On November 19, 2013, the French football team achieved a major feat during the 2014 World Cup qualifiers. Beaten 0-2 four days earlier in Kiev, they overthrew Ukraine in the return play-off (3-0). at the Stade de France, carried by transfigured players and a crazy atmosphere. A memorable match which marked the rebirth of a team destined to conquer the world.
There are evenings like this where the incredible becomes concrete. Where the stars align and miracles happen. Sport offers such moments. He is stingy with them of course, which makes them so precious, so tasty, so unforgettable. Anthology matches, the history of the French football team includes a few. That of November 19, 2013 is one of them.
Jano Rességuié, one of the voices of football in France at the microphone of RMC, will not say the opposite. “ I think about this match every day. At the office, I have a photo of Mamadou Sakho celebrating one of his two goals “, he tells us. Sakho, one of the heroes of this legendary France-Ukraine, we will come back to that. First, to measure the scale of the feat, we must go back to darker times.
It all started like a nightmare…
At the end of 2013, the French team was moribund, after years of post-World Cup 2006 struggles. Orphaned by Zinédine Zidane, led by a lost Raymond Domenech, the selection went from crisis to fiasco: catastrophic Euro 2008, controversy surrounding the hand of Thierry Henry, Zahia affairinternational shame during the South African World Cup with the culmination of Knysna strike…
Then, from 2010 to 2012, Laurent Blanc tried to restart the blue machine, for a half-baked result. After Euro 2012 where the Blues came out in the quarterfinals, the French Football Federation entrusted the keys to Didier Deschamps, with two objectives: to restore the image and qualify France for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.
However, during the qualifiers, the Tricolores fall into Group I with the formidable Spain, reigning world champion and double European champion. La Roja, superior, takes first place, and the French, second, are forced into the play-offs. To hope to see Brazil, they must defeat Ukraine in a double confrontation.
On November 15, 2013, in kyiv, the first leg turned into a cataclysm. The Blues stutter, the Ukrainians score twice and Laurent Koscielny loses his nerve and is sent off. Beaten 0-2, France is then very far from the World Cup. No selection has overcome such a handicap in the play-offs. “ We then wonder how it is possible to hope to qualify. Even Deschamps suggests that it’s not going to be simple », remembers Jano.
Sakho and Benzema, like in a dream
Four days later, the French team met its destiny in Saint-Denis for the return leg. This will turn out “ a crazy evening », laughs today the follower of the Blues. For this double or nothing match, Didier Deschamps largely modifies his team and conditions his men for an almost impossible mission. The Stade de France is transformed. Even Jano Rességuié does not recognize him:
“ When you arrive, you feel a special atmosphere. We had thought about it, with colleagues. I don’t know how to explain it, even ten years later. When we enter this stadium, the chants come very quickly in the northern bend from the supporters, in particular from the Irrésistibles (a fans association) who gave voice in an unprecedented way. Some, like Vincent Duluc (journalist at L’Équipe), assured me that the atmosphere was even higher than the 1998 World Cup final. »
In front of a white-hot audience, the Deschamps gang launches an attack on the Ukrainian cage, with two goals to go. The French play very high and logically break the deadlock: in the 22nd minute, Franck Ribéry strikes, the goalkeeper pushes back and Mamadou Sakho emerges to open the score. The Parisian by birth, holder in the absence of Koscielny, scores his first international goal.
Shortly after, Ribéry crosses again for Karim Benzema who scores. But the goal is refused for offside… non-existent. Never mind: a few minutes later, on a ball lying around, the attacker hits the mark again (34th), and this time, the referee does not invalidate. What an irony, because this time, Benzema was offside in this action! Perhaps fate wanted to restore the balance? In any case, the Blues lead 2-0, and to the cheers of the public, Brazil gets closer.
“ Tonight changed the history of the France team »
At 2-0, France still needs a goal. When the Ukrainian Yevhen Khacheridi is sent off at the start of the second half, we say to ourselves that nothing can happen to these Blues. The deliverance, however, only came in the 72nd minute, when a cross from Ribéry bounced off… the knee of Sakho, who deflected the ball into the back of the net. “ A surface fox goal », slips Jano. Not really a habit for the defender, but what does the mix of genres matter? In the stands as on the field, the French are overwhelmed with happiness: they lead 3-0 and maintain their qualification for the World Cup.
At the final whistle, jubilation and madness take hold of everyone – except for the Ukrainians, who were wiped out. The French team is in seventh heaven. This total happiness had abandoned the Blues for so long. There is the joy of qualification, and there are also these farewells to the dark clouds which have tormented French football so much in recent years. Redemption time has finally arrived. “ Everyone wanted something big to happen. Tonight changed the history of coach Deschamps and the French team », observes Jano Rességuié.
