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While Kylian Mbappe will also be a double world champion if Les
Bleus beat Argentina in the final at the Lusail Stadium and
could win the tournament's Golden Boot, Griezmann has been the
cornerstone of France's success since Didier Deschamps took over
in 2012.
He has played in a record 73 consecutive matches for France, led
them to the Euro 2016 final, was man-of-the-match in the 2018
World Cup final and this year has seamlessly switched roles to
midfield to great effect.
A forward who was Euro 2016's top scorer and the silver boot
winner as the second-highest goalscorer at the 2018 World Cup,
Griezmann has adjusted his role after Deschamps was forced to
recalibrate his midfield due to the absences of Ngolo Kante,
Paul Pogba and Karim Benzema.
There was no sulking from Griezmann, who has been revelling in
his new role -- his guile, craft and poise making him the
perfect player to wreak havoc between the lines.
"Being well physically helps me a lot. There are no problems in
my private life," said Griezmann. "In my head I had tough
moments at Barca and last year when I came back to Atletico. It
was complicated, I had to make myself very small, I had to find
myself, on and off the pitch."
BIG AGAIN
Griezmann has grown big in stature again. Very big indeed.
"GriezmannKante", Pogba labelled his team mate on social media
after the 2-0 semi-final win against Morocco.
"He has surprised me but he has the quality and intelligence to
do it. He looks more like Kante than Griezmann," said former
Ivory Coast striker Didier Drogba.
Griezmann's joie de vivre off the pitch has also been key to
France's success. Beside being the link between the midfield and
the front line on the pitch, he has also created a great
atmosphere within the squad, bridging the young generation with
the team leaders.
The 31-year-old Griezmann has been leading the post-match
celebration dances in the dressing room to the sounds of Gala's
'Freed from desire' - yelling 'Vive la Republique , vive la
France!", .
While he has not scored in his last 15 games for France,
Griezmann has become the national team's best goal provider of
all time with 28 assists.
No wonder that he is Deschamps's main man on the pitch, the one
he discusses tactics with.
While Griezmann feels he owes Deschamps a lot for always keeping
faith with him, the coach is also aware of the player's
importance.
"He's the type of player who can really change a team because
he's so hard working and so technically gifted," said Deschamps.
"He's playing a slightly different role in this World Cup, but
it suits him well. As I said earlier, he likes defending just as
much as attacking and being a playmaker.
"Of course, his main responsibility isn't ball winning; his left
foot is so wonderful, he creates great chances for others. He's
someone who always thinks of the good of the team above
everything else. He's extremely hard working, probably more so
than most players."
(Reporting by Julien Pretot; Editing by Pritha Sarkar)
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