French national team coach Zinedine Zidane praised the performance of substitute Michael Olise, after he scored two goals in France's crushing 4-1 victory over Belgium, at the Stade de France, in the fourth round of the first level in the European Nations League.
Zidane said in a press conference after the match: “Olesih, what he did is simply exceptional.” The German Bayern Munich player was one of the stars of the French national team after he entered the field from the bench in the 60th minute. He scored two goals and passed a decisive ball, overturning his country's deficit against Belgium with a goal by Dodi Lukebakio (35).
Zidane added, referring to his first international camp as coach of the French national team, which achieved 3 victories in 4 matches: “This is encouraging, and I am very optimistic about the future. I'm happy with the results, we got 10 points, and apart from the wins and points, the biggest satisfaction is the good work I did with the players and the coaching staff. It was very important that we had 15 days of high quality. There are aspects that need improvement, but this will happen gradually. We can do better, and we will do better.”
The 54-year-old former midfield star only regretted “the poor attacking effectiveness in the last 25-30 metres, as was the case in the other three matches.” He added: “We have to press more inside the penalty area, and involve a larger number of players on the field, to be more effective. But when we tied, the game changed completely. “It is a reward for everyone, and concludes the 15 days with a very positive result.”
In turn, Andy Diouf praised his colleague Oliseh, saying: “He is a player capable of changing the course of matches.” The Italian Inter midfielder, who was rehired by coach Zidane in the left-back position, added: “I knew him before, from the French youth teams. He's a high-caliber player, and we saw that throughout training camp. "He is capable of changing the course of matches."
Goalkeeper Guillaume Rest, who played his first international match with the national team against Belgium and won the silver medal in the Paris Olympics alongside Oliset, expressed the same opinion. “He is a very excellent player,” the Toulouse goalkeeper said with admiration. “He made the difference when he came in, and he gave a great performance, and we are happy to have him join us.”
Lenny Euro, who moved from the France U-21 national team to the first team at the beginning of the training camp to replace the injured Ibrahima Konate, was the most praising Oliseh, who scored 4 goals in 4 matches, in addition to two assists. The English Manchester United defender said: “Honestly, what he offers to the team every time is impressive. I hope it continues like this. "Honestly, with everything he brings to the team, we won't complain, I think."
Former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher believes that Manchester City should face a multi-year penalty for financial irregularities.
An independent committee had convicted Manchester City of violating the rules of the English Premier League, in a strongly worded report issued last week, a decision against which the club filed an appeal.
The committee concluded that the club inflated its revenues by more than 830 million pounds ($1.1 billion) over 9 seasons, while Carragher believes that if the appeal fails, the penalties should reflect the extent of these violations.
In statements by Carragher, reported by the British news agency (PA Media), the former player (48 years old) said: “If people talk about a penalty of deducting 80 or 100 points, this means relegation for only one season and then coming back again.”
The English player added: “I think some players may leave, but others may say: I can handle this for only one year.”
Carragher explained: “But since these violations continued for a long period, I believe that the punishment should extend for several years, from 3 to 5 years, and then the players will leave the club.”
Manchester City returns to competitions this week by facing Liverpool, which is undoubtedly its most prominent competitor for titles over the past decade and a half, in the English Premier League, next Sunday.
Enzo Maresca's team can expect a hostile atmosphere at Anfield, while former Manchester City defender and coach Stuart Pearce believes that the Italian coach should try to exploit this to his advantage.
Pearce said: “The opponent will be fully prepared and motivated for the confrontation, and the atmosphere on the field will be very tense. “It is amazing that the match against Liverpool is this weekend, the atmosphere will be full of energy and excitement.”
Pearce concluded his speech by saying: “So, this atmosphere will motivate everyone against Manchester City, and it must also motivate Manchester City against everyone.”
Everyone was eagerly awaiting Zinedine Zidane's first two weeks at the helm of the France national team after 14 years under the leadership of Didier Deschamps, and the new coach succeeded in passing the period of international matches without any defeat in the European Nations League, with some signs of hope.
The 1998 Ballon d'Or winner became the first France coach to win his first match since Aime Jacquet in 1994, with a 1-0 victory over Turkey, and the first coach to be undefeated in his first four matches since Raymond Domenech in 2004.
After a difficult victory over Türkiye, France defeated Belgium twice and tied 1-1 with Italy on Friday, in Zidane's first home match as coach.
Zidane said in a press conference yesterday, Monday: “We were very good in our matches, although we can always perform better.”
He added: “We achieved this over the course of 15 days, in the first international gathering. This is encouraging and I am very optimistic about what comes next. “We worked really well, and it was important that we put in a real effort over the course of 15 days.”
France suffered from the same problems in its four matches, as it imposed great control, with an average possession rate of 62 percent, but with very few chances created, and a lack of effectiveness in the final third of the field.
Zidane said: “Even if everything we did in the first half did not deserve to be excluded, we lacked effectiveness in the last 30 metres, which also failed us in the previous three matches.”
France played without its captain, Kylian Mbappe, in the last three matches after he was injured after scoring the winning goal against Türkiye, and did not score any goals in the first half during the last eight matches.
But coach Zidane's team showed a strong character, as Michael Olise scored the winning goal in the last moments in Belgium, and substitutes Desiree Doue, Rayyan Chergui and Olisse turned the second match against Belgium upside down in the last 15 minutes.
Zidane said: “I am happy with the reaction of the whole team, and by ending this break in a very good way, I think we deserve this given everything we gave.”
Zidane changed his squad from one match to another, and gave six players the opportunity to make their debut with France: Guillaume Rest, Jeremy Jacquet, Andy Diouf, Lucas da Cunha, Esteban Lipole, and Lenny Euro.
Zidane said: “This was planned during this international break. We played four matches in 15 days, and the players only recently started their season. "And I wanted to see everyone."
Liverpool defender Jacquet and Como midfielder Da Cunha were among the players who emerged as promising elements for the future, while Ousmane Dembélé struggled, and last year's Ballon d'Or winner was unable to leave an impact, whether as a striker or on the right wing.
Oliseh was the team's attacking leader, scoring four goals and providing two assists in four matches.
“What he is doing is simply extraordinary,” Zidane said.
France visits Italy before hosting Türkiye next month, for a chance to qualify for the quarter-finals of the Nations League.
