World Cup 2022: France’s Pavard Accused of Creating Toxic Atmosphere

• Benjamin Pavard only played one game for France at the recently concluded FIFA World Cup
• Pavard is accused of leaking details to the media as well as making inappropriate comments
• Some members of the French team criticised Pavard for his performance in the opening game

With the French squad returning home after their World Cup adventure, stories are coming to light about some of the difficulties faced by the team in Qatar.

While their battles with illness before the final were well-documented, the squad reportedly were dealing with another toxic situation - one of their own players.

Bavarian Football Works reported that Bayern Munich’s Benjamin Pavard was a serious problem for the squad in Qatar. The publication referenced French journalist Romain Molina, who said that Pavard made inappropriate remarks about his teammates during the tournament.

He was also accused of arguing with the manager and coaching staff, and of leaking details to the media.

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Twitter account, @MiaSanMia also shared snippets of Molina's reports about the player's alleged attitude problems.

Daily Mail also reported at the beginning of the tournament that Pavard was criticised by some of his teammates for his poor performance in their opening game. The publication also noted some of the other instances where the defender and his French teammates didn’t see eye to eye.

Pavard’s limited World Cup role

As noted by Transfermarkt, Pavard only featured once for Les Bleus at the recent tournament. The defender played the opening game against Australia and was never used again, despite the team making it all the way to the final.

Pavard storms out of training

Bayern Munich defender Pavard could force a move to Chelsea in January, after storming out of the Bavarian's training session on October 31.

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Pavard was the first to leave the Allianz Arena as Bayern thrashed Mainz 6-2, despite coming on as a second-half substitute for the Bundesliga champions last weekend.

The 26-year-old, who was strongly linked with a switch to the Blues last summer, appears to be growing frustrated with how he's being treated by the German champions, Sports Brief reported.

Pavard reveals his depression battle

Earlier, Sports Brief reported on Pavard bravely opening up about his battle with depression during the Coronavirus-induced lockdown of 2020.

The Bayern Munich defender joined a growing number of professional footballers to share their experience in dealing with the effects of limited human contact.

Pavard, a member of France's 2018 World Cup winning squad, explained that the lockdown during the height of the pandemic had taken a toll on his mental health.