According to the latest report by French newspaper Parisian reporter Christophe Berard, the French national team and the French Football Association have clashed in Qatar in the past five weeks.
These days, the partners of French national team coach Didier Deschamps have condemned various financial arbitrations, which have created serious emotions within the team: the French Football Association has not only done nothing to help them, but also caused trouble.
The conflict between the two sides began with the distribution of telephone and SIM cards. Some staff members did not receive any medicines and many had to order them themselves in Doha. Another small cause of annoyance is that before leaving Paris, staff asked that part of the lobby of the Al-Messila hotel be decorated in blue, white and red, especially a fountain with lights, echoing the decorations chosen during the 2018 World Cup in Russia. But the French Football Association refused to pay the compensation, and the owner of the hotel finally decided to pay the bill himself.
When the players of the national team learned that the French Football Association had ordered economy class air tickets for them, the tension between the two sides immediately rose. According to some sources, Deschamps, as head coach, played the role of “lightning rod” in order to protect his team as much as possible, but he continued to struggle between incomprehension and anger over this series of minor setbacks.
With the progress of the World Cup, the misunderstanding between the two sides is getting deeper and deeper. In fact, the French Football Association was not prepared to provide travel convenience to the families of the team’s technical staff, and in the end it was the players who paid for it.
Three days before the final, the Blues learned that the French Football Association had booked cheap return tickets for them, regardless of whether they won or lost. In the face of the protest, the Football Association eventually chartered a plane at Air France, with some members (rather than players) sitting in economy class.
“We have brought millions of euros and world runner-up trophies to the French Football Association, and they are also counting money while deducting funds, torturing members of the national team. This is pathetic. ”
The players are not the only victims of the French Football Association’s “careful planning”, and some French Football Association employees have learned a painful lesson. The two men who came to watch the final found at Doha airport that the flight scheduled for 11:30 in the evening had been cancelled. In the absence of an alternative, they had to spend nearly 24 hours at the airport, and no one thought or was willing to pay for their hotel for one night.
However, No ë l Le Gra ë t, president of the French Football Association, does not seem to be the one targeted by this series of incidents. The Parisian newspaper finally revealed that Florence Hardouin, the “big director” of the French Football Association, became the one who several sources claimed to be responsible. (note: she is also the one who targeted Mbappe and the portrait rights incident.)
It would be surprising if Didier Deschamps did not raise the issue in Thursday’s talks. When it comes to the well-being of the French team, he should ask the French Football Association to be more flexible in its management.