MX23RW : Saturday, November 16 09:48:48| >> :60:2545:2545:

Didier Deschamps: 'Antoine Griezmann is one of the greatest players ever'

Didier Deschamps: 'Antoine Griezmann is one of the greatest players ever'
© Reuters
The Barcelona forward will make his 50th consecutive start for France on Saturday.

France boss Didier Deschamps has described Antoine Griezmann as "one of the greatest players of all time".

Barcelona forward Griezmann, 30, will make his 50th consecutive start for France on Saturday against Hungary in Budapest and his 93rd appearance in total under Deschamps.

"He (will) beat a record, you're right," Deschamps told a press conference.

Griezmann, second right, celebrates France's goal against Germany with his team-mates
Antoine Griezmann, second right, celebrates France's goal against Germany with his team-mates (Matthias Hangst/AP Pool)

"Above and beyond the fact that he's playing in consecutive games, and wonderfully so for him, for all his game-volume, he may not be 20 years old anymore, but he takes very good care of himself.

"He's a professional and he's managed to avoid the different injuries that he could have had. The statistics speak for themselves.

"You can see the influence that he has for the French national team, through the goals that he scores, through his assists.

"If we then add to that the capacity that he has to change the game, to get stuck in when we need to defend when we don't have the ball, he's one of the greatest players of all time, both in Europe and worldwide."

Les Bleus are bidding to emulate their national team's achievements of 1998 and 2000 when Deschamps captained them to both World Cup and Euro finals glory.

They will qualify for the round of 16 if they follow up their opening 1-0 Group F win against Germany with another victory.

"That is a possibility for us and that would be the first objective," Deschamps said. "And then there'll be a third game, but I go step-by-step.

"The first game of the group stages is always important, but it's never decisive and now it's even more important for us to think about our structure, our formation."

Defender Benjamin Pavard is fit to play despite being briefly knocked out during the win against Germany, while Bayern Munich team-mate Lucas Hernandez has recovered from a knock sustained in training.

Deschamps added: "Maybe we'll have the same team as against Germany, maybe we'll have a couple of changes, you'll find out tomorrow."

Hungary were more than a match for Portugal in their opening group game before conceding three late goals and Deschamps hailed the impact of their Italian coach Marco Rossi.

"I must say I'm surprised that he even knows who I am, let alone rates me, but of course, I'm very pleased about that.

"We're talking about the coach who has won the World Cup, someone who has won a great deal and will continue to win trophies.

"That creates expectation. We're well aware of who we're up against. France are clear favourites to win the competition, even though there are five or six teams at a similar level."

Former Brescia defender Rossi labelled France striker Kylian Mbappe as "out of this world".

Rossi added: "We need to produce a perfect performance tomorrow from every perspective. We need to make sure and hope France are off their game, otherwise it will be very difficult."

ID:451897: cacheID:451897:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:7782:
Restore Data
Share this article now:
A general shot of a Premier League football ahead of the Premier League clash between Everton and West Ham United at Goodison Park on October 30, 2016
Read Next:
UEFA happy Benjamin Pavard treatment met concussion protocol
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool119112161528
2Manchester CityMan City117222213923
3Chelsea115422113819
4Arsenal115421812619
5Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest115421510519
6Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton115421915419
7Fulham115331613318
8Newcastle UnitedNewcastle115331311218
9Aston Villa115331717018
10Tottenham HotspurSpurs1151523131016
11Brentford115152222016
12Bournemouth114341515015
13Manchester UnitedMan Utd114341212015
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham113351319-612
15Leicester CityLeicester112451421-710
16Everton112451017-710
17Ipswich TownIpswich111551222-108
18Crystal Palace11146815-77
19Wolverhampton WanderersWolves111371627-116
20Southampton11119721-144


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!