For someone “who lives, eats and sleeps football”, the situation could have been difficult. In Qatar, Matteo Guendouzi saw from the bench the holders ensure in two games the qualification of the French team for the round of 16 of this World Cup. For the moment, he was entitled to the meetings behind closed doors the next day against the local formations (with a goal against Al-Ahly, Monday) and has a passage in press conference during the first week of competition. On this occasion, the midfielder showed a broad smile. “I’m ready no matter what I’m using. I will be ready when [Didier Deschamps] will call on me”announced the Olympique de Marseille player, an example of a France group that “live well”. Thank you, victory.
The midfielder position being the most energy-intensive, the coach planned to rest Adrien Rabiot, Aurélien Tchouaméni and Antoine Griezmann against Tunisia, for a third meeting almost without challenge, Wednesday, November 30. And, to believe information from The TeamYoussouf Fofana and Matteo Guendouzi would be in the small papers of the coach to start on the lawn of the Education City stadium.
With the noisy support of many Tunisian supporters, Guendouzi will have to force his voice to be heard. A habit when you have the Vélodrome stadium as your garden. In Marseille for two seasons, the child of Bazemont (Yvelines) is a leader by deeds, but also by word. The boy, with a strong character, saw the “200% matches” and “is never lukewarm”, testifies his former coach with the Hopes, Sylvain Rippoll. “I always talked a lot on the pitch. There are a lot of emotions going through mehe told the Worldon the eve of flying to Qatar. But, with maturity, I learned to put a little more forms with the adversaries and the referees. »
Forced to “grow faster”
Matteo Guendouzi is a young father and, at only 23, he already speaks of his youth as a distant memory, with his mistakes sometimes and a little nostalgia. “High level sport forces you to grow faster, it leaves you no choicehe said. I got an apartment at 18, a good salary. I had to behave like an adult, do not do anything. »
At the time, this former karate champion played for FC Lorient, which had just been relegated to Ligue 2. From his years of training in Morbihan, he remembered his meeting with the director of the center: Régis Le Bris. The current Hake coach likes to tickle the intellectual curiosity of his players and encourage them to criticize themselves. A click for the young Guendouzi. “He helped me understand what I was doing on the pitch. At 16, we’re not too into video, but with him, I did a lot of it and I learned to analyze my performance. »
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