It is a very rich, very dense press conference that Antoine Griezmann gave this Friday at the Jassim-bin-Hamad stadium.
A bit like his game since his start at the World Cup, he is good everywhere.
His new role, his special relationship with Didier Deschamps, Euro 2021, Mbappé but also the fight against homophobia… The number 7 of the Blues took his time with the ease that we know him, 48 hours from the eighth final against Poland.
How do you see your new role as torchbearer?
ANTOINE GRIEZMANN
.
There I have three players in front of me that I have to put in the best conditions.
I have more possibilities, more choices.
When I am physically well, my head is much better.
It's easier for me to repeat efforts.
And defensively, as usual, I'm here to help everyone and try to scrape two, three balls.
You feel freer but also more liberated on the pitch.
Do you find that you convey your joie de vivre better?
Being physically very well helps me a lot.
And then, I have zero problems in my private life and in my head.
I had some difficult times at Barcelona.
Last year, it was also complicated when I returned to Atlético.
You had to work and make yourself small.
But gradually, I found myself on the pitch and off it.
I feel very good in the club and in the national team.
I feel that people need me and trust me.
So everything is rolling.
""We saw it, we can lose against any team""
There was
this elimination in eighth at Euro 2021
, the victory in the League of Nations just after… There you come out of a rather convincing first round.
What has changed in a year and a half with the Blues?
And what is the part of the coach in this change?
We were a little too relaxed against Switzerland.
When we were leading 3-1, we thought it was over.
In big competitions, you realize that it is difficult.
There is no easy opponent.
It will be the same against Poland, it is not a foregone conclusion.
We will not have to let go of anything from the 1st to the 90th minute (…) The coach believes in the group a lot.
He gives us, let's say, almost all the powers.
It's up to us to have a good mentality on and off the pitch.
The group lives well, we have a good behavior in training whether it is the eleven or those who are brought back.
The France-Switzerland of the Euro resembles in certain aspects this France-Poland… Does this bring out some ghosts?
Poland is going to be complicated.
There are a lot of changes in the team compared to Switzerland.
We are not in the quarter, there is an 8th to play, we all have to work well before this complicated match.
We have seen it, you can lose against any team.
Now we have to move on, even if it hurts.
We will perhaps remember before the match that there is nothing for granted and that even if you are in front or trailing, we can lose a match at any time.
How different is the Mbappé of 2022 from that of 2018?
It's not the same player and the same personality as now.
We see him a lot more in the group, in training, he brings joy to life.
He knows that he is important and that every gesture, on and off the pitch, will be watched by journalists, fans and also by his teammates.
He is irreproachable (laughs).
THE PARISIAN / ARNAUD JOURNOIS Arnaud Journois
We see you very complicit with him.
Do you agree that your relationship has evolved?
Like I said, we don't have many minutes together, not many practices.
It is difficult to work on complicity.
It comes as the games and years spent together.
There, I play lower to try to find the attackers.
I begin to understand his game, know what he needs, what he wants.
It gets easier over time.
"Every ball, every action, it's like a thank you that I send to him"
How do you view your personal relationship with Didier Deschamps?
I owe him a lot, he was the one who called me.
We never left each other.
I owe him everything in the France team.
I try to do everything so that he continues to trust me.
Every ball, every action, it's like a thank you that I send him, so that he is proud of his number 7.
Is this new positioning your idea?
The coach likes to talk with the players, to know how you feel.
He will always try to find the best solution to find the best balance.
I think we found it there.
He trusts everyone a lot, it's a strength on his part.
We have a group that is aware of it.
And who is behind it.
In 2018, you systematically took set pieces.
Is it as good in 2022 when you pull them?
Yeah afterwards, I'm here if necessary.
Whether it's a free kick, corner, penalty, six yards, I can do it all.
I do what the coach wants.
Are the instructions on the identity of the penalty shooter already defined?
It is very clear on this point.
But we do not give information to Szczęsny, he has already stopped two so if there is a third in front of us, he will be surprised by the shooter.
