World Cup Profile: France – How will they shape up on the big stage?
France will be going into the World Cup on a high.
After enduring a quarter-final exit at the hands of Germany in the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, Didier Deschamps reorganised France into an synchronised unit led by Tottenham goalkeeper Hugo Lloris.
At the Euros, there were several high-profile exits from the national team, including Morgan Schneiderlin, Mathieu Valbuena, Mathieu Debuchy and most notably, Karim Benzema. This allowed the younger players to influence the game and this led to a final appearance at home for the French.
But this World Cup will see the emergence of more young talents on the global stage. Between the sticks, Hugo Lloris will lend his experience to the side, while protecting the goal will the young foursome of Raphaël Varane, Samuel Umtiti, Benjamin Mendy and Djibril Sidibé.
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The Real Madrid defender is expected to lead from the back, while Samuel Umtiti is known for his long surges forward. Down the flanks, Benjamin Mendy and Djibril Sidibé are expected to go on soaring overlapping runs.
In midfield, Paul Pogba is expected to be the principal play-maker, while N’Golo Kanté and Blaise Matuidi will also make a huge contribution to the distribution of the ball. Steven N’Zonzi and Corentin Tolisso are good options available to Didier Deschamps.
Up front, there is no dearth of pace and flair. Antoine Griezmann has had an excellent season with Atlético Madrid and will lead the line. He will be backed up by the likes of Olivier Giroud. But the real competition for a starting spot will be down the flanks.
The favourites are, of course, Kylian Mbappé and Florian Thauvin. Both of them have had terrific seasons with their respective teams in Ligue 1, scoring a combined 46 goals between themselves. But despite having an injury-blighted season, both Ousmane Dembélé and Nabil Fekir are good options.
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This France squad has the potential to make it at the World Cup. But the defence lacks experience, and Raphaël Varane has a lot of responsibility on his young shoulders. But regardless, Didier Deschamps gets it right, he can join Franz Beckenbauer in the list of people who won the World Cup both as player and manager.