Didier Deschamps "made the decision not to play" Benjamin Pavard, holder in the first match and substitute in the second, because the defender "is not in a good mood", said the coach after the 1-0 defeat against Tunisia at the end of the first round of the World Cup.
The boss of the France team aligned central defender Axel Disasi as a right-back rather than reviving Pavard, whom he had replaced by Jules Koundé in the second match against Denmark (2-1) after having experienced a "very complicated" against Australia (4-1) at the start of the tournament.
“I made the decision not to play him.
I had several exchanges with him, I consider that he is not in good conditions, in good dispositions”, justified Deschamps in a press conference after the defeat against Tunisia.
“You will say to me: “is it physical, is it the head?
".
Obviously, the first match did not help him.
That's why I made a different choice, ”continued the coach of the reigning world champions.
In Qatar, Deschamps took a group that didn't include upset right-backs.
He has indeed selected Koundé and Pavard who, in Barcelona and Bayern Munich respectively, play in the axis of the defense.