Deschamps follows Napoleon with enough French class to succeed in Russia | Richard Williams

Twenty years after their only World Cup success France may look at their resources and believe the time for a repeat has come

Napoleon met disaster in Russia after sending almost half a million soldiers on an invasion that began in the summer of 1812 and ended in humiliation. Didier Deschamps, with only 23 men in his Grande Armée, will be hoping for a better outcome in the coming weeks. For a start the inhabitants of Moscow are unlikely to have burnt the place to the ground by the time his squad pitch camp next week in a Hilton hotel 50km west of the city walls.

France are ranked fourth in the World Cup betting behind Brazil, Germany and Spain. Twenty years after their only success in the competition they may even be justified in examining their impressive resources and believing that the time for a repeat has finally come.

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from The Guardian https://ift.tt/2kLtClz