PSG striker Bradley Barcola could retain his starting place in the French eleven for the match against Belgium.
A surprise starter against Poland in the last group match, Bradley Barcola is likely to play again in the round of 16 against Belgium next Monday. This is the strong trend that reigns at the moment, if we are to believe what L’Equipe reports in today’s edition.
Deschamps is won over by Barcola
Against the Poles, Barcola was not decisive. But he was impactful and often made the difference with the ball. Didier Deschamps really liked his investment, including in training where he was “the best in recent days” according to someone close to the group. It is for this reason that the coach would consider renewing him during the knockout phase.
On Tuesday, when asked on BeIn Sports about the possibility of remaining in the starting eleven, Barcola responded with great humility: “Starter until the end? Meh, I’d rather win.”
Bradley Barcola could benefit from a second consecutive start with the Blues.
Dembélé risks jumping
It now remains to be seen who Barcola could play for and in what system. If DD returns to a more balanced 4-4-2 system, the left midfield position should go to Adrien Rabiot. If so, the former Lyon player would therefore slide to the right flank. At the expense of Ousmane Dembélé, his teammate in Paris.
Otherwise, in the 4-2-3-1 pattern, Barcola would take the place of Marcus Thuram, who often moved to the left side. Offensively, he could be useful, but also defensively, because he is someone who does not shy away from the task. Was he not the one who recovered the most balls against Poland in the French camp (4)? And this is also the position he occupied for most of the season at PSG.
