France’s Antoine Griezmann has but to attain as he toils away at this World Cup, however the attacking midfielder couldn’t care much less as he’s having fun with his comeback on the highest degree with the defending champions.
Griezmann, whose job is to hyperlink the midfield and the entrance line in a job the place he defends as a lot as he goes ahead, is a cheerful man on and off the pitch.
Whereas Kylian Mbappe has scored 5 objectives in Qatar to take his general World Cup tally to 9 and Olivier Giroud has surpassed Thierry Henry to grow to be France’s all-time prime scorer with 52 objectives, Griezmann has been slaving away tirelessly within the engine room behind them.
“I had possibilities to attain in opposition to Dennmark however I missed them. Perhaps I’m not as near the field as I was. I’m enjoying good video games,” Griezmann, who has performed a document 71 consecutive video games with Les Bleus, advised reporters.
“I’m nonetheless lacking a purpose however I don’t shoot 50 instances a sport and I’m not obsessing about it. The crew want me in midfield to make the hyperlink between the defence and the assault. I’m very proud and joyful.”
Coach Didier Deschamps saved his religion in Griezmann even when the enjoying was strruggling at Barcelona and bought benched upon his return to Atletico Madrid final yr.
“I owe him all the things, so after I play I play for France, my crew mates, but in addition for the coach,” mentioned Griezmann, who ran at least 11.3 kilometres on Sunday as France beat Poland 3-1 to arrange a quarter-final conflict with England on Saturday.
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“Being effectively bodily helps me loads. There are not any issues in my personal life,” mentioned Griezmann. “In my head I had powerful moments at Barca and final yr after I got here again to Atletico. It was sophisticated, I needed to make myself very small, I needed to discover myself, on and off the pitch.”
Having a super-fit – and joyful – Griezmann has clearly made issues simpler for Deschamps, who has gained 75% of his World Cup video games as a coach.
“Each sport, each transfer, is sort of a thank-you to him. I wish to attempt to do all the things I can to make him happy with his quantity 7,” Griezmann mentioned.
“He’ll at all times attempt to discover the very best resolution for the steadiness of the crew. We discover it, we discovered it, now we have to proceed on that. He trusts everybody, that’s a power of his.”