Turkey will provide the first test of Zinédine Zidane’s reign as France coach on Friday night, with kick-off scheduled for 20:45. It is a return to difficult ground for Les Bleus, who were beaten 2-0 there seven years ago in one of the bleakest displays of Didier Deschamps’ tenure.
France travelled to Konya on 8 June 2019 as world champions, one year after lifting the World Cup in Russia, for their third Euro 2020 qualifying match. Nine members of the starting line-up had won that tournament, while Kylian Mbappé was already part of the side. Yet the team that had arrived with such status left Anatolia without a shot on target.
Turkey took control through Kaan Ayhan in the 30th minute before Cengiz Ünder, then still some distance from his later spell at Marseille, doubled the advantage ten minutes later. The scoreline could have been heavier without Hugo Lloris, who produced three important saves. Raphaël Varane, Lucas Digne, Paul Pogba and Moussa Sissoko were each judged harshly after the match, while the France captain emerged with greater credit.
A warning from Konya
Deschamps called the performance a “non-match”. Pogba described it as an off day in which even simple passes failed to come off, adding that every Turkish opportunity seemed to end in a goal. France had 63 per cent of possession but created little with it, overwhelmed by an aggressive home side and a crowd of 42,160 that jeered virtually every French touch.
The atmosphere was fierce, although fatigue was also identified as a factor in France’s flat start to the summer international window, which came without a major tournament at its end. The defeat did not ultimately derail their campaign: France finished top of the qualifying group.
But for Zidane and his new staff, Friday’s trip carries an obvious memory. His first night in charge comes in the same country where a decorated French generation once found itself powerless, and where control of the ball counted for nothing without urgency or threat.