Football ” holds on to few things », recalls the journalist, who begins to imagine what would have happened if the Blues had failed: “ Deschamps would no longer have been a coach? The generation he tried to establish would have disappeared? Who would have taken over, and how would it have happened? We do not know. On the other hand, what we do know is that this France-Ukraine match was a founding match. »
Ten years later, it appears that this epic dam was the starting point of the French revival. At the 2014 World Cup, this young and inexperienced French team will do well before falling into disrepair. quarter-finals against Germany, future world champion. The Blues will then rise to Euro 2016 final at home against Portugal before winning their second world star in 2018, in Russia. And after the hiccup of Euro 2021 (defeat in the round of 16 against Switzerland), they delivered a Homeric fight in the final of the 2022 World Cup against Argentina.
To think that none of this would have been possible without this magical evening of November 19, 2013…
What happened to the players of this France-Ukraine in 2013
Hugo Lloris : the captain of the France team remained immovable in the cage until his international retirement, after the 2022 World Cup. With 145 caps, he beat the previous record held by Lilian Thuram for years (142 capes).
Mathieu Debuchy : the right back was a starter during the 2014 World Cup and honored his last cap during a friendly match in September 2015 against Serbia. Injured, he was not part of Euro 2016, and was only a reserve for the 2018 World Cup. He retired in May 2023.
Mamadou Sakho : the double scorer against Ukraine was a starter during the 2014 World Cup, his only competition with the Blues. A positive doping test deprived him of Euro 2016 and helped halt his career in Blue. A real injury, especially since the investigation showed that Sakho had not in fact broken any rules.
Raphaël Varane : arrived in the French team a few months before this match against Ukraine, the defender was an executive of the group until his international retirement, after the 2022 World Cup. He missed Euro 2016 due to injury but made a World Cup in 2018 of the highest order.
Patrice Evra : an unwilling symbol of the Knysa fiasco during the 2010 World Cup, the ex-captain of the Blues remained in the left lane of the selection until 2016. After the Euro final lost to Portugal, the defender played his 81st and final match for Blue in November 2016 against Sweden, in the 2018 World Cup qualifiers.
Paul Pogba : aged 20 and international for a few months on the evening of this France-Ukraine, he settled in the midfield of the Blues for the long term. Best young player of the 2014 World Cup, an essential part of the 2016 European vice-champions and the 2018 world champions, “La Pioche” also played Euro 2021. Serious physical problems have kept him away from the French group since the start of 2022.
Yohan Cabaye : already installed within the French team under Laurent Blanc, he remained essential under Didier Deschamps during the 2014 World Cup and Euro 2016. After this last competition, the coach favored other men for his midfielder, N ‘Golo Kanté in particular. Cabaye retired at the start of 2021 and now serves as deputy director of PSG’s training center.
Blaise Matuidi : ultra-endurable, the midfielder established himself as a potential starter for the Blues in 2013 and was involved in all the international adventures thereafter. Appreciated for his versatility and his aggressiveness, he honored his 84th and final cape at the end of 2019; after leaving for Inter Miami in the United States in the summer of 2020, he was not recalled again. In December 2022, he ended his career, becoming the first 2018 world champion to retire.
Matthew Valbuena : an element appreciated by Didier Deschamps, holder during the 2014 World Cup, the attacking midfielder found himself, in October 2015, at the heart of “the sex tape affair”. Karim Benzema, accused of “complicity in attempted blackmail”, was tried and found guilty in November 2021. The attacker received a one-year suspended prison sentence, a fine of 75,000 euros and paid 80,000 euros. to his ex-teammate. After this media and legal storm, Mathieu Valbuena no longer played with the Blues.
Franck Ribery : brilliant during this France-Ukraine despite a broken rib at the start of the match, the 2006 world vice-champion ended his international career on a false note. He had to withdraw from the 2014 World Cup due to lower back pain. A few weeks later, after criticizing the Blues’ medical staff, he announced the end of his international career, mentioning in passing that he had been disappointed by ” little things » and not feeling supported enough. Ribéry ended his career in October 2022.
Karim Benzema : author of the second goal against Ukraine, three times scorer during the 2014 World Cup, the striker stayed away from the Blues for five and a half years, between “the sex tape affair” and conflicts with the FFF and Deschamps. He was only recalled in June 2021 and took part in the Euro. That same year, Benzema won the Nations League, his only national trophy. Selected for the 2022 World Cup, he was unable to participate due to an injury. He retired from international football after the World Cup in Qatar.
Bacary Sagna (came into play) : helmed by Mathieu Debuchy, he was a substitute during the 2014 World Cup before settling in as a starter in the right lane after the competition. The defender played throughout Euro 2016 and made one last cap against Bulgaria in the fall of 2016. Benjamin Pavard and Djibril Sidibé took over from him. Bacary Sagna ended his career in 2019.
Olivier Giroud (comes into play) : the striker settled for good at the forefront of the Blues attack from 2015. Since then, and despite certain criticisms, Olivier Giroud remains a strong link in the national team. He became the top scorer during the 2022 World Cup and, at 37, he continues to improve his record (56 goals in 129 caps, current series).