New Approach: The French selector examined the captain's moment

Kylian Mbappé has not had an easy end to the season, neither individually nor collectively, with Real Madrid. However, it is time to leave everything behind and focus all his efforts on what will be his third World Cup after tasting glory in 2018 and coming close in 2022. Didier Deschamps, after what happened in Euro 2024, is fully aware that he needs the captain of 'Les Bleus' performing at his best from the very beginning. Therefore, on the eve of the friendly match against Ivory Coast, he did not hesitate to "pamper" his biggest star.

"He is in top form. It's that simple. Both physically and psychologically. I have been in constant contact with him. He has also spoken to the players, he is the captain. There's what happened at club level... and now there's the national team. With the group, with those who have been there since the first training sessions, he has made every effort," emphasized the French coach.

French media suggest that Didier Deschamps will field a lineup that, on paper, will be far from what he might put out for the World Cup debut against Senegal. However, there is no doubt that Kylian will be in the starting lineup... with the goal of surpassing Olivier Giroud as the top scorer in the history of the French national team. With 56 goals to his name, he is just one away from catching up.

One player who will not be present against Ivory Coast under any circumstances is William Saliba. In recent days, uncertainty has grown over the physical condition of the Arsenal center-back, who had been nursing ankle discomfort for weeks and pushed himself to play the full 120 minutes in the Champions League final against PSG.

He was the only one of the 26 called up by 'Les Bleus' who did not join the rest of his teammates in training. Deschamps, however, sought to calm any alarms. "I don't know what worries them. But William is fine and will be taken care of. If he had to play tomorrow, he would have. He was ready to play. But he won't play. It's a matter of management, like with the others." Initially, Konaté and Upamecano will take over the central defense.

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Nuevo enfoque: El seleccionador galo examinó el momento del capitán