France left Turkey with a narrow 1-0 victory on Friday night, but the first win of Zinédine Zidane’s era was tempered by concern over captain Kylian Mbappé’s injury. Maxence Lacroix, starting in central defence alongside Dayot Upamecano, said the squad had felt the difficulty of playing in a hostile setting before finding a way through.
A first win under Zidane
Lacroix said the players were pleased to begin the new managerial period with a victory, particularly after coping with the atmosphere and pressure of an away match in Turkey.
- France won 1-0 on Friday evening.
- Lacroix was selected at centre-back next to Upamecano.
- The result marked the first France win since Zidane took charge.
- Lacroix described the Turkish venue as a difficult and hostile environment.
The defender felt France could have been more clinical after taking control of key moments. The intention, he said, had been to keep possession and hurt Turkey with the ball, and he believed the visitors had opportunities to score more than once.
Work still to do for the new France setup
Despite the result, Lacroix stressed that the side remain at the beginning of a new project and will need to review and refine certain details in the coming matches.
At half-time, with the score still goalless, Zidane’s instruction was to maintain the same intensity and continue forcing the issue. Lacroix said the coach believed openings would eventually appear.
Turkey later dropped deeper, allowing France to exploit space on the counter-attack and finally make their pressure count.
Mbappé concern shadows the result
The evening was also marked by Mbappé’s injury. Lacroix said the players initially remained focused on the match, but the seriousness of the situation became clearer once they returned to the dressing room.
He underlined Mbappé’s importance to the national team, saying there is an obvious difference when the captain is on the pitch and when he is absent. Lacroix added that the squad wished him a swift recovery.
