France is a side featuring a handful of the best players in the world, but it won the World Cup because it played the best team football. And with its 4-2 victory over Croatia in the final, it became a fitting winner, as the most successful sides in Russia 2018 were all built around the collective, rather than star individuals. The trend for modern football punditry and fandom is to speak about the game as though it revolves entirely around its biggest stars.

This World Cup was billed as Cristiano Ronaldo versus Lionel Messi when in reality it had virtually nothing to do with their faux personal battle.

Brazil was supposed to win because of Neymar’s personal redemption narrative, but it didn’t make it past the quarter-finals — and Neymar’s reputation is probably worse off because of his constant play-acting. Some have tried to paint France’s win as a changing of the guard, with Kylian Mbappe the newly minted superstar surely the next guy to feature on the cover of video games as Ronaldo and Messi’s careers fade.

But Mbappe was able to show off his breathtaking talent because his France side, coached by Didier Deschamps, was a much better collective unit than either Argentina or Portugal.

Les Bleus were not always dazzling — though the implication that they were dour and defensive throughout is a simplistic exaggeration — but they were a well-balanced unit with a clear plan…

 

For more information: abc.net.au

By Dan Colasimone

Source Abc.net.au