It’s back to school for Didier Deschamps. The coach of the Blues must announce, this Thursday, August 26, the list of players selected for the three matches in September against Bosnia, Ukraine and against Finland. And he might have some new faces for this gathering.
Forgotten about the failure at the Euro and the elimination from the round of 16 against Switzerland, the France team is preparing to head back to qualifying for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. But with a group that risks being reshuffled for the occasion, even if Didier Deschamps, confirmed in his post by Noël Le Graët, should not revolutionize everything.
Fifteen months before the World Cup, he could be tempted to bring some new blood. And the oldest may have concerns, like Steve Mandanda, Moussa Sissoko and especially Olivier Giroud. The case of the second top scorer in the history of the Blues may still be debated.
End clap for Giroud?
While his lack of pace at Chelsea, where he was deprived of playing time, has often been singled out, he joined AC Milan this summer. But that might not be enough to be called. In question, the return of Karim Benzema, rare satisfaction of the Euro with four achievements, but especially his statements during the competition in the form of reproach towards Kylian Mbappé. “He knows it, I told him: he didn’t have to say that, it’s a certainty,” said in L’Equipe, the coach, who could hold it against him.
“I know very well what he did, and did very well (…) Olivier and a few others, it was in 2018, but today we are in 2021 and I am not here to give assurances to whom whatever, ”he added. And if he were to turn the page with the former Montpellier, but also with others, these will not be the only places to take.
The packages of Ousmane Dembélé and Marcus Thuram, as well as the uncertainties concerning Lucas Hernandez, Benjamin Pavard and Adrien Rabiot, who have not yet played this season, suggest opportunities for newbies. Like the possibility that Didier Deschamps decides to form an enlarged group with three meetings in just seven days. Some, like Théo Hernandez, Aurélien Tchouaméni and Romain Faivre, could then take the opportunity to know their first summons, others, like Dayot Upamecano, Houssem Aouar and Eduardo Camavinga, to make their return.