Griezmann

AL KHOR, Qatar — (AP) — Darting runs. Key tackles. Timely interceptions. Calming passes. Antoine Griezmann did it all for France on Wednesday, ...

The French followed that with the World Cup title in 2018, and they'll get a chance to win a third in their history on Sunday against Argentina at Lusail Stadium. The spine of this team — goalkeeper Hugo Lloris, center back Raphaël Varane, Griezmann and striker Olivier Giroud — has been a constant presence. When Morocco put France under severe pressure in the second half, Griezmann responded with tackles, headers and blocks. Pogba and N'Golo Kante, a relentless ball recovery specialist, were the midfield heart of France's last title-winning team and their absences in Qatar because of injury put more responsibility on the 31-year-old Griezmann. Theo Hernández was the eventual beneficiary in the fifth minute. And he will now try to deny Lionel Messi, his former teammate at Barcelona, of a first World Cup title on Sunday.

Greizmann has assured fans that France 'will be prepared' as they face an in-form Messi and a well-supported Argentina.

Messi is the leading goalscorer this tournament along with France’s Kylian Mbappe with five goals. After the semifinal win, however, Griezmann urged his team to not become complacent. Injuries to Paul Pogba and N’golo Kante before the tournament meant Griezmann, who usually plays as a forward, was forced to drop into midfield – something he has done with aplomb – racking up three vital assists in the knockout stages.

Goals from Theo Hernandez and substitute Randal Kolo Muani made the difference for France but it was Griezmann's combination of graft and guile at both ends of ...

I'm trying to keep my feet on the ground, remain composed, focus on recovery and prepare for Sunday's match." Catch the 2022 FIFA World Cup on SuperSport in 13 languages. We know they'll have a lot of support in the crowd. "Scoring an early goal made things easier for us as well and the second goal made it more comfortable for us. "Any team with Messi is a different proposition. "I feel good in my legs, in my mind...

Though the plaudits for France reaching a second successive World Cup final have been directed towards attackers such as Kylian Mbappe and Olivier Giroud, ...

I’m trying to keep my feet on the ground, remain composed, focus on recovery and prepare for Sunday’s match.” Reuters/DM We know they’ll have a lot of support in the crowd. “Any team with Messi is a different proposition. I try to help the team as much as possible, as always,” Griezmann said. It was a tough game that came down to small details. The work I did on vacation and later with Atleti did me good, it was what I needed.

Four and a half years on from beating Croatia to win their second world title, Didier Deschamps' side are reaching another final by seeing off spirited ...

"We wanted to keep their dream alive. "We have seen Argentina play, we know how they play. We will be well prepared." "We have given a good image of Morocco and a good image of African football." "We have seen practically all of their matches at this World Cup. "Any team with Messi in is a totally different proposition."

Darting runs. Key tackles. Timely interceptions. Calming passes. Antoine Griezmann did it all for France on Wednesday, and now he's going to his second ...

The French followed that with the World Cup title in 2018, and they’ll get a chance to win a third in their history on Sunday against Argentina at Lusail Stadium. When Morocco put France under severe pressure in the second half, Griezmann responded with tackles, headers and blocks. And he will now try to deny Lionel Messi, his former teammate at Barcelona, of a first World Cup title on Sunday.

When the coronavirus pandemic subsided sufficiently for Barcelona to return to training in May 2020, there was a surprise in store for French international ...

Messi left Barcelona in 2021 and then it really was other factors impeding Griezmann making it at the club. It was a fairly lame attempt at showmanship and it was not repeated. Sergio Busquets was already fading, Frenkie de Jong had still not adapted, and it was clear Miralem Pjanic was not the solution. Beyond Suarez and Arturo Vidal, Messi had no deep friendship with anyone at the club post-Neymar so Griezmann was no outlier in that sense. Griezmann lacked the pace and direct running to open space up for the other two. It was the kind of thing the Argentine could have changed if he wanted to.