Ahead of his side’s FIFA World Cup quarterfinal against Morocco, France head coach Didier Deschamps feels totally unbothered by the appointment of Argentinian officials for the match, saying that their opponent is Morocco, not the officials, and he trusts them. In one of the most mouth-watering clashes of the tournament, an unstoppable-looking Kylian Mbappe-led France will take on Morocco, the 2022 semifinalists, the first to finish in the final four by an African nation. Having already eliminated the Netherlands from the tournament during the round of 32 clash on penalties, the Achraf Hakimi-led side aims to do the same to France, although it would not be easy as an attacking line-up of Mbappe, hat-trick hero Ousmane Dembele, assist-machine Michael Olise and Bradley Barcola is extremely dangerous. France has scored 14 goals so far, more than any other team in this tournament.
While the match, a repeat of the 2022 edition semifinal, is an exciting one, one major talking point of the match is the appointment of all-Argentinian officials for the match, including assistants, reserve assistant and fourth official alongside the main on-pitch official Facundo Tello. However, Deschamps does not see any problem with it, saying, as quoted by ESPN, “We have to deal with it. I trust the referees. Our opponent is Morocco, not the referee.”
Both teams have developed a rivalry ever since the Lionel Messi-led side beat France in the 2022 final despite a hat-trick from Kylian Mbappe, and with the form both teams are in, a repeat of the 2022 epic looks like a huge possibility.
The backup goalie Robin Risser also has put his trust in the official, saying that the “certain bitterness” between both teams is a “part of the game”.
“There has been a certain bitterness [between France and Argentina] for a few years now since the last final, but that’s part of the game,” Risser said.
“If these referees are there, it is because they’re up to the level of the competition,” he added.
The officials’ performances have come under the scanner for a massive part of this tournament, most recently in the round of 16 clash between defending champions Argentina and Egypt, which saw the Messi-led side overcome a 2-0 deficit within 13 minutes and seal a quarterfinal. Mostafa Zico, who saw one of his goals disallowed by the VAR for a foul and the team’s head coach, Hossam Hassan, both lashed out at the referees after the match for committing “injustice”, alleging that the tournament is “fixed”.
However, Deschamps has taken a jab at this criticism of officials, saying, “Let us hope our officials are as good as Monsieur Letexier (referee for Argentina-Egypt clash) was.”
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