After France’s failure to defend their title, one of the most talked-about events was Oliver Giroud’s substitution in the FIFA World Cup final. In the first 45 minutes, France did not get a single shot on goal, and Deschamps was furious on the sidelines as his team put on their worst game of the competition. Instead of delaying the inclusion of Kolo Muani and Marcus Thuram until halftime, Deschamps substituted Dembele and Giroud in the 40th minute.
Giroud has scored four goals at the FIFA World Cup, including a significant header against England’s team in the quarterfinal. He is one of France’s all-time leading scorers. The 36-year-old was in the greatest form of his career in Qatar, so it was surprising to see him removed with more than half of the FIFA World Cup final still to play.
Later, Kylian Mbappe scored both goals for France to tie the game in the second half and force overtime. However, Les Blues would ultimately lose to Argentina on penalties even with an additional goal for each team in extra time.
Giroud Subbed In The First Half Of The Fifa World Cup Finals 2022
The opening half of France vs. Argentina match did not follow the typical pattern of a World Cup final, which is often a tightly contested match with neither team willing to make any mistakes. Argentina had a commanding lead over France at Lusali Stadium after just 36 minutes, thanks to goals from Angel Di Maria and Lionel Messi.
In the penalty area, Di Maria was brought down by Ousmane Dembele, and Messi calmly converted the resulting penalty kick before Di Maria finished Alexis MacAllister’s superbly weighted ball. The Juventus forward was selected to join Messi and Julian in the front three despite not having started any of his country’s knockout games. Adrien Rabiot, Raphael Varane, and Dayot Upamecano were all in doubt for France’s team; the latter two missed the team’s victory over Morocco in the semifinals, but all three played in the championship game.
Olivier Giroud was also a question mark, and after France’s sluggish start, Didier Deschamps was not ready to wait until halftime to make a significant decision. The fourth official entered the field with the substitution board in the 41st minute and held up the numbers for Dembele and Giroud, who were being replaced by Randal Kolo Muani and Marcus Thuram.
However, Giroud didn’t exactly accept the decision well. Before sitting onto a bench seat, the AC Milan striker hurled his bottle to the ground in a rage. Although Giroud has had a successful tournament, scoring 4 goals, this was a game to forget for the former Chelsea and Arsenal forward. Argentina eventually won on penalties following a 3-3 draw.
Why Was Giroud Subbed In The First Half Of The Fifa World Cup Finals 2022?
Giroud’s early departure from the match could have been due to a knee injury that caused him to miss some of France’s before practices. Dembele, however, had a challenging start to the game as Di Maria caused a number of issues on the French right-hand side. The Barcelona star appeared to be injury-free, but Deschamps’ choice was probably tactical. Due to the double substitution, Kolo Muani and Thuram were moved to the outside, leaving Mbappe in the middle.
The French manager has now explained the reasoning for his substitutions, admitting he had to move quickly to prevent a third goal from being allowed for France. The manager said that he substituted those players so soon because he wasn’t satisfied and thought they could do better.
After France’s defeat to Argentina in the FIFA World Cup final, Didier Deschamps criticized his team’s first-half performance harshly. In his postgame speech, Deschamps gave a brutally honest evaluation of his team’s performance, claiming that France was completely unable to play in the first half.
Following France’s defeat against Argentina in the World Cup final, a French media outlet did not spare Oliver Giroud and Dembele. Dembele gave up a penalty against Argentina, while Giroud hardly touched the ball before being replaced in the first half when France fell down 2-0. In L’Equipe’s post-game player ratings, neither Dembele nor Giroud received a score because the publication felt they were unworthy of such consideration.
Also Read: Why Did Ben White Leave FIFA World Cup 2022?
