Arsenal defender Laurent Koscielny admits he didn’t want France to win World Cup
The Frenchman was ruled out of Russia 2018 due to a serious achilles injury and subsequently missed out on his country's triumph
France defender Laurent Koscielny has admitted part of him wanted his country to lose the World Cup final.
The Arsenal centre-back missed out on Russia 2018 due to an achilles injury and recently revealed the psychological damage caused by Les Bleus' triumph.
"The World Cup will remain a dark spot of my career," Koscielny said.
"The injury was hard to accept. The result was even harder because they won the World Cup. I have a selfish side. I tell myself that I could have been part of the adventure and won the Cup. And I would have it in a corner of my head for the rest my life. It's difficult and no one can put themselves in my shoes.
"I was really happy for them, but also disgusted. You cannot feel like a world champion, as the 60 million French could. It's a strange feeling that during the tournament I wanted them to qualify, but at the same time I wanted them to lose. That was my feeling at the time."
The 33-year-old has not changed his mind about international retirement after the World Cup.
As Koscielny confirmed he would not play for France again, he slammed manager Didier Deschamps for a lack of support during his injury hell.
"Deschamps called me once [since the World Cup], during my birthday in September," Koscielny said. "A lot of people disappointed me, and there are lots of other coaches. It feels like a slap on the face.
"I think I gave what I could give to the French team. The national team has a very good generation with great players.
"My injury has not changed my decision: for Les Bleus it's over for me. But I remain a supporter of the French team."
Koscielny, who appeared overcome with emotion during the interview, detailed his difficult personal road back from the injury suffered against Atletico Madrid in May's Europa League clash.
"It's my first big injury, mentally you're getting very strong, you're learning a lot about football and life, I've worked every day at St-Raphael, and put my family aside," he said.
"These are things in life, and you have to face all of that, during my rehabilitation, I was selfish, I only thought of myself, and I did not pay attention to my family."