Deschamps keeps tight rein at Boston base, players not permitted to leave hotel | OneFootball

France have based themselves at the Four Seasons in downtown Boston for the World Cup in the United States, and Didier Deschamps is sticking to his strict policy on free time with no permission to leave the hotel. According to L'Équipe, the manager believes this generation benefits from a city-centre setting, yet movement will remain tightly controlled.

Deschamps has long argued that while a tournament is not won by a hotel choice, it can be lost by a poor one. France’s history features flashpoints over accommodation, from sharing a hotel with Italy at Mar del Plata in 1978 to the porous Sheraton Walker Hill in Seoul in 2002, where players’ families and the media mixed and nightlife sat nearby.

The Boston set-up includes a patio with sofas and relaxation space, games rooms and large televisions for PlayStation, plus proximity to Bentley University. The squad have been greeted like rock stars and are trailed by fans at training, with robust security in place, a configuration intended to reduce any sense of confinement after concerns reminiscent of Budapest in 2021.

Deschamps has rarely been lax, and even in 2018 a Moscow outing came only after senior voices pushed for it a fortnight into Istra. Despite his impending departure, his stance is unchanged, so those hoping to spot Rabiot, Lacroix and co jogging in Boston Common are likely to be disappointed. In March, some players wondered about weeks of enclosure, a stark contrast to Doha’s expansive gardens in 2022.

The staff may allow one free evening. Families are due to visit and a window of freedom is planned after the third match against Norway on 26 June. After facing Senegal on Tuesday at 21:00, the squad will return to Boston rather than remain for a possible NBA Finals Game 6 in New York between the Knicks and San Antonio.

Source: L'Équipe