'If Bored, Watch Something Else' – Deschamps Responds To France's Euro 2024 Criticism

Didier Deschamps remains unfazed by the criticism of France's playing style at Euro 2024. He suggested that those who find Les Bleus' matches boring should simply not watch them. France is gearing up for their fourth semi-final in six tournaments under Deschamps, with Spain as their next opponent for a spot in Sunday's final in Berlin.

Despite reaching the latter stages of another tournament, France has faced harsh criticism for their lacklustre attacking performance. They have scored only four goals in five matches, with two being own goals and two from penalties. This makes them the only team since 1980 to have 50 or more non-penalty shots without scoring any (86).

Kylian Mbappe's penalty against Poland in the group stage remains the only goal scored by a French player so far. Ahead of Tuesday's match against Spain, considered the most dynamic team in the tournament, Deschamps was questioned about the criticism from a Swedish reporter. "If you're bored, watch something else! You don't have to watch us," Deschamps responded.

He added that this year's Euros have been challenging for everyone, with fewer goals scored compared to previous tournaments. "We have the ability to share emotions, to make the French people happy with the results we have been able to achieve, in a complicated period in France," he said. "If the Swedes are bored, it doesn't matter too much to me."

The average number of goals per game at Euro 2024 stands at 2.25 ahead of the semi-finals, making it one of the lowest-scoring tournaments historically. Only five other editions had fewer goals per game: 1968 (1.4), 1980 (1.93), 1996 (2.06), 2016 (2.18), and 1992 (2.13).

Mbappe's disrupted tournament has contributed to France's attacking woes. He missed their second group game due to a broken nose suffered in their opener and has struggled for form since returning.

@FrenchTeam July 8, 2024

Les Bleus are in Munich! #FiersdetreBleus pic.twitter.com/hJD5AYcVAi

— French Team (@FrenchTeam) July 8, 2024

Mbappe's Performance Analysis

At Euro 2020 and Euro 2024 combined, Mbappe has scored just one goal from 34 attempts, resulting in a low conversion rate of 3%. In contrast, he netted 12 times from 39 shots at the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, achieving a conversion rate of 31%.

Deschamps believes Mbappe is improving as the tournament progresses despite his challenges. "We did everything we could to make sure he recovered," Deschamps said about the Real Madrid forward. "I'm convinced that he's been at his best level possible since the start."

"It's not just related to the last game; everything he had before – with the end of the season, a back problem, and trauma – could have ended his tournament," Deschamps continued. "He has a new situation; wearing a mask leads to modified vision."

The coach acknowledged that it was a significant shock they had to digest but expressed confidence that Mbappe would do everything possible to perform at his maximum capacity.