Giroud: Messi is an incredible player, but we will do everything to stop him
Olivier Giroud has said that Lionel Messi is “an incredible player” but that France “will not let him enjoy” the World Cup final because they will “try everything to stop him”.
France beat Morocco 2-0 on Wednesday and will attempt to become the first country to retain the World Cup for 60 years when they take on Argentina, who defeated Croatia to reach the final.
Messi was in sensational form in that match, scoring one goal and assisting two others, and Giroud has said France will work on a special plan with manager Didier Deschamps to stop the Paris Saint-Germain forward.
Giroud told The Athletic: “Messi is an incredible player. But we’re not going to let him enjoy the best night that he can have.
“We want to win this game and the World Cup and we will try everything to stop him.
“There is not only Messi in that team. They have great players who work for the team also. That’s why they are so strong.”
Giroud started the 2018 World Cup final, in which France beat Croatia 4-2, and also the thrilling round of 16 match against Argentina, which they won 4-3.
Messi failed to get on the scoresheet with Giroud saying N’Golo Kante’s performance was one of the main reasons France kept him quiet and won the match.
He added: “I remember in 2018 N’Golo was all the game behind his back.
“This time I don’t know what will be the plan, we will see with the manager.”
Messi and Kylian Mbappe are currently tied with five goals apiece in Qatar — although the veteran has the advantage because he has registered one more assist than his PSG team-mate.
After their win, however, France’s players were keen to point out that Argentina are not solely difficult opponents because of Messi.
Antoine Griezmann said: We’ve seen Argentina play, we know how they play, they are a difficult team to play against and they seem to be on top form.
“There isn’t only Messi, they have a strong side around him. It will be a tough game and they will have a lot of support in the crowd.”
And Aurelien Tchouameni added: “We will have to defend well and we will have to show all our qualities.
“Yes, there’s Lionel Messi, but there are also ten other players next to him who also have a lot of quality, so we’ll have to be ready, well aware of the opportunity we have to make history.”
