the shock of the Messi-Modric Ballons d’Or, the French at rest and the Moroccans in care… The news of this December 13 – Liberation

Find the main information of the day on the FIFA World Cup in Qatar on the 24th day of the competition.

The 2022 Men’s Football World Cup gets tough on Tuesday. The first semi-final of the competition begins at 8 p.m. with the match between Argentina and Croatia. On Wednesday, France will face the Atlas Lions of Morocco.

The match of the day

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No innovation in the Argentinian and Croatian 11

Why change winning teams? The coaches of the two teams have planned to keep the majority of their holders from previous matches. On the Argentinian side, Lionel Scaloni should leave Martinez in goal, with a defense of four Molina, Romero, Otamendi, Tagliafico. In the middle, Mac Allister, Enzo Fernández and De Paul will be accompanied by Di Maria or Paredes. Up front, Messi will support Álvarez. Among the Croats, Zlatko Dalic trusts goalkeeper Livakovic, decisive against Brazil in the previous match. In front of him, Juranovic, Lovren, Gvardiol and Sosa will be lined up in defense. In the middle, will reign the trident Kovacic, Brozovic and Modric. In front, Pasalic or Petkovic will support Kramaric and the flamboyant winger Perisic. The opposition between the two Ballons d’Or over 35 years old – Messi and Modric – will therefore take place.

Croatia in the final according to… a Croatian gibbon

One can doubt his objectivity, but his previous prophecies speak for him. Kent, the leader of a group of gibbons at Zagreb Zoo, predicted a victory for Croatia over Argentina on Tuesday night in the semi-finals. The 25-year-old monkey chose to eat fruit placed in a cardboard box stamped with the Croatian flag, neglecting the one in the colors of Argentina. The gibbon also sat in this box, a gesture presented as a sign of the solidity of its forecast. “I can’t remember another time when Kent was so confident in predicting victory.” Croatian, ventured the boss of the Zagreb zoo, Damir Skok. The primate had already predicted – except the defeat against France in the final – the results of the national team at the 2018 World Cup in Russia. And since the start of the World Cup in Qatar, he has only been wrong once, during the Vatreni match against Morocco in the group stage; he had predicted a victory for Croatia when the match ended in a draw (0-0).

Tchouaméni and Upamecano at rest with the Blues

After three weeks of competition, the bodies are put to the test. During Monday’s training in Doha, two players from the France team remained in care. Defender Dayot Upamecano and midfielder Aurélien Tchouaméni, two holders of the France team, did not take part in collective training. According to the daily The teamthe midfielder reportedly suffered a calf blow against England on Saturday in the quarter-finals and the defender reportedly has a sore throat.

Regragui remains confident in his injuries

If the Atlas Lions deplore “many injuries” the team “recover”, assured coach Walid Regragui this Tuesday at a press conference, on the eve of the semi-final against France. “We always wait for the last minute to make a decision, no one is ‘out’, no one is ”in””, assured Regragui. “We will put the best team possible, with 100% players”. The central hinge Nayef Aguerd-Romain Saïss in particular is uncertain for this first semi-final of an African selection in the World Cup. The first missed the quarter-final against Portugal (1-0), replaced by Jawad el Yamiq, the second, captain, went out on a stretcher after 55 minutes.

Deschamps prepared for the enthusiasm of Moroccan fans

Asked this Tuesday at a press conference, Didier Deschamps praised the vocal power of Morocco fans in the stands of Qatar: “They have a popular fervor for them. It makes a lot of noise, I could hear it. But the coach of the Blues will not be caught off guard on Wednesday evening: “My observers told me, my players are warned. It’s part of the context. Knowing beforehand is always better. And it’s not tomorrow that it will be lower. Preparing for a match also means preparing for the environment. Captain Hugo Lloris already has ears ringing: “We will have to be ready, it will make noise, we will not be able to hear each other”.

The quote

France remains the big favourite.

— Ronaldo, the real, the Brazilian

Macron, a footballer like any other?

After taunting those who politicized this sport, the President hastened to join Doha to attend France-Morocco, in the semi-final of the World Cup. Should we depoliticize football? The question is okay, actually. Allow us to return it to you: shouldn’t we, rather than vainly want to depoliticize football, de-footballize politics? The tribune of Thibaud Leplat.

Pelé’s health ‘continues to improve’

Brazil is eliminated from the competition, but King Pelé is a little better. “No release forecast has been established”most “the patient continues to show an improvement in his clinical condition, in particular with regard to the respiratory infection” for which he was also treated, reassures the Albert Einstein Hospital in Sao Paulo in its latest medical bulletin. Hospitalized for two weeks, the legendary number 10 and his health keep Brazil and football fans in suspense. Aged 82, he continues to be treated “in a normal room” – and not in an intensive care unit – and its “vital signs are stable”says the hospital.

The side step: mixed football, a feminist revolution of the round ball

Since 2019 in Paris, the only “real mixed” football championship in France has attracted more and more players, eager to break the gender barrier in sport and to reclaim the fields from which women are excluded. With its simple rule – as many women as men on the field – the first and only championship of this type has rallied eight Parisian teams since its launch by the Sports and Gymnastics Federation of Labor (FSGT). “We have competitions open to everyone, but in fact, there are almost only men, explains Marie-Lyse Lounès, responsible for the competition. The real mix is ​​to impose that there are, here in matches which are played with seven players, at least three players of each gender. If a team does not respect it, it is forfeited. Our report.