Theo Hernandez’s objective against Morocco on Wednesday set France while heading to a second progressive World Cup last. However, if his brother hadn’t been hurt just a few minutes into the tournament, things might have been very different.
In France’s opening 4-1 victory over Australia, Bayern Munich defender Lucas Hernandez tore an anterior cruciate ligament, keeping him out for several months. The injury occurred just days after Les Bleus lost Ballon d’Or winner Karim Benzema to a thigh injury.
Didier Deschamps, the coach of France, had already been without his first-choice midfielders, N’Golo Kante and Paul Pogba.
But for Deschamps, who abandoned his experiment with a three-man defense and switched to a 4-3-3 system just before the World Cup in Qatar, it might have been a blessing in disguise.
Theo is a more natural fit at left back than his brother, who is a left-sided central defender by trade, even though Lucas Hernandez started every game in France’s World Cup-winning campaign in 2018.
Theo Hernandez, who was named to the Serie A team of the season three times, helped AC Milan win the Serie A title for the first time in 11 years last season.
He plays down France’s left side behind Kylian Mbappe and gives the team more attack power; he had two assists in the group stage, but he has also been exposed defensively at times.
The 25-year-old, who had thought about playing for Spain, didn’t make his international debut until September 2021, but he did score the winning goal in his second match.
Because of his brother’s misfortune, he was in and out of the team before getting a chance to play in Qatar.
Hernandez scored in just the fifth minute on Wednesday, getting off the hook after Harry Kane blazed over a penalty he had unnecessarily conceded against England in the previous round.
Quick reactions
Mbappe expertly finished past Yassine Bounou after reacting quickly to a looping deflection from his shot to put France ahead and silence the pro-Morocco crowd.
“I was all by myself. Hernandez stated, “I saw Kylian wanted to shoot, there was a rebound, and I pounced on it to score.“
In the 79th minute, substitute Randal Kolo Muani doubled France’s lead, giving them a welcome cushion.
Deschamps’ team currently gets the opportunity to turn into the first side in quite a while to effectively guard their World Cup title.
Hernandez stated, “I’m proud to have won the game, and it’s a very proud moment to have scored the goal.” We’ve done a great job, and it’s amazing to play
But with Lionel Messi and Argentina waiting for him on Sunday, his job will only get harder.
“It’s a gigantic match. “We’re going to work hard to win the final,” Hernandez said, revealing that his brother had called to congratulate him after the game, watching from Munich.
Argentina is a great team with more than just Messi. They have a lot of players.