We didn’t think we’d see him again in the selection. He assures him that he has always believed in it despite leaving for Saudi Arabia last summer. “I was aware that it was perhaps going to be more complicated but I had confidence in myself and I knew that if I had a good season, I had a chance of being back”he murmurs in his voice as calm as ever, in contrast to his energy-consuming game.
This Wednesday, N’Golo Kanté will put on a blue tunic for the 54th time against Luxembourg that he has not worn since June 3, 2022 against Denmark. In national football, two years are like decades. Upon reuniting with Clairefontaine, the small-sized midfielder noticed many changes.
After his extra-sporting affairs, Paul Pogba is no longer there. “I wouldn’t say that I miss him on the pitch because I haven’t played again, but the person he is, everything he represented for the group and in the life of the castle, it’s a bit of nostalgia when you pass through the corridors in front of your room.”
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With the international retirement in the meantime of Varane, Lloris and Matuidi combined with the sidelining of “la Pioche”, the Al-Ittihad player was also recalled by Deschamps with a view to Euro 2024 to gain some strength. stripe in the locker room despite his famous discretion. “It’s an experience in addition to being in Saudi Arabia, in another role as an experienced player who must share with the younger Saudi players, who do not have the same background as us. Passing it on to the team is something I learned in Saudi Arabia.”
Observers may have been surprised that the coach called on him again. Undermined by injuries at the end of his adventure at Chelsea, the former Caen player has regained regularity in the Persian Gulf. His 44 matches played erased his last blank season in London (9 matches in 2022-2023).
”I can understand that the supporters of the France team did not follow the journey of N’Golo Kanté who was coming out of a 2022-2023 exercise where he played very little with a serious injury. If that hadn’t been the case, he would have been part of the squad for the World Cup in Doha. He has athletic ability and he has found it again. He had a full season playing a lot of matches”justifies Deschamps.
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His detractors will cite the quality of the championship in which he now plays. Is he at risk of getting injured again playing every three days next month? “We can discuss the specific intensity in Saudi Arabia where the high temperature and humidity lead to second halves where the pace is perhaps a little lower. But he played more than 4,000 minutes, that’s more than 40 matches! I have no doubt about what was his strength”continues the coach.
gullHe played over 4,000 minutes. I have no doubt.”
”It was a good way to get back in good condition and move on, I’m happy to have made this choicepleads the main interested party. It’s a championship with a lot of quality players even if given the conditions, the pace is less sustained than in the Premier League.”
The field will quickly reveal its truth in any case. “I’m almost the same”, he promises. An entire country is hoping to relive, as in 2018, scenes of jubilation on July 14.
