Qatar 2022: What Giroud said to me when I begged him to stop marking me —Amrabat

Sofyan Amrabat, a midfielder for Morocco, said that during their semi-final loss to France on Wednesday, he begged Olivier Giroud to stop marking him.

Didier Deschamps’ team is only the second team to reach the finals in back-to-back years, and the first in the last 60 years. The tournament winners won the second semi-final match 2-0, making them the only team to do so.

Theo Hernandez and substitute Randal Kolo Muani each scored a goal in each half to help France secure a spot in Sunday’s championship game.

Amrabat was a little taken aback by France’s strategy in the game, which even assigned Giroud to man-mark the Fiorentina midfielder.

“They ignored our center backs.” Olivier Giroud, their striker, was pursuing me all over the middle! He notified NOS.

I told him to stop, but he responded that he was required to stick with me during the entire game.