Didier Deschamps, France teammates praise Kingsley Coman’s performance vs. Albania

Kingsley Coman scored twice en route to France’s 4-1 over Albania on Saturday in Euro 2020 qualifying in group H. The result sees them go level on 12 pts at the top of the group along with Turkey after both sides have played 5 qualifiers, though Les Bleus are technically leading the group on goal difference (+12).

Coman was officially named the man of the match in France’s 4-1 win over Albania after grabbing his brace before being replaced in the 77th minute by Nanitamo Ikoné (Lille). Manager Didier Deschamps offered his praise for the winger in the post-match press conference (via L’Equipe):

His match was more like what he has been doing for a year with Bayern Munich. He is more drawn to the goal and decisive. He always had this ability to destabilize the opponent. You have to make sure that nothing happens to him on an athletic level. When he’s like this, it’s hard for the opponent to stop him. It’s nice to see him again at such a level.

Coman’s brace marked his first goals for Les Bleus since their Euro 2016 qualifying campaign. The last time he scored for France was during a 4-2 friendly win over Russia in March of 2016. Coman missed a significant amount of time for France with his ankle injuries, including the painful fate of having to miss out on his teammates’ World Cup triumph in 2018.

Coman’s fellow Bayern Munich contingent of Corentin Tolisso, Lucas Hernández and Benjamin Pavard also started in France’s win over Albania. Tolisso and Pavard played the full 90 minutes while Hernández was subbed off after 80 minutes. Both Tolisso and Pavard recognized how well Coman performed, noting how good he has also been for Bayern this season. Tolisso highlighted his compatriot’s work ethic and how much it’s been paying off (via FootMercato):

I think that Kingsley is on course to move up a level this year. At Bayern, he has become an undisputed starter. I see him in training every day; he’s someone who works extraordinarily hard. He’s been rewarded.

Pavard expressed his delight for his Bayern teammate, especially with all of the injury setbacks he’s had to endure:

I’m very, very happy for Kingsley, because it has never been easy with his injuries. That will give him even more confidence going forward.

Coman himself was humble after the match, emphasizing the teamwork that went into the victory for France (Yahoo Sport!):

It was good on my part, but we played a very good match collectively; we won 4-1 and I’m very happy for the team above all. We put in a lot of effort; that comes from reaching a goal, but the result reflects the physiognomy of the match.

tout. On a fait beaucoup d’effort, ça arrive de prendre un but mais le résultat reflète la physionomie du match”.