Patrick Vieira has left ITV's World Cup coverage with immediate effect following France's elimination from the tournament. Host Mark Pougatch publicly thanked the former Arsenal midfielder for his contributions during the broadcast.
Pougatch's Farewell to Vieira
After France's 2-0 defeat to Spain in the semi-final, Pougatch turned to Vieira in the studio and said: "Patrick, it's been great to have you with us at this World Cup. Sorry you're not here this weekend." He added: "But it's been great to have you with us and thank you very much for contributions. Very, very enjoyable indeed."
Vieira had been part of ITV's punditry team alongside Roy Keane, Ian Wright, and Gary Neville. He observed the first semi-final from the studio as France were eliminated.
Spain's Victory and De la Fuente's Comments
Spain dominated the match, with Kylian Mbappe largely neutralised by the Spanish defence. Spain manager Luis de la Fuente praised his team: "We're so proud. This amazing generation of players has such a great attitude and is a role model for so many different values. We are united for a common cause. Now we have the last step, the toughest one."
He noted that Spain had planned to peak at the right time: "Of course we would have loved to win the first game but this is a process and it was all planned for us to reach these key moments in the best shape possible. Now we are in great shape, the players are very excited and we have reached a peak after this long season."
Deschamps Admits Defeat
France manager Didier Deschamps conceded his side were outplayed: "We are disappointed of course, the players are deflated. The ambition was there, we are not lacking ambition. We are a group of competitors and there are some things we didn't do well."
He added: "I don't want to take away from or throw away everything they've done so far. We should have been more dangerous on the pitch and made the game more difficult for Spain. We should have been 100% at our technical level as well as our physical level. We were not at 100% today unfortunately."
France's exit means Vieira's stint as a pundit for the tournament has ended, with ITV now preparing for the final without his analysis.
