Aurelien Tchouameni experienced a "beautiful" moment in his career with his first France goal, but he is now keen to move onto his next objective.
After establishing himself at Monaco in the 2020-21 season, Tchouameni has been producing consistently excellent displays in the heart of their midfield.
Since the start of 2021, he ranks third across all players in the top five European leagues in terms of possession won (387) and tackles won (83), while he is joint-second in terms of duels won (408).
Tchouameni was unsurprisingly drafted into the France set-up by Didier Deschamps last year, while the likes of Liverpool, Chelsea and Real Madrid have all been credited with an interest in the 22-year-old.
He opened his senior international account in his eighth appearance with a last-gasp winner in a 2-1 success over Ivory Coast on Friday but was keen to keep his feet on the ground.
"It's the fruit of my labour. I hope to remain calm. It's beautiful what's happening to me, but I have goals. Scoring my first goal was one, so now we move onto something else," Tchouameni told M6.
"The team and the staff really help me show my personality on the pitch and that's what makes me feel great on the pitch.
"In the first half, we attacked a lot and Ivory Coast had the opportunity to break through on the counter. We tightened the screws in the second half and I don't think we even conceded a single chance.
"At the end we were rewarded, and that's good."
Tchouameni's winner came after Olivier Giroud cancelled out Nicolas Pepe's opener in his first France appearance since Euro 2020.
The goal will have boosted Giroud's chances of retaining his place in Didier Deschamps' squad ahead of the World Cup in Qatar later this year.
"He did what he does with his club. He always has this quality of scoring, especially in the air. Of course, it made him happy," said Deschamps.
"He returned to the group, which he knows well, and it was all the better for us.
"When we have friendlies we must take advantage of them. There will be a second on Tuesday [against South Africa], so I will make changes to distribute the playing time to the maximum number of players."
France have now won six straight games for the first time since 2016 and are undefeated in their past 19, scoring 43 goals during that run.
Nashville SC v San Jose Earthquakes: ‘A win would change everything’ - Godoy
Anibal Godoy insists that Nashville are already looking at their game against San Jose Earthquakes on Saturday as a must-win.
Nashville have won just once in the MLS this season and sit in 14th place in the Eastern Conference after a run of four without a win.
The Earthquakes, meanwhile, are bottom of the Western Conference having lost eight of their matches and recording just one win.
Godoy is aware of how their poor start to the season could affect their playoff hopes later down the line but is confident that Nashville can turn things around.
He said: “For us, it's an important week. It's a day we have to win, or we'll start to feel the pressure from other teams as they start to separate in the table.
“This league is long but if we want to get to the playoff you have to win games early on, especially at home.”
Liverpool agree compensation deal for Slot
Liverpool and Feyenoord have reached an agreement in principle over a compensation deal for Arne Slot to become the Reds’ manager next season, according to widespread Dutch media reports.
The Dutchman is reportedly poised to take over from Jurgen Klopp, who announced in January that he would be leaving the club at the end of the campaign.
Slot led Feyenoord to their second Eredivisie title last season after taking over the club in 2021.
It is believed that he topped the list of Liverpool’s favoured candidates due to his attacking playing style and ability to develop players.
Former Liverpool midfielder, Xabi Alonso, who led Bayer Leverkusen to their first Bundesliga title, and Sporting CP’s Ruben Amorim were also reported contenders to take over from Klopp.
Slot had already confirmed his interest in managing in the Premier League, both earlier this week and previously when he was linked to Tottenham in 2023.
QPR 4-0 Leeds United: Shock loss for Farke's men seals Leicester's promotion
QPR thrashed Leeds United 4-0 in the Championship on Friday, ensuring Leicester City booked their promotion straight back to the Premier League.
Ilias Chair was the star for the Hoops as he scored the opener and assisted two more goals to ensure QPR will stay in the Championship for another season.
Lucas Andersen, Lyndon Dykes and Sam Field also got their names on the scoresheet in an emphatic win for Marti Cifuentes' side.
Leeds' heaviest defeat of the season was a huge blow in the race for an automatic promotion spot, with Ipswich Town just one point behind them in third place with two games in hand going into their away clash against Hull City on Saturday.
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
