Didier Deschamps has never been a manager who flinches when the plan goes awry. At the break in France's opening World Cup qualifier against Senegal,...
Didier Deschamps has never been a manager who flinches when the plan goes awry. At the break in France's opening World Cup qualifier against Senegal, the Les Bleus boss clearly saw something he did not like. A sluggish first half, a Senegal side sitting deep in a compact low block, and a lack of incision in the final third. But the French are not champions for nothing. The tactical tweaks were ruthless and immediate. Within minutes of the restart, the shape shifted. The full backs pushed higher. The midfield began to rotate with more purpose. And then Kylian Mbappé, as he so often does, decided the narrative was his alone.Mbappé's brace not only hauled France to a 3. 1 victory but also saw him surpass a historic milestone. With 58 goals for his country, he now sits alone as France's all time top goalscorer. Think about that for a moment. At just 25 years of age, he has overtaken the legends. His first was a piece of pure transitional play, a burst from deep that left the Senegalese defence scrambling. The second was a demonstration of clinical finishing, a low driven shot that kissed the post on its way in. Senegal, to their credit, had made life uncomfortable in the first half. But Deschamps' half time adjustments exposed the gaps, and France's quality told in the end.Meanwhile, in a parallel fixture that felt like a statement more than a friendly, Lionel Messi produced a hat trick for Argentina against Algeria. And here is where the subplot thickens. Every time Messi delivers a performance of that magnitude, the gaze inevitably shifts to Cristiano Ronaldo. Portugal face DR Congo on Wednesday, and you can bet the pressure is on. Not from the fans or the media, but from the internal furnace that has driven these two titans for two decades. Messi's treble was vintage stuff: a curling free kick, a delicate chip over the keeper, and a penalty smashed with the kind of contempt that only a genius can muster. Argentina looked sharp, fluid, and frighteningly cohesive.So what does this mean for the wider picture France have their swagger back after a nervy opening 45 minutes. Senegal will rue their inability to hold on, but they showed enough to suggest they are no pushovers. As for the GOAT debate, that old chestnut keeps rolling. Messi's hat trick will have been watched closely in the Portuguese camp. Ronaldo, never one to let a rival steal the spotlight, will be itching to respond. Wednesday night in the DR Congo game suddenly feels like it has a little extra spice. Squeaky bum time for the Portuguese management, perhaps. But if there is one thing we know about Ronaldo, it is that he thrives when the stage is set for a reply.From a tactical standpoint, the weekend's matches offered plenty for the purists. France's ability to adapt mid game, Argentina's fluidity in attack, and the looming shadow of a Portugal side under scrutiny. This is why we love international football. It is messy, it is dramatic, and it never fails to serve up a narrative that writes itself.
