Nations League: why Les Bleus face Türkiye in Izmit, not a bigger stadium | OneFootball

Les Bleus fly to Izmit on Thursday, ahead of their Nations League opener against Türkiye on Friday at 20:45. The tie will be staged in a modest 34,000-capacity ground more than an hour from Istanbul.

According to L'Équipe, Turkish authorities, after a particularly disappointing World Cup that ended in a first round exit with only one win, feared a strong reaction from home supporters. To limit the risk of disorder in larger arenas, the federation chose Izmit Stadium instead.

Within the France camp, especially among logistics and security staff, the choice had raised eyebrows. Some wondered if it was about shielding Zinédine Zidane from the frenzy of Istanbul or from Konya, where in June 2019 France were beaten 2-0 amid a deafening atmosphere.

Izmit Stadium opened in 2018 and is home to Kocaelispor. The club were promoted to the top flight two years ago and are currently fourth, with four wins and two defeats in six matches.

Kocaelispor also feature several players developed in France, among them Massadio Haïdara, formerly of Lens, Florian Ayé, formerly of Auxerre, and Tanguy Zoukrou, formerly of Troyes.

Source: L'Équipe

“Artificial intelligence was used to assist in creating this article based on reporting from the original source quoted.”