Lionel Messi has been warned France will do “everything humanly possible” to stop him emulating Diego Maradona and realising his World Cup dream.
France will meet Argentina in Sunday’s final after beating Morocco 2-0 last night, and Les Bleus’ head coach, Didier Deschamps, says his side are determined to deny Messi the trophy he craves.
Messi is 90 minutes from immortality, as he bids to lead Argentina to their first World Cup triumph since Maradona inspired La Albicelestes to victory at Mexico in 1986.
The 35-year-old has confirmed that Sunday’s showpiece will be his last World Cup match — and France striker Olivier Giroud insists the holders “will not let him enjoy” the occasion, as they bid to become the first team to successfully defend their title since Brazil in 1962.
Asked about the possibility of Messi emulating Maradona, Deschamps said: “We will do everything humanly possible for that not to happen.
“[Messi] is one of the best players in the world, and he has shown that, so of course we are going to try and counter his threat and stop him influencing the game — and Argentina will try and stop the influence of some of my players. At the end of the match, someone is getting a third star on their shirt.”
Giroud said Messi is “an incredible player”, but insists France will “try everything to stop him”.
The former Arsenal and Chelsea striker said: “We want to win this game and the World Cup, and we will try everything to stop him. There is not only Messi in that team. They have great players who work for the team also. That is why they are so strong.”
France beat Argentina 4-3 in the last 16 on their way to winning the World Cup in Russia four years ago. Messi failed to get on the scoresheet that day, with Giroud saying N’Golo Kante’s performance was one of the key reasons France kept him quiet.
Kante is not in the France squad in Qatar due to injury, but France are confident of stopping Messi, who is tied with France forward Kylian Mbappe on five goals in the race for the Golden Boot.
Deschamps said: “This Argentina side is different to the one we played four years ago. We have two sides with great quality and it will be up to key players to make a difference, maybe the team that makes fewest mistakes will win the game.”
France star Antoine Griezmann, who impressed again last night, said: “We have seen Argentina play, we know how they play. They are a difficult team to play against and they seem to be on top form. There is not only Messi, they have a strong side around him. It will be a tough game and they will have a lot of support.”
France midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni added: “We will have to defend well and show all our qualities. Yes, there is Lionel Messi, but there are also 10 other players next to him who also have a lot of quality, so we will have to be ready, well aware of the opportunity we have to make history.”
