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Former France international Jerome Rothen has blasted national team manager Didier Deschamps for the side's poor performance in this month's UEFA Nations League fixtures.
Les Blues saw their defense of the title they won just seven months ago end in a whimper after failing to win any of their four group matches.
Two defeats and draws each have left France at the bottom of Group A1 in League A with just two points as their chances of reaching the knockout stages are mathematically over.
Their abject displays have raised questions over their ability to retain the World Cup title in Qatar a few months from now.
The Blues are looking to become the first team since Brazil in 1962 to win the competition in back-to-back editions but must regroup and find their best form for that to happen.
Rothen, who earned 13 caps with France, has blamed Deschamps for the national team's decline, calling him out for jumping to decisions too quickly without considerable thought.
Speaking to Wettbasis, he said (via Goal):
“I blame him for a lot of the choices made during the four meetings but also before. The fact that he opted for a three-man defense in the 2021 Nations League finals was a brave choice but a good one. With this system of play, the France team has shown great things."
He added:
“So why is Deschamps going back to a four-man defense after just one poor performance? He gets himself in trouble as well as his players."
The PSG and AS Monaco star further called Deschamps out for questionable positioning of some players and is worried about their World Cup prospects.
“He puts some players in bad positions. The most obvious example is with Christopher Nkunku. He had an exceptional season with RB Leipzig in a central position but Deschamps positioned him on the right wing. I have the impression that we have to start almost from scratch a few weeks before the start of the World Cup."
France begin their World Cup title defense against Australia on November 22.
France aren't World Cup favorites on this form
Les Blues are packed to the rafters with quality but their collective form has visibly declined since last year.
The world champions were knocked out in the round of 16 at Euro 2020. While they managed to redeem themselves by winning the Nations League a few months later, France relinquished their crown in absolutely limp fashion.
It will be interesting to see how Deschamps and co. bounce back from this.
