In less than a month, the French XV will face Wales in the opening of the 6 Nations Tournament. For Olivier Magne, Romain Ntamack's return to number 10 is beyond doubt.
For the French XV, do the three trips planned during the 6 Nations Tournament represent an insurmountable handicap?
No. The Blues are favorites in this competition. This is all the more true after the demonstration made this fall and all these very high-level matches. The potential of this French team is quite incredible and even with three trips, the French selection is in my eyes the clear favorite of this Tournament.
Thomas Ramos, very good at opening during the fall, should he keep control of this position or give way to Romain Ntamack?
That Romain Ntamack returns to the opening is obvious to me. However, whatever his position, Thomas Ramos will be on the field. Their association offers extraordinary solutions during the match, options that will not impact the functioning of the team. This duo is lucky.
However, Romain Ntamack still seems quite far from his best level for the moment…
Above all, I believe that we are dealing with an exceptional generation, who suddenly knows how to step up when circumstances require it: on the big day, Romain will put out the right performance, I have no doubt about that. That's the characteristic of champions. […] Romain Ntamack, Antoine Dupont, Thomas Ramos are boys who are waiting for large-scale events to fully manifest themselves.
Don't you find the downgrading suffered by Matthieu Jalibert a little unfair?
Matthieu is experiencing the same thing that tennis players who grew up in the Federer-Nadal-Djokovic generation experienced. The number 9s who rub shoulders with Antoine Dupont in the championship are also in the same situation and are nevertheless very good players, who will have very good club careers. Today, Matthieu Jalibert, even if he has enormous qualities, is behind Ntamack and Ramos.
And on the front line, then? Do you believe in the return of Cyril Baille?
Clearly, yes. The theorem that I applied for Romain will apply to Cyril. If the latter does the physical preparation in full, he will be ready. Here too, the strength of the French team is impressive, Jean-Baptiste Gros having had a superb autumn with the Blues. […] On the right, Uini Atonio is still number 1 but I think it is time to reinforce Georges-Henri Colombe on the bench: he has progressed; we clearly saw it against New Zealand this fall. I hope Tevita Tatafu, who is yet to return from injury, will get his chance during the Tournament. He is a player full of promise.
What about the three-quarter center position now? The absence of Gaël Fickou, injured in his thumb, gives hope to many of his competitors…
Since last year, there has been real emulation in midfield: Yoram Moefana, Emilien Gailleton, Nicolas Depoortere and Paul Costes all have great qualities. But given what he showed in the Champions Cup with Toulouse, Pierre-Louis Barassi deserves an opportunity. Right now he's great.
In the third row, the emergence of Paul Boudehent and Alexandre Roumat is reshuffling the cards…
It's true. If there is one player that I will leave whatever happens in the starting fifteen, it is François Cros. It is essential. For the rest, deciding will be really complicated… Some are good on the ground and in the air, others are big ball carriers… So I think that Fabien Galthié will make his choices according to the opposition that will be proposed to him.
And Grégory Alldritt, then? Will he finally return to his best level, in your opinion?
I found him really good against the All Blacks: everything he did that day was perfect. When you think about it, we have become very demanding with all these players…
