Another absence which will cause a lot of ink to flow: Kylian Mbappé is still not in the list of the French team unveiled Thursday by Didier Deschamps, who does not want to give an explanation in order to avoid “interpretations”. “Because I think it’s better that way.”only released the coach, ensuring that his decision concerning the star striker was not linked to extra-sporting reasons.
“I understand that this is not enough for you”he added to the media, who multiplied the questions on the subject without forcing the boss of the Blues to bend. “I don’t want to get into an argument that leads to interpretations. I can't tell you more.”he insisted, specifying that this absence only concerns the next two League of Nations matches against Israel, on November 14 in Saint-Denis (Stade de France), and against Italy, on the 17 in Milan. (San Siro).
“I'm not going to arguecontinued the Basque technician. I can tell you two things: one, that he wanted to come, and two, that extra-sporting problems do not come into play. There is the presumption of innocence. » “DD” alludes to the revelations of the Swedish press on the opening of a rape investigation which, according to the dailies Aftonbladet and Expressen, would target “KM” after a trip to Stockholm during the Israel – France meeting (1-4) from October 10 in Budapest.
If Mbappé had come to a pre-match press conference as often happens to the captain, there would have been no shortage of questions on this matter. The man is definitely going through a crisis. His non-presence already in October had sparked a controversy. Sparing an injury to his left thigh, he still played with his club Real Madrid in La Liga.
In addition, the player is in sporting difficulty. He has only scored one goal for more than a month and has gone through two major defeats in quick succession against FC Barcelona (0-4) and AC Milan (1-3), both time at the Santiago-Bernabéu stadium. With the Blues, he missed his European Championship in Germany and has only scored once in his last eight appearances.
Lille goalkeeper, Lucas Chevalier was called up for the first time by the A
His case overshadowed the returns of Adrien Rabiot and N'Golo Kanté as well as the first call-up of Lucas Chevalier. The Lille goalkeeper shone in the Champions League as recently as Tuesday against Juventus (1-1) at Pierre-Mauroy, where he stood up to the Turin attackers. “This is an important step for himcommented Deschamps. Already last season, he was performing well. He continues, in Ligue 1 and on the European scene. I told you at the previous gathering that it was more than close” of the national team A. Eternal number 3, Alphonse Areola, who did not play the last two games with his London club West Ham, is paying the price for this rise.
With Rabiot and Kanté, the average age goes back up
If Rabiot was not there, it is because he did not have a club in September and had only joined OM very recently before the October matches. The neo-Marseillais “finds legs”says Deschamps, who also recalled Kanté, favorite for the captain's armband after the interim of Aurélien Tchouameni, forfeited.
The coach, who wants to test a lot of players for the 2024-2026 cycle until the World Cup in North America and Mexico, is amused by the rise of “the average age with these two players”Rabiot (29 years old) and Kanté (33 years old). “Youth doesn't forbid anything, but it's good to have experience and experience. »
Otherwise, the group looks a lot like last month's, which was the first post-Antoine Griezmann.
If he wishes, despite the war in the Middle East, that France – Israel “remains a football match, without ignoring or ignoring a very tense context”Deschamps recalls his “two objectives for this gathering” : he wants “distribute playing time” et “ensure qualification for the Final 8 to be able to play for first place” against Italy.
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