humor, I am a lodger too, you have to accept. I have never had this animal, more dogs in my life. Hope she stays with me for a long time. (laughs)»
Didier Deschamps with the Figaro on June 13. Coach of the Blues since 2012, he responded to a question that Luis Fernandez (1984 European champion) had asked us about the supposed luck that would accompany him since his debut at the head of the France team, particularly during the draws. spell.

Giroud would not even have bet on himself to be the Blues' top scorer

«It's set in stone, even if the future with Kylian (Mbappé) means that it will surpass me. Number 1 in this ranking, it's worth all the gold in the world. It is a source of immense pride and great happiness. When you see the kid that I was, who went through Ligue 2, to Ligue 1 at 24, who would have bet on Olivier Giroud being the top scorer in the history of the Blues? Nobody (laughs). Not even me. My career has exceeded all my expectations. I could never have dreamed of such a destiny.»
Olivier Giroud for Le Figaro on June 16 on his status as top scorer in the history of the France team. Now a Los Angeles FC striker at 37, he said goodbye to the Blues after Euro 2024. On the clock: 137 caps and 57 goals.

“Football will explode,” announces Platini

«Football will explode with the decision of the European Court of Justice, at the end of which Fifa and UEFA no longer have a monopoly on competitions. Quite a few people who are interested in things contact me. Many people who don't like Fifa and UEFA, who know that I don't like them either, call me.»

Michel Platini in an interview with Le Figaro published on June 20. The former No.10 of the Blues, president of UEFA between 2007 and 2015, spoke of his plans for the world of football. The decision he speaks of, also called the “Lassana Diarra affair”, concerned a possible revolution in the player transfer market. In October, the Court ruled that certain FIFA rules violated European Union law.

Deschamps invites the French to “change the channel”

“You are free to comment, to do what you want. It's annoying not to have scored with all the chances we had in the Netherlands match. […] If people don’t like what they see, they change the channel.”

The coach of the French team, Didier Deschamps, in conference on June 24 on the eve of the 3^e Euro 2024 group stage match against Poland. The Blues had two unimpressive matches against Austria (1-0 victory) and the Netherlands (0-0). They will be eliminated at the end of a calming tournament, by Spain in the semi-final (2-1).

Subscription to DAZN, “the price of a restaurant” for Nicollin

“€30 is the price of a restaurant on a Friday evening. So that's one Friday in the month, out of four, where you don't go to a restaurant to pay for your DAZN subscription. This is my comparison. Everything is proportional.”
Laurent Nicollin, president of Montpellier and member of the Board of Directors of the Professional Football League (LFP), to The Team on August 23. The Hérault manager justified the amount to pay to see Ligue 1 almost entirely on the new British platform.

Mbappé doesn't care what people think

“I don’t know what the guys think, I’ve reached a point in my life and my career where I no longer notice. I come, I play. What people think is the least of my worries. We try to give the best of us, out of respect for the French team, the jersey and the logo. In football, you can’t please everyone.”
Kylian Mbappé at a press conference before France-Italy on September 5. The captain of the Blues, then widely criticized for his performances, did everything to appear detached. The discomfort was so deep that he did not take part in the next two meetings of the French team.

Luis Enrique, the misunderstood genius

“I have no intention of explaining my tactics, because you wouldn’t understand them.”
Luis Enrique, coach of Paris Saint-Germain, at the microphone of Canal+ after the defeat against Arsenal in the Champions League on 1^is October (2-0). Bitter and still unpleasant towards journalists, the Spanish coach clarified a few days later: “You don’t know that to explain the tactics it takes 40, 50 or 55 minutes. Tactics only interest you when you lose. When you win, no one cares about tactics…”

Brest already sees itself in the Champions League final

“Let's not forget that we still have Pierre Lees-Melou and Bradley Locko who will return. Warn the opponents: we will have them with us for the final in Munich !»
Gérard Le Saint, co-president of Stade Brestois, at Telegram on October 2. The Finistère club, which was discovering the Champions League, had just crushed Salzburg (0-4) after having already beaten Sturm Graz (2-1). Euphoric, Le Saint joked about the idea of ​​seeing Little Thumb of the C1 heading straight towards the final, scheduled for May 31, 2025 at the Allianz Arena in Munich.

Leonardo laments the disappearance of “creativity”

«Football has become very physical. Too much perhaps. As a Brazilian, but above all a lover of this sport, I see less fantasy, technique and creativity. Today, after a match, we talk to you about who ran the most, who passed the most, who tackled the most… This is not the essence of football from the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. The players are stronger, more physical, faster.»
Leonardo, world champion with Brazil in 1994, former player and sporting director of PSG and AC Milan, in the columns of Figaro on November 5. The 55-year-old Brazilian developed his view on the evolution of football.