Rayan Cherki snaps at question regarding Lucas Digne's mistake
Following France's 2-0 World Cup semi-final defeat to Spain, Rayan Cherki defended team-mate Lucas Digne and hit back at reporters during a heated mixed-zone interview.
Photo: Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0 / Author: Bryan Berlin
France's dreams of reaching the World Cup final were extinguished in a 2-0 semi-final defeat to Spain. The match turned early when Lucas Digne conceded a penalty after a foul on Lamine Yamal, which was converted by Mikel Oyarzabal, before Pedro Porro doubled the lead in the second half.
In the aftermath, Rayan Cherki was pressed by reporters about Digne's state of mind at halftime. The Manchester City player reacted with visible frustration to the line of questioning.
What do you think I'm going to tell you? That he was crying, that we shoved his head in? No. These things happen in the game, it's football. We have to take him with us, and he has to be with us. We were all together. Rayan Cherki
Cherki offered a blunt assessment of France's overall performance, claiming the squad was responsible for their own downfall. "We lost to ourselves," he stated. "The only team capable of eliminating us was ourselves. We were beaten technically, we were beaten tactically, and we were beaten in the duels."
The French squad must now regroup for the third-place play-off on Saturday in Miami. They will face the loser of the England versus Argentina semi-final, an encounter that serves as little consolation for a team that had targeted the trophy.