“I can understand why people don’t want to come” in France – Israel, said Blues defender Dayot Upamecano on Tuesday when asked about the ultra-security context of a match for which only 20,000 spectators are expected at the Stade de France, this Thursday, November 14 in the League of Nations.
“It’s their choice.added the player to 27 caps. We are going to fight on the pitch and win this match.”. Upamecano does not wish to comment on the advisability of keeping this match at the Stade de France in the context of the war in the Middle East. “I’m just here to play”he commented. But he spoke in favor of “peace” : “Yesterday was November 11. (the Armistice of the War of 14-18). I love peace and I hope that one day we will find it again, in every country. Whatever our religion or where we come from, we want peace”.
Not a match like any other
Also questioned about the heavy context of this meeting, newcomer to the goalkeepers Lucas Chevalier assures that the group “ will try to act as if it was a normal match”even if “It’s not really. We obviously have compassion for what is happening in the Middle East”. “Afterwards, we remain Football players. We will try to ignore it and do our job as best as we can. There is also a sporting objective”he added.
The France team is on the verge of qualifying for the quarter-finals of the Nations League. Some 4,000 police officers and gendarmes, as well as 1,600 security agents, will be mobilized for this meeting, where President Emmanuel Macron is expected.
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Around 20,000 tickets were sold for this match in an enclosure with almost 80,000 seats, according to the French Football Federation (FFF), which specifies that the ticket office remains open.
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