It was therefore that evening, last September 6, after such a depressing France – Italy at the Parc des Princes (1-3), that Antoine Griezmann said goodbye to the French public. We didn’t really understand at the time why the Mâconnais was so keen to do this tour of the field after the match, alone, when his teammates were already in the locker room, dead of shame.
Three days later, when the Blues recovered against Belgium in Lyon (2-0), he was already almost no longer there. Simple substitute entered eleven minutes from the end in place of Mattéo Guendouzi.
In any case, the heart had to be heavy and the body tired for the international, in love with the Blues like no other, to grab his smartphone yesterday morning to say stop a few days before the announcement of the next list (1), so that he perhaps still had a future and certainly challenges in mind. With 137 caps, he is only eight short of Hugo Lloris’ record (145). And he doesn’t go any further even though the 2026 World Cup in the United States made him dream…
The world champion does not leave angry and his message exudes his sense of collectiveness, this passion for the game and for others. “ Wearing this jersey was an honor and a privilege for me. It’s time for me to make way for the new generation », he writes in particular. He devotes a long section of thanks where Didier Deschamps, whom he had warned before making his decision, is in a good place.
The coach immediately returned the courtesy, expressing his emotion. “ It has often been said that Antoine is my favorite. We had indeed established a very strong relationship, which will remain intact “, he reacted.
In fact, we don’t erase ten years of common adventures and shared glories like that. Antoine Griezmann began his career in Blue on March 5, 2014, with Didier Deschamps, who made him king, custodian of the game, first name on the sheet when putting together the team. His basic man.
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But time is passing for everyone. And at the highest level of competitive sport, even the darlings can fall from the tree. So for Grizou, the end began when the armband was entrusted to Kylian Mbappé at the time of Hugo Lloris’ international retirement. He suffered without saying it, but his eyes began to laugh a little less. And then, last summer at the Euro, his starting status was shattered. He experienced the bench, the questions, the debates about his place on the field. He, the always X factor, the decisive player (44 goals in total and 30 assists, record), the little prince of Euro 2016 (6 goals), the machine of the 2018 World Cup (5 goals), did not arrive more to make the same differences: only one goal in the last 15 matches, two since November 2021.
This is also the observation he made when he returned in September, with a little less taste and desire. We cannot forever be after having been. So we had to stop even if football continues with Atlético de Madrid and undoubtedly a last challenge in the United States next season in Major League Soccer.
(1) Thursday, Didier Deschamps will reveal the list of twenty-three players for the Nations League matches against Israel (October 10) and Belgium (14).