"I miss that goal but I'm not a player who is going to shoot 50 times a game"
Antoine Griezmann
Do you miss being closer to the goal?
No, I had the opportunities to put one, especially against Denmark where I missed my gesture.
I'm less close to the surface but I think I'm playing good games.
I miss this goal but I am not a player who will shoot 50 times per game.
I don't worry about the goal.
The team needs me at the heart of the game, in this defense-attack relationship.
I'm not going to rack my brains shooting ten times a game.
I'm looking to find Kylian or Ousmane one-on-one, I'm more into that vision than the finish.
Is this your last World Cup with the Blues?
I don't know, it will have to be seen with my performance.
I already heard that it was limited for this World Cup.
I may have gained extra pounds and I could not play the next World Cup.
You have to perform as well at club level.
If my legs follow and my desire and joy of living are still there, we'll see.
«
»
How do you view Lloris as a captain and as a man?
He is a very big person and a very big keeper.
He saved us a lot of times in 2018. He will go down in the history of the France team.
It's nice.
He can be proud of what he is doing.
He is a very good friend, a great comrade, an easy-going person.
Even if he is not very talkative, we really like his presence.
Hugo Lloris (back) with Antoine Griezmann.
Reuters/Hannah McKay
You have taken a stand against homophobia and for human rights.
Is part of you embarrassed to play this World Cup in Qatar, which has been criticized in this area?
A little embarrassed yes and no.
No matter where I am in the world, they know they will always have my support.
I am a footballer, it is my profession, my country calls me to play in a competition, so I come with pride and a lot of desire.
But they have my full respect and support.
70 games in a row with the Blues.
What does this record represent for you?
In the 40th, we made a few foot calls for him to continue to start me (laughs).
It's the relationship I have with the coach and also the chance of being injured outside the selection periods.
It is an immense pride.
I give everything for this jersey and for the coach.
Because without him, there wouldn't be this record.
“Kylian needs to keep his legs fresh for when we attack”
Is your team more offensive than at Euro 2021?
Have you worked on the penalties?
We haven't worked on the penalties yet.
Maybe today or tomorrow when it's behind closed doors (laughs) (…) Maybe there are more offensive players but we need this balance, to be compact when we don't have the ball.
Without a great defense, you don't win the big competitions.
Oliv' (Giroud) and Ousmane (Dembélé) are doing an exceptional job.
Kylian also a little but he has to keep his legs cool for when we attack.
Even if we have offensive players, we must not forget when we do not have the ball.
This will be the key to our future in this competition.
How different is your approach to the World Cup between 2014, 2018 and 2022?
Yes, it's different.
I was talking about it with Mattéo (Guendouzi) and Jordan (Veretout).
The first match, what they felt against Tunisia, I felt it too.
Stress, heavy legs, you make a pass, you don't feel the ball.
Now, over the matches, it's gone, there's nothing left.
But 2014 was complicated.
It wasn't me, it was different.
There is always this little stress and this adrenaline at the World Cup.
Paul Pogba has often been said to be a tournament player.
You too are becoming a major player again in this World Cup after getting a little lost.
How do you transcend yourself for a big event?
There is a lot of envy in these matches.
Afterwards, to say that I got lost is a bit mean and a bit harsh (he smiles, editor's note).
Playing in a major competition is always a little extra, there is this desire to do well.
It's seven games where you have to give everything.
There is no fatigue, you have to give everything for the most beautiful jersey in the world.
You sent a message to Joshua Kimmich
after Germany's elimination
last night.
It's complicated when you come out of a failure, you see everything black, especially when you have the team for it and you've prepared for it.
He was able to celebrate which can be annoying when you are against him but I wanted to show that I am there.
Maybe he really doesn't care (laughs).
But I, too, have experienced this.
So “hang in there” (…) I don't know him personally but he is a colleague by profession.
Get him back to us as soon as possible.
Do you have a message for Pelé?
Pele, what can I say.
Legend.
I have never met him.
I hope one day I can do it.
He is a Brazilian, international legend.
No matter what I say, it won't be on the level.
Even though I haven't seen him perform live, I've seen videos and it's something exceptional.
