“England were the better team on the night” – Emmanuel Petit

on December 12, 2022 at 1:11 pm

Many England fans feel hard done by after the loss against France so we wanted to get the thoughts of a Frenchman and see who he thought deserved to win the match.

That Frenchman is none other than World Cup winner Emmanuel Petit. France’s former number 17 won a World Cup with the nation in 1998 and even scored a goal in the final that year against Brazil.

We started off by asking him for his opinion on the big game.

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What did you make of the game?

It was a very competitive game. I think England were the better team on the night and were unlucky.

In terms of competition, it was one of the best games of the World Cup. It was like throwing a coin in the air.

I can understand England’s frustration about the referee. He made several wrong decisions just like we saw in the Argentina and the other match.

It’s not completely fair to point the finger solely at the referee as they had quite a few opportunities to score and Lloris made some great saves.

Do you think it was a foul on Bukayo Saka in the lead up to the France goal?

I certainly think it was a foul on Saka. I just don’t understand why the referee didn’t have a look on the screen for a foul.

The French players are complaining about the second penalty saying they couldn’t get the ball but I don’t want to talk completely about the referee.

It was a very competitive game and you need luck and the French had it.

It’s a hard pill to swallow for England but there we go.

Were England the better team on the night?

I think England were the better team. France found it extremely tough at times and we have to thank Lloris for having the game he had.

I was worried because we were making so many mistakes in dangerous areas and so many bad interventions.

I think some players were nervous and the pressure got to them, but the defence were poor and it was clear this was the best team we have met.

We suffered yesterday and England were better. England will win a major tournament soon, for sure. Their performance at this World Cup proves this.

Does Southgate deserve to stay on?

I think Southgate deserves a shot at the next tournament.

For the last four or five years, England have been missing the last step. They just need to win a big tournament and right now they’ve not convinced they can make it.