'William is incredibly calm' - Deschamps praises Saliba after France debut

Didier Deschamps was happy with William Saliba's performance in his first appearance for France.

Saliba made his debut when he came off the bench just before the hour mark as France ran out 2-1 winners against Ivory Coast.

There was a mixed atmosphere at the Stade Velodrome on Friday night as a section of the home fans whistled at Paris Saint-Germain duo Presnel Kimpembe and Kylian Mbappe.

As a Marseille player, Saliba was playing on home soil and given a rousing reception, and Deschamps had no concerns about his state of mind.

"No I wasn't scared. It's good for [Saliba and Matteo Guendouzi], even if I would have preferred [the cheers] to be for everyone," he said at a press conference. 

"They are two young players who have a lot of maturity. William is incredibly calm."

Aurelien Tchouameni, who scored the winning goal for Les Bleus, played alongside Paul Pogba in midfield and Deschamps was satisfied with the result.

"Aurelien, through this match, was at a high level," he added.  "He has enormous potential with a lot of control and he had already shown it before. The young are growing and that's good. 

"With Paul, I ask them to form a pair. Aurelien has this ability in aggressiveness and recovery which is superior to Paul, who is more forward-looking. This duo worked well."