Corinne Deacon: “The list was made in a very natural, very professional way with my two assistants. We spent almost a whole day there, on the choice of players, weighing the pros and cons, if you can put it that way. Above all, we wanted to trust the players with whom we have built this team over the past few months, which has qualified for the next World Cup. We wanted to maintain a certain balance.
“His absence is mainly due to his lack of playing time for several weeks. From the moment when we can no longer judge her level of performance, it tipped the balance towards the choice not to select her.
“That’s a question we asked ourselves. But we have experience. It was also important to regenerate this workforce. This is what we started to do after the 2019 World Cup. There, I think that today we found a certain balance, which we did not want to touch with regard to the girls. who have made the efforts and who have given us satisfaction, both in terms of performance on the pitch and also in group life. And then we have strong individuals in this group, who will lead it and help these young people to integrate well. Everything is very fluid and we are in a good dynamic of victories, after more difficult moments. We are going to have four internships now to refine all this.
“There are some and I will call them during the day, at the latest tomorrow to let them know of my intention to keep them in good shape, in case there are one or more injured people between now and the announcement of the list. official with UEFA. But I can’t tell you their names since I haven’t contacted them yet. In addition, they will have the right to say no and I do not want to create any controversy, so I will keep it internal.
“Already, after his injury yesterday (Sunday evening against Lyon), Marie is fine. I am the first reassured (smile). Compared to 2019 when I hadn’t remembered her, Marie was coming out of a U20 World Cup in 2018 – I don’t know if I can say catastrophic – which had not lived up to her expectations. So, in 2019, it was probably a little early to take her with us. But Marie has this talent, we knew it. She has been performing well in youth teams for a while. Simply, before the 2019 World Cup, it was not performing well and I have no regrets not having taken it. I think that the state of mind that she had at the time would not have served her and would not have served the France team. But I knew that one day Marie would be part of the group for a big competition. In 2019, she dragged the reputation of not performing well in major events. From now on, no one reproaches her anymore and she has established herself as the number 1 striker of the France team. Now, you have to avoid putting too much pressure on your shoulders. I think she’ll do enough on her own. The team just has to work very well around her. Even if we really want her to perform, we also have other assets.
“It was a tough choice for her. But his last performances, and I even want to say his whole last season, were below what we can expect in the France team, but also with his club (Bayern Munich). So, we had to make a choice that I will assume.
“They are two players with very different athletic profiles. Ouleymata is able to take the depth, but also to supplement in the role of the axial attacker. These are the two reasons that convinced us to put it in this list.
“An assessment was made after this competition obviously. On several aspects: sports, off the field, group life… There was a lot of time spent with my deputies in terms of discussions, meetings. Since this World Cup, three years have passed and we have also had time to try several things, to have an evolutionary functioning and today, we have arrived at an organization that works well, whether it is with the players or with the staff. It was important to review certain things in this regard because we cannot ask the players to show strong cohesion if it does not exist in the staff. And then afterwards, quite simply, we have three more years of living together, which means that we know each other better and that today, everything happens more naturally.
“We are aiming for the final, and obviously, if we get there, it will be to win it. I do not envisage failure. We still have time to work, with a stated, collective ambition. Now we know that not everything will come naturally and easily. We will have to go through stages, remaining calm, straight in what we want to do, staying our course.
