Sebastien Nogier/EPA, via Shutterstock
NICE, France — Just before France’s players disappeared into the locker room, once they had spent a few minutes picking out the faces of friends and family amid the sea of fluttering tricolors in the stands, Corinne Diacre called her squad together on the touchline.
They gathered around her, arms slung over each other’s shoulders, and crouched down low, craning their necks toward their manager, eager to hear. Photographers hovered around the edges, searching and scouring for a gap, the chance to capture the moment on camera. The phalanx held tight.
There is an air of expectation around France at this tournament.