France winger Ousmane Dembele says his experience of the Qatar World Cup atmosphere can't compare to some of the club venues in which he's played, amid ongoing confusion surrounding stadiums and capacities.
The Barcelona star says he was happy with the French support for Tuesday's 4-1 win over Australia, but clearly didn't think much of what he heard around the stadium as a whole.
Speaking at a press conference on Wednesday he admitted that: "We were happy. It’s not quite the Velodrome [in Marseille] or Borussia Dortmund but we were very happy with the support.
"We went to clap them at the end."
Dembele's claim is the latest to focus on the atmosphere at stadiums in Qatar, with empty seats visible for several matches and official attendances seemingly inflated.
In the official guides for the tournament the capacities of the Al Bayt Stadium in Al Khor and Doha's Lusail Stadium, where the final will be held, were stated as 60,000 and 80,000 respectively, but the official FIFA World Cup website now states them as 68,895 and 88,966.
Gaps in the stands have been visible at several venues, including at the Al Bayt Stadium on Wednesday for the goalless draw between Morocco and Croatia, where it was announced that 59,407 fans were in attendance.
Fans have seemingly been entering stadiums late, with several empty seats visible before the majority are filled in the minutes before kick-off.
Dembele had played for 77 minutes of the reigning champions' win over Australia at the Al Janoub Stadium on Tuesday, impressing on the right hand side of the French attack.
Didier Deschamps' side had remarkably gone 1-0 down to the unfancied Aussies after a goal from Craig Goodwin, but they were to roar back and take the lead by half-time thanks to two quickfire goals.
First Adrien Rabiot rose to head home a cross from Theo Hernandez, who had earlier come on as a substitute for his stricken brother Lucas following a devastating ACL injury.
Rabiot was then involved again as he teed up Olivier Giroud to put the French ahead, with Kylian Mbappe then coming to the party in the second half as the Australians were pinned back in their own half.
Mbappe headed home a cross from Dembele to make it 3-1, and then teed up Giroud for his French record-equalling 51st international goal.
It was eventually a dominant display from the French, but it had been played in a fairly subdued atmosphere despite the best efforts of both sets of fans to make themselves heard.
