‘Michi’ keeps clutches on France
AS a former goalkeeper for Tivoli Gardens High School in the Manning Cup, Papa Michigan knows the importance of team chemistry. He feels France’s current World Cup line-up has that key ingredient to lift the trophy for a second-consecutive time.
“This is a very interesting World Cup… Brazil has a point to prove; Messi also has a point to prove as he has won every trophy, except the World Cup; but football is not only about skill. I like France’s chemistry and I think they can do it again on this outing,” the veteran deejay told the Jamaica Observer.
The FIFA World Cup is slated for November 20 to December 18, in Qatar. France’s first match is on November 22 against Australia.
France — affectionately referred to as Les Bleus (The Blues) — won the title in Russia in 2018. They first won the World Cup on home soil in 1998.
Papa Michigan is confident their forward line will out-gun their opponents.
“There’s Kylian Mbappé; there’s Karim Benzema, who recently won the Ballon d’Or award; there’s [Ousmane] Dembélé and a few others …that’s real fire power,” he said. “Their goalkeeper is Tottenham’s Hugo Lloris. He is a very good captain who led Tottenham in the top-four of the [English] Premier League; so we expect a good showing.”
The other forwards in the squad are: Kingsley Coman, Olivier Giroud, Antoine Griezmann and Christophe Nkunku.
While backing Les Bleus to win the tournament, he has a “sentimental attachment” to England.
“I have a soft spot for England because of Raheem Sterling, the one Jamaican who’s on that team. Sterling has a point to prove and I want him to shine, because the whole world will be watching,” said Michigan. “I hope they [England] finish better than fourth place as they did in 2018, because nuh dem invent football?”
As the custodian for Tivoli Gardens High School, Papa Michigan — given name Anthony Fairclough — lifted the Walker Cup in 1978. He also played in the 1977 and 1978 Manning Cup finals when they lost to Calabar and Camperdown, respectively.
Michigan was part of the now defunct duo Michigan and Smiley. They are known for hit songs including Diseases, Rub A Dub Style, One Love Jam Down, and Sugar Daddy.
