Remember the French "Four Little Swans"? They are: Benzema, Nasri, Ben Arfa and Mene. In addition to Benzema, the other three are wingers. Once upon a time, they are also the star of the French team's expectations, but now only Benzema remains in the national team.
In the 2004 European U17 Championship, the hosts, France, played superbly and won the championship with five wins. Throughout the tournament, France scored 11 goals, of which 8 were scored by the "Four Little Swans" of Nasri, Ben Arfa, Mene and Benzema. In the group stage as well as the final, they twice defeated the Spanish team led by Fabregas and Piqué, the frontrunners.
The "Four Little Swans" were originally seen as the expectation of the rise of French soccer from the beginning, but their performance in the national team was not outstanding, but the "defeated" Spanish team took the lead to rule the world. A big part of the reason is that Mene, Ben Arfa and others have a high start and low finish in their careers, and their peak period is too short.
Speaking of this issue, as one of the "four little swans" Benzema said: "In the beginning, the three of them are very talented players. And I was a little bit late compared to them. I think I'm a bit weaker in terms of talent, but I've worked hard to get where I am now. But they lacked a spiritual character. Looking back at the careers of all three, they have all won titles and played highlights games, but ultimately it is difficult to maintain a high level all the time over a period of 10 to 14 years."
Benzema's words are true. Whether it's Nasri, Ben Arfa or Mene, they've all had their share of high moments. At Manchester City, Nasri won two Premier League titles as a starter. Ben Arfa has won the Ligue 1 title with Lyon and Marseille. Mene has won 2 Ligue 1 titles for Paris.
