French football chief condemns Chilavert’s remarks that Les Bleus are ‘a squad from Africa’
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19'
Yellow card Bradley BARCOLA (France) is booked by
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81'
Yellow card Manu KONE (France) is booked by
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90'+7'
Yellow card Michael OLISE (France) is booked by
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90'
Yellow card Carlos GONZALEZ (Paraguay) is booked by
Paraguay squad
- Selected
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2 Gustavo VELAZQUEZ Defender
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3 Omar ALDERETE Defender
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4 Juan Jose CACERES Defender
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6 Junior ALONSO Defender
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8 Diego GOMEZ Midfielder
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10 Miguel ALMIRON Midfielder
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12 Orlando GILL Goalkeeper
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14 Andres CUBAS Midfielder
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15 Gustavo GOMEZ C Defender
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19 Julio ENCISO Forward
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23 Matias GALARZA Midfielder
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1 Gatito FERNANDEZ Goalkeeper
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5 Fabian BALBUENA Defender
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7 Ramon SOSA Midfielder
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9 Antonio SANABRIA Forward
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11 MAURICIO Midfielder
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13 Jose CANALE Defender
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16 Damian BOBADILLA Midfielder
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17 Alejandro ROMERO GAMARRA Forward
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18 Alex ARCE Forward
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20 Braian OJEDA Midfielder
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21 Gabriel AVALOS Forward
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22 Gaston OLVEIRA Goalkeeper
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24 Gustavo CABALLERO Midfielder
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25 Isidro PITTA Forward
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26 Alexandro MAIDANA Defender
France squad
- Selected
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3 Lucas Digne Defender
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4 Dayot UPAMECANO Defender
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5 Jules KOUNDE Defender
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6 Manu KONE Midfielder
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7 Ousmane DEMBELE Forward
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10 Kylian MBAPPE C Forward
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11 Michael OLISE Forward
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12 Bradley BARCOLA Forward
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14 Adrien RABIOT Midfielder
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16 Mike MAIGNAN Goalkeeper
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17 William SALIBA Defender
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1 Brice SAMBA Goalkeeper
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2 Malo GUSTO Defender
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8 Aurelien TCHOUAMENI Midfielder
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9 Marcus THURAM Forward
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13 Ngolo KANTE Midfielder
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15 Ibrahima KONATE Defender
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18 Warren ZAIRE-EMERY Midfielder
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19 Theo HERNANDEZ Defender
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20 Desire DOUE Forward
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21 Lucas HERNANDEZ Defender
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22 Jean-Philippe MATETA Forward
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23 Robin RISSER Goalkeeper
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24 Rayan CHERKI Midfielder
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25 Maghnes AKLIOUCHE Midfielder
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26 Maxence Lacroix Defender
Former Paraguay goalkeeper José Luis Chilavert sparked controversy by characterizing France's national football team as representing 'a squad from Africa' ahead of a World Cup encounter between the two nations. His comment, made during a social media discussion responding to another former player, was interpreted as a critical reference to the substantial number of French players with African heritage or immigrant backgrounds.
Philippe Diallo, president of the French football federation, publicly denounced Chilavert's remarks as racist, emphasizing that such statements contradict football's foundational principles of inclusion and unity. France subsequently defeated Paraguay 1-0 on the pitch, replicating the identical scoreline from their previous fixture in 1998 when Chilavert was an active competitor.
- Former Paraguay goalkeeper Chilavert characterized France's national team as 'a squad from Africa' ahead of their World Cup match, drawing accusations of racism
- French federation president Diallo condemned the remarks as contrary to football's values of diversity and respect
- France won the subsequent match 1-0, matching their result against Paraguay in 1998
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