In the early morning of November 27, Beijing time, the French team beat Denmark 2-1 in the second round of Group D of the Qatar World Cup, becoming the first team in this World Cup! In fact, before the match against the Danish team, the French team encountered a "fright scene" in the hotel where they stayed.
France players celebrate victory according to IC photo
According to RMC, at about 3 a.m. local time on Friday, the fire alarm of the hotel where the French team was located suddenly sounded, causing the sleeping players to be woken up. Although it was a false alarm, the French media was generally worried that it would affect the match between the French players and the Danish team, after all, the players need to get a good rest after high-intensity games and training, and it is not a good thing to be woken up by an alarm in their sleep.
And this is not the first "fire alarm" encountered by the teams participating in the Qatar World Cup. At about 2:30 p.m. local time on November 20, a fire alarm sounded at the hotel where the Ghana team was staying, and then all guests, including the entire Ghanaian team, were evacuated from the hotel building. After the local Qatari fire brigade arrived, after a 45-minute inspection, it was judged that it was a fire alarm and the hotel was safe. Ghana then lost the first round of the group stage, losing 3-2 to Portugal. Fortunately, what happened to the Ghanaian team did not appear to repeat itself with the French team.
Mbappe scored the goal according to IC photo
The French staff received good news before the match against Denmark, and after consultation between the French Football Federation and the French players, decided to jointly sponsor the family members of the staff to reunite and watch the match in Qatar, but only if the team reached the round of 16. Now that the French team has qualified early, the staff should be relieved.
On the opening day of the World Cup, the French "Team Newspaper" disclosed that the French Football Association was unwilling to bear the cost of the families of players and team staff to watch the World Cup in Qatar. The French Football Federation's reason is that they need to cut expenses due to the impact of the new crown epidemic, so they cannot organize players and staff families to accompany the team, which has also caused widespread opposition from the French international.
At the World Cup in Russia four years ago, the French football team agreed to pay for the travel of the families of the players from the third group stage until the end of the tournament. At that time, the French Football Federation organized the family and friends of the players to travel from Paris to Russia on a private plane, and after the French team advanced to the round of 16, the players were able to briefly reunite with their families. This is also believed to guarantee the player's form and fighting spirit, allowing France to be crowned World Cup champions again in Russia.
France players celebrate victory according to IC photo
But in this World Cup, although manager Deschamps allowed the team to meet with his family after qualifying for the knockout rounds, the French Football Federation was unwilling to bear this expense because of the throttling. They said they would arrange two staff members to take care of the logistics of players and their families in Qatar, including visas and round-trip transportation, but all the expenses of these family members to Qatar would be paid out of their own pockets. But the decision drew opposition from the French players, who were still negotiating with the French Football Federation ahead of the World Cup.
According to the latest report from the "La Liga newspaper", after France's 4-1 victory over Australia in their first game, the French Football Association made the decision that if the team advances to the last 16, they will join the French internationals in sponsoring the team's staff families to travel to Qatar. The report did not mention the cost of the players' families, but most likely the players themselves will have to bear them. In fact, this expenditure is nothing for the well-paid French players. The team staff is different, they have limited income, the "team newspaper" said that the family members of the staff want to come to Qatar to watch the game, each need to pay about 2,000 euros (about 14,900 yuan).
Therefore, the result of the final negotiations between the two parties was that the families of the staff, co-sponsored by the French Football Federation and the French international, came to Qatar to watch the tournament in the knockout stage. In this way, if the team wants to see their families during the World Cup, they need to work hard to ensure that the team qualifies. As can be seen from the match against Denmark, the French players have remained in good condition, unaffected by the fire alarm the day before, which should also be the concerted efforts of the staff to ensure their logistics.
Red Star News Reporter Jiang Shan Intern Hu Lanyue
Editor-in-charge Ren Zhijiang Editor Ou Peng
(Download Red Star News, there is a prize!) ）